NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bayfield, WI
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 Bayfield, Wisconsin since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 2 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 2
- 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 Bayfield
The highest rating among the 2 tornadoes within 25 miles is F0 or EF0, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 11, 2014, came within 19 miles. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site, 100% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Bayfield. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 11 times since 1989, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 100% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Bayfield.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Bayfield
By decade
- 2010s1
- 1980s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 11, 2014 | EF0 | 19 mi | 0.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 3, 1983 | F0 | 19 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 2 of 2, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bayfield
The Storm Prediction Center has 11 hail reports within 10 miles of Bayfield since 1989, made on 10 separate days. Of these, 9 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on July 26, 2019. The most recent report is from June 21, 2020. June has the most reports, 5.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bayfield
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Bayfield 6 N, WI, 3 miles northeast of Bayfield at 820 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 77°F and low of 56°F; January is the coolest, at 22°F and 7°F. July is the wettest at 4.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.1 inches; the year adds up to 33.2 inches over 73 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 2 days a year. Lows fall below freezing on about 177 nights a year. Snowfall averages 106.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 33.2 inches is more than at 44 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (27%). Washburn, 12 miles south, has its own station (Ashland Kennedy Mem Airport, WI): 27.8 inches a year, 5.4 less than here, and a July average high of 79°F against 77°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22 | 7 | 1.7 | 6 | 29.5 |
| Feb | 26 | 8 | 1.1 | 4 | 15.8 |
| Mar | 37 | 18 | 1.6 | 4 | 14.6 |
| Apr | 49 | 30 | 3.1 | 6 | 5.1 |
| May | 63 | 41 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.8 |
| Jun | 71 | 49 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 77 | 56 | 4.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 76 | 56 | 3.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 68 | 48 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 54 | 38 | 3.2 | 7 | 1.0 |
| Nov | 40 | 26 | 2.4 | 5 | 13.3 |
| Dec | 28 | 15 | 1.9 | 5 | 26.2 |
| Year | 51 | 33 | 33.2 | 73 | 106.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Bayfield 6 N, WI (820 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 Bayfield
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 36 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bayfield: 32 thunderstorm wind reports, 3 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $2.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 30, 2006.
June 30, 2018: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Bayfield — 3 injured.
NWS: “Lightning struck a tree in Big Bay Town Park. The current then traveled through the root system and struck a woman getting into her vehicle, throwing her to the ground.”
July 30, 2006: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Bayfield — 2 injured, $1.5 million damage.
NWS: “Downburst winds hit the Bayfield waterfront where an art fair was in progress at Memorial Park. Most of the ninety fair tents were demolished and art pieces were tossed into Lake Superior.”
June 17, 2006: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Bayfield — $400,000 damage.
NWS: “Major wind damage to docks and a few boats occurred at two marinas. Many docks were destroyed.”
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
Bayfield County, which includes Bayfield, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Bayfield County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.3 million a year, the 65th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.2 million (35%), 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 Bayfield
- Washburn, WI12 mi
- Ashland, WI19 mi
- Iron River, WI33 mi
- Silver Bay, MN37 mi
- Two Harbors, MN41 mi
- Ironwood, MI42 mi
- Hurley, WI43 mi
- Bessemer, MI46 mi
- Wakefield, MI52 mi
- Solon Springs, WI53 mi
- South Range, WI55 mi
- Duluth, MN60 mi
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