NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Atwater, CA
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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Atwater, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 24 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 24
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Atwater
The highest rating among the 24 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1 or EF1, reached 8 times; the most recent, on November 15, 2015, came within 15 miles. Of the 24, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on April 27, 2016. Atwater has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 73% of the 705 California cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 5 times since 1995, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Atwater has more hail reports within 10 miles than 62% of the 705 California cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Atwater
By decade
- 2010s2
- 2000s8
- 1990s7
- 1980s1
- 1970s3
- 1960s1
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 15, 2015 | EF1 | 15 mi | 3.04 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 16, 2002 | F1 | 5 mi | 1.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 22, 1996 | F1 | 9 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 14, 1995 | F1 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 4, 1978 | F1 | 14 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 4, 1978 | F1 | 23 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 22, 1967 | F1 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 1, 1958 | F1 | 13 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 27, 2016 | EF0 | 21 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 9, 2009 | EF0 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 28, 2006 | F0 | 5 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 28, 2006 | F0 | 8 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 24, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Atwater
The Storm Prediction Center has 5 hail reports within 10 miles of Atwater since 1995, made on 4 separate days. Of these, 3 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on April 12, 2012. The most recent report is from May 26, 2019.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Atwater
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Merced, CA, 7 miles southeast of Atwater at 154 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 95°F and low of 62°F; December is the coolest, at 55°F and 36°F. January is the wettest at 2.7 inches of precipitation on average and July and August the driest at 0.0 inches; the year adds up to 12.5 inches over 32 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 106 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 24 nights a year. That 12.5 inches is more than at 73 of the 226 California stations used on this site (32%). Livingston, 7 miles west, has its own station (Turlock #2, CA): 12.4 inches a year, the same as here, and a July average high of 93°F against 95°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 37 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Feb | 61 | 39 | 2.2 | 6 |
| Mar | 67 | 42 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Apr | 73 | 46 | 1.0 | 3 |
| May | 82 | 52 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Jun | 89 | 57 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Jul | 95 | 62 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Aug | 94 | 60 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Sep | 89 | 56 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Oct | 79 | 49 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Nov | 65 | 41 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Dec | 55 | 36 | 2.0 | 5 |
| Year | 75 | 48 | 12.5 | 32 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Merced, CA (154 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.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Atwater
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 61 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Atwater: 55 floods, 4 heavy rain events, 1 flash flood and 1 thunderstorm wind report. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $20.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 63 mph, on October 29, 2007.
January 9, 2023: flood 3 miles from the centre of Atwater — $10.0 million damage.
NWS: “The Merced County Emergency Manager reported that several mandatory evacuations took place in Merced County as a result of flooding, The impacted areas included Planada which was completely evacuated as well as portions of Merced.”
April 4, 2006: flood 6 miles from the centre of Atwater — $9.7 million damage.
November 30, 2012: flood 2 miles from the centre of Atwater — $120,000 damage.
NWS: “California highway patrol reported a multi-vehicle accident in heavy rain on highway 99 at west side boulevard. Involved 3 cars and a big rig.”
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 Atwater's ZIP code 95301 have filed 15 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $1.5 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from California Atmospheric River in 2023: 12 claims (80% of all) and $1.5 million. 87% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 415 California cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 51 have fewer than Atwater.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| California Atmospheric River2023 | 12 | $1.5 million |
Merced County, which includes Atwater, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 severe storms, 5 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 3, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Merced County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $204.8 million a year, the 25th highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $58.8 million (29%), 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 Atwater
- Winton, CA3 mi
- Merced, CA6 mi
- Livingston, CA7 mi
- Delhi, CA11 mi
- Hilmar, CA15 mi
- Planada, CA16 mi
- Denair, CA17 mi
- Turlock, CA17 mi
- Le Grand, CA20 mi
- Waterford, CA22 mi
- Hughson, CA22 mi
- Keyes, CA22 mi
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