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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Agawam, MA

Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.

Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated

43 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Agawam, Massachusetts since 1851, 8 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Henri in 2021. Since 1950, 58 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
8

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
35

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
58

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
4

6 deaths in all

What the records show for Agawam

The strongest storm to pass near Agawam was an unnamed storm in 1869, a Category 2 hurricane with 108 mph winds when its centre passed 59 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Gloria in 1985, whose centre came within 2 miles. The record near Agawam begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Henri in 2021, a tropical storm 51 miles away. The 1860s and the 1890s were the busiest decades, with 5 systems each. Of the 43 systems, 6 have come since 2000. Of the 346 Massachusetts cities on this site, 76% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Agawam. The strongest of the 58 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on October 3, 1979; its path came within 4 miles, and it killed 3 people. The deadliest, an EF3 on June 1, 2011, killed 3 people. Of the 58, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 16 have come since 2000. June and August have had the most tornadoes, 14 each. The most recent tornado was on July 18, 2021. Agawam has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 73% of the 346 Massachusetts cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 182 times since 1961, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Agawam has more hail reports within 10 miles than 99% of the 346 Massachusetts cities.

Compare Agawam's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Agawam

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Agawam, Massachusetts, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2021HenriAug 2251 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
2021ElsaJul 966 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 1
2013AndreaJun 867 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
2011IreneAug 2833 miTropical storm (59 mph)Category 3
2008HannaSep 741 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
2007BarryJun 470 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1999FloydSep 1721 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1996BerthaJul 1324 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1985GloriaSep 272 miCategory 1 (85 mph)Category 4
1976BelleAug 102 miTropical storm (49 mph)Category 3
1971DoriaAug 2820 miTropical storm (55 mph)Tropical storm
1968Unnamed 1968 stormSep 1111 miTropical storm (61 mph)Tropical storm
1961Unnamed 1961 stormSep 1527 miTropical storm (64 mph)Tropical storm
1960DonnaSep 1237 miCategory 1 (84 mph)Category 4
1960BrendaJul 3011 miTropical storm (51 mph)Tropical storm
1954CarolAug 3144 miCategory 2 (107 mph)Category 3
1952AbleSep 216 miTropical storm (51 mph)Category 2
1944Unnamed 1944 stormSep 1570 miCategory 2 (96 mph)Category 5
1938Unnamed 1938 stormSep 2118 miCategory 2 (99 mph)Category 5
1934Unnamed 1934 stormSep 918 miTropical storm (51 mph)Category 2
1924Unnamed 1924 stormSep 3029 miTropical storm (64 mph)Category 1
1916Unnamed 1916 stormMay 1741 miTropical storm (58 mph)Tropical storm
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 521 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1908Unnamed 1908 stormMay 3051 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1902Unnamed 1902 stormJun 1653 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1899Unnamed 1899 stormNov 152 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 2
1897Unnamed 1897 stormSep 2446 miTropical storm (49 mph)Tropical storm
1894Unnamed 1894 stormOct 1035 miTropical storm (67 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2936 miTropical storm (62 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2437 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 3
1888Unnamed 1888 stormSep 1250 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1888Unnamed 1888 stormAug 2226 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1882Unnamed 1882 stormSep 2474 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1878Unnamed 1878 stormOct 2449 miTropical storm (64 mph)Category 2
1874Unnamed 1874 stormSep 3013 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1
1872Unnamed 1872 stormOct 2748 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1869Unnamed 1869 stormSep 859 miCategory 2 (108 mph)Category 3
1866Unnamed 1866 stormOct 3057 miTropical storm (54 mph)Tropical storm
1863Unnamed 1863 stormSep 1945 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1861Unnamed 1861 stormNov 354 miTropical storm (61 mph)Category 1
1861Unnamed 1861 stormSep 285 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 1
1858Unnamed 1858 stormSep 1646 miCategory 1 (78 mph)Category 2
1851Unnamed 1851 stormOct 1953 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Agawam: 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 Agawam

By decade

  • 2020s2
  • 2010s9(1 EF3+)
  • 2000s5
  • 1990s3
  • 1970s13(2 EF3+)
  • 1960s10
  • 1950s16(1 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Agawam, Massachusetts
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Oct 3, 1979F44 mi11.3 mi3 / 500
Jun 1, 2011EF32 mi37.58 mi3 / 200
Sep 13, 1971F318 mi0.5 mi0 / 0
May 10, 1954F313 mi0.3 mi0 / 2
Jul 24, 1975F23 mi0.3 mi0 / 0
Sep 6, 1973F219 mi3.3 mi0 / 0
Aug 31, 1973F224 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Aug 11, 1966F29 mi5.6 mi0 / 0
Aug 11, 1966F224 mi10.7 mi0 / 0
Aug 19, 1965F210 mi6.6 mi0 / 0
May 20, 1963F223 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Jul 21, 1961F216 mi4.9 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 58, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Agawam

The Storm Prediction Center has 182 hail reports within 10 miles of Agawam since 1961, made on 99 separate days. Of these, 62 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 26, 2011. The most recent report is from September 6, 2025. June has the most reports, 52.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Agawam

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Westfield Barnes Municipal Airport, MA, 8 miles northwest of Agawam at 271 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 16°F. October is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 45.3 inches over 78 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 55% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 45.3 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 43 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (19); a normal September there has highs of 75°F and 4.6 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 144 nights a year. That 45.3 inches is more than at 14 of the 65 Massachusetts stations used on this site (22%). Longmeadow, 3 miles southeast, has its own station (Hartford Bradley International Airport, CT): 47.1 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Westfield Barnes Municipal Airport, MA
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"
Jan35162.85
Feb38172.66
Mar47263.46
Apr60354.17
May72463.78
Jun80554.48
Jul85614.27
Aug83593.77
Sep75514.66
Oct63394.77
Nov51303.56
Dec40223.67
Year613845.378

Averages for 1991–2020 at Westfield Barnes Municipal Airport, MA (271 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.

Massachusetts weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Agawam

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 444 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Agawam: 329 thunderstorm wind reports, 63 floods, 30 flash floods and 22 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 16, and the NWS estimated $11.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on February 22, 1997. July has had the most flash floods, 16 of 30. Of the 339 Massachusetts cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 264 have had fewer than Agawam.

  • July 8, 2004: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Agawam — 6 injured.

  • March 7, 2011: flood 9 miles from the centre of Agawam — 3 injured.

  • June 29, 2021: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Agawam — 2 injured, $15,000 damage.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.

Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings

Flood insurance policyholders in Agawam's ZIP code 01001 have filed 52 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $138,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1984, with 28. 15% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 229 Massachusetts cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 135 have fewer than Agawam.

Hampden County, which includes Agawam, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1985, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 6 severe storms, 6 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 27, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hampden County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hurricanes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $106.7 million a year, the 7th highest of 14 Massachusetts counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $74.6 million (70%), is from inland flooding.

Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.

Cities near Agawam