NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lake Charles, LA
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
41 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lake Charles, Louisiana since 1851, 14 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Delta in 2020. Since 1950, 143 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 14
- Tropical storms
- 27
- Tornadoes
- 143
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lake Charles
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | DeltaOct 9 | 20 mi | Category 1 (87 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | LauraAug 27 | 5 mi | Category 4 (135 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2019 | BarryJul 14 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2017 | HarveyAug 30 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2017 | CindyJun 22 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2011 | LeeSep 4 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | GustavSep 2 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2008 | EdouardAug 5 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2007 | HumbertoSep 13 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2005 | RitaSep 24 | 41 mi | Category 2 (101 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2002 | LiliOct 3 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1986 | BonnieJun 26 | 68 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1985 | JuanOct 30 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1985 | DannyAug 15 | 33 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1982 | ChrisSep 11 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1980 | DanielleSep 5 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1979 | ClaudetteJul 24 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1978 | DebraAug 29 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1974 | CarmenSep 8 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1971 | EdithSep 16 | 43 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1957 | BerthaAug 10 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 27 | 23 mi | Category 2 (106 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1955 | Unnamed 1955 stormAug 27 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | BarbaraJul 29 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 20 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1940 | Unnamed 1940 stormSep 24 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1940 | Unnamed 1940 stormAug 7 | 52 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1938 | Unnamed 1938 stormAug 15 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormAug 27 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1918 | Unnamed 1918 stormAug 6 | 13 mi | Category 2 (107 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1908 | Unnamed 1908 stormAug 1 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1905 | Unnamed 1905 stormSep 29 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 20 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 13 | 43 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormOct 13 | 24 mi | Category 1 (85 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 14 | 13 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 15 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormAug 23 | 64 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1875 | Unnamed 1875 stormSep 18 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1865 | Unnamed 1865 stormSep 13 | 15 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 30 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lake Charles: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Lake Charles
By decade
- 2020s23
- 2010s30
- 2000s12
- 1990s23(1 EF3+)
- 1980s19
- 1970s17(2 EF3+)
- 1960s13
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 21, 1992 | F3 | 11 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 17, 1973 | F3 | 4 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 12, 1971 | F3 | 1 mi | 3.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 4, 1952 | F3 | 21 mi | 36.7 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Oct 11, 1970 | F2 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 1 / 2 |
| May 13, 2024 | EF2 | 6 mi | 3.44 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 10, 2024 | EF2 | 2 mi | 1.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 24, 2023 | EF2 | 21 mi | 25.21 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jan 24, 2023 | EF2 | 14 mi | 12.43 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Oct 27, 2021 | EF2 | 4 mi | 2.2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 2, 1999 | F2 | 18 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 2, 1999 | F2 | 18 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 143, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
How to read this page
A storm is listed when the centre of its track passed within 75 miles of Lake Charles while it was at least a tropical storm, which is the reach of damaging wind and rain for a typical hurricane. Being on the list does not mean the city took a direct hit; the "closest" column says how near the centre came. Tornadoes are counted when any part of the path came within 25 miles.
Tornado records before the 1990s are thinner, because weak tornadoes in open country often went unreported before Doppler radar and mobile phones. A rise in the decade counts is mostly better reporting, not a change in the weather.
Tracks come from the National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database, tornadoes from the Storm Prediction Center's database. Both are the official federal records and both are revised as old storms are re-analysed.