NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Baird, TX
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Baird, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1886. Since 1950, 112 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 112
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Baird
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Baird; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1886, a tropical storm with 47 mph winds when its centre passed 73 miles away. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 87% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Baird. The strongest of the 112 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 28, 1950; its path came within 10 miles, and it killed 5 people. Of the 112, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 36 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 50. The most recent tornado was on May 18, 2025. Baird has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 753 Texas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 122 times since 1958, with stones up to 4.25 inches. Baird has more hail reports within 10 miles than 71% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Baird
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormAug 21 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Baird: 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 Baird
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s9(1 EF3+)
- 2000s24
- 1990s21(1 EF3+)
- 1980s23(1 EF3+)
- 1970s14(2 EF3+)
- 1960s8(2 EF3+)
- 1950s10(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 1950 | F4 | 10 mi | 1.3 mi | 5 / 5 |
| May 9, 2015 | EF3 | 20 mi | 3.79 mi | 1 / 2 |
| May 29, 1994 | F3 | 25 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 1982 | F3 | 17 mi | 40.5 mi | 0 / 14 |
| May 26, 1976 | F3 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 1976 | F3 | 10 mi | 20.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 15, 1965 | F3 | 24 mi | 9.3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 31, 1962 | F3 | 12 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 25, 2024 | EF2 | 19 mi | 2.46 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 19, 2020 | EF2 | 22 mi | 5.38 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 15, 2003 | F2 | 15 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 15, 2003 | F2 | 12 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 112, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Baird
The Storm Prediction Center has 122 hail reports within 10 miles of Baird since 1958, made on 90 separate days. Of these, 93 were 1 inch across or larger, and 11 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 4.25 inches, was reported on 2 days, most recently May 4, 2006. The most recent report is from June 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 42.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Baird
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Putnam, TX, 10 miles east of Baird at 1,621 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 96°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 57°F and 32°F. May is the wettest at 3.9 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 29.1 inches over 43 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 105 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 53 nights a year. Snowfall averages 3.8 inches a year, most of it in December. That 29.1 inches is more than at 108 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (35%). Clyde, 10 miles west, has its own station (Abilene 6ESE, TX): 27.8 inches a year, 1.3 less than here, and a July average high of 95°F against 96°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57 | 32 | 1.2 | 3 | 0.7 |
| Feb | 61 | 35 | 1.8 | 3 | 1.0 |
| Mar | 69 | 43 | 2.2 | 4 | 0.2 |
| Apr | 78 | 51 | 2.1 | 4 | 0.2 |
| May | 84 | 60 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 91 | 69 | 3.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 96 | 72 | 2.4 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 96 | 71 | 2.4 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 88 | 64 | 2.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 78 | 53 | 2.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 67 | 42 | 2.2 | 3 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 58 | 34 | 1.4 | 3 | 1.1 |
| Year | 77 | 52 | 29.1 | 43 | 3.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Putnam, TX (1,621 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 Baird
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 45 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Baird: 33 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 flash floods and 3 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $2.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 104 mph, on May 1, 2011. May has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 176 have had fewer than Baird.
May 1, 2011: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Baird — 1 injured, $2.0 million damage.
June 14, 1997: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Baird — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “The metal roof of the city hall building was picked up by the winds and landed 250 yards away. There was also wind damage to some nearby housing units.”
June 23, 2019: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Baird — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “A strong downburst of winds from a thunderstorm resulted in straight line wind damage across the town of Baird. These damaging thunderstorm winds uprooted large trees, blew down power lines and removed a few roofs from buildings.”
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
Callahan County, which includes Baird, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1990, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 fires, 5 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, on February 19, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Callahan County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail; Relatively Low for tornadoes, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $4.8 million a year, the 202nd highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.4 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 Baird
- Clyde, TX10 mi
- Cisco, TX21 mi
- Abilene, TX24 mi
- Dyess Afb, TX28 mi
- Albany, TX29 mi
- Eastland, TX33 mi
- Tuscola, TX33 mi
- Hawley, TX34 mi
- Coleman, TX34 mi
- May, TX37 mi
- Breckenridge, TX39 mi
- Merkel, TX41 mi
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