NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bedford, IN
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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Bedford, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 86 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 86
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Bedford
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Bedford; the strongest was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm with 46 mph winds when its centre passed 53 miles away. The record near Bedford begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Helene in 2024. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 88% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Bedford. The highest rating among the 86 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 2, 1990, came within 15 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on June 2, 1990, killed 1 person. Of the 86, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 49 have come since 2000. April and May have had the most tornadoes, 17 each. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Of the 356 Indiana cities, 79% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Bedford. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 73 times since 1971, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Bedford has more hail reports within 10 miles than 60% of the 356 Indiana cities.
Compare Bedford's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bedford
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 28 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bedford: 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 Bedford
By decade
- 2020s17
- 2010s22(1 EF3+)
- 2000s10(2 EF3+)
- 1990s14(4 EF3+)
- 1980s3
- 1970s12(1 EF3+)
- 1950s8
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 2 mi | 11 mi | 1 / 51 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 15 mi | 106 mi | 1 / 12 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 10 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 9 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 11 mi | 35.8 mi | 1 / 26 |
| May 25, 2011 | EF3 | 6 mi | 6.75 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 8, 2009 | EF3 | 6 mi | 1.06 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 15, 2005 | F3 | 22 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 31 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F3 | 21 mi | 41 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF2 | 18 mi | 35.27 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2025 | EF2 | 18 mi | 57.49 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 15, 2019 | EF2 | 19 mi | 3.52 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 1, 2017 | EF2 | 25 mi | 0.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 86, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bedford
The Storm Prediction Center has 73 hail reports within 10 miles of Bedford since 1971, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 45 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on May 25, 2011. The most recent report is from April 30, 2025. May has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bedford
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Oolitic Purdue Ex Fm, IN, 5 miles west of Bedford at 652 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 21°F. May is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.8 inches; the year adds up to 48.1 inches over 81 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 119 nights a year. Snowfall averages 16.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 48.1 inches is more than at 91 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (79%). Springville, 11 miles northwest, has its own station (Bedford 5 WNW, IN): 48.7 inches a year, 0.6 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 21 | 3.4 | 6 | 5.1 |
| Feb | 43 | 23 | 2.8 | 6 | 4.7 |
| Mar | 53 | 31 | 3.9 | 7 | 2.1 |
| Apr | 65 | 41 | 5.1 | 9 | 0.1 |
| May | 74 | 52 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 82 | 61 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 64 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 55 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 43 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 42 | 25 | 3.5 | 7 | 4.2 |
| Year | 64 | 42 | 48.1 | 81 | 16.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Oolitic Purdue Ex Fm, IN (652 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 Bedford
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 165 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bedford: 118 thunderstorm wind reports, 25 floods, 19 flash floods, 2 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 3 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $32.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 82 mph, on April 2, 2006. May has had the most flash floods, 7 of 19. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 249 have had fewer than Bedford.
March 9, 2026: flood 9 miles from the centre of Bedford — 2 killed, $20,000 damage.
March 12, 2006: flood in Bedford — 1 killed, $100,000 damage.
June 7, 2008: flood 8 miles from the centre of Bedford — $30.0 million 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 Bedford's ZIP code 47421 have filed 35 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $889,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 11% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 66 have fewer than Bedford.
Lawrence County, which includes Bedford, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 17 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on July 22, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lawrence County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $16.3 million a year, the 35th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.5 million (52%), 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.