NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Berlin, CT
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
50 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Berlin, Connecticut since 1851, 11 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ida in 2021. Since 1950, 60 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 11
- Tropical storms
- 39
- Tornadoes
- 60
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Berlin
The strongest storm to pass near Berlin was an unnamed storm in 1869, a Category 3 hurricane with 115 mph winds when its centre passed 57 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Gloria in 1985, whose centre came within 7 miles. The record near Berlin begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Ida in 2021, a tropical storm 66 miles away. The 1860s and the 1890s were the busiest decades, with 5 systems each. Of the 50 systems, 7 have come since 2000. Berlin has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 53% of the 186 Connecticut cities on this site. The highest rating among the 60 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on July 10, 1989, came within 18 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on October 3, 1979, killed 3 people. Of the 60, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 22 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on June 21, 2024. Berlin has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 77% of the 186 Connecticut cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 51 times since 1960, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Berlin has more hail reports within 10 miles than 68% of the 186 Connecticut cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Berlin
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | IdaSep 2 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2021 | HenriAug 22 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 8 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2011 | IreneAug 28 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2008 | HannaSep 7 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2007 | BarryJun 4 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1999 | FloydSep 17 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 13 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1991 | BobAug 19 | 67 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 7 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1985 | HenriSep 24 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1976 | BelleAug 10 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 22 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1961 | Unnamed 1961 stormSep 15 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | DonnaSep 12 | 28 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | overhead | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | DianeAug 19 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1954 | CarolAug 31 | 44 mi | Category 3 (113 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormSep 15 | 55 mi | Category 2 (101 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1938 | Unnamed 1938 stormSep 21 | 8 mi | Category 2 (108 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormSep 9 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 20 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 5 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1908 | Unnamed 1908 stormMay 30 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 61 mi | Category 1 (82 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 24 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 10 | 26 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 24 | 38 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 12 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 22 | overhead | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 24 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 5 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 30 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 27 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1869 | Unnamed 1869 stormSep 8 | 57 mi | Category 3 (115 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1866 | Unnamed 1866 stormOct 30 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 19 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormNov 3 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 28 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1858 | Unnamed 1858 stormSep 16 | 42 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormOct 19 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Berlin: 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 Berlin
By decade
- 2020s5
- 2010s13
- 2000s4
- 1990s6
- 1980s6(1 EF3+)
- 1970s12(2 EF3+)
- 1960s5(1 EF3+)
- 1950s9(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 3, 1979 | F4 | 19 mi | 11.3 mi | 3 / 500 |
| Jul 10, 1989 | F4 | 18 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 40 |
| May 24, 1962 | F3 | 6 mi | 11.6 mi | 1 / 50 |
| Jul 29, 1971 | F3 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Aug 21, 1951 | F3 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Jun 23, 2001 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 10, 1989 | F2 | 14 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 70 |
| Jul 10, 1989 | F2 | 25 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jul 5, 1984 | F2 | 8 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 18, 1973 | F2 | 7 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 6, 1973 | F2 | 18 mi | 3.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 31, 1973 | F2 | 8 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 60, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Berlin
The Storm Prediction Center has 51 hail reports within 10 miles of Berlin since 1960, made on 34 separate days. Of these, 23 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 5 days, most recently May 26, 2010. The most recent report is from August 26, 2024. June has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Berlin
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Meriden Markham Municipal Airport, CT, 8 miles south of Berlin at 103 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 37°F and 19°F. October is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 45.0 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (23.2 of 45.0 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 50 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (22); a normal September there has highs of 75°F and 4.3 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 15 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 129 nights a year. That 45.0 inches is more than at 6 of the 27 Connecticut stations used on this site (22%). New Britain, 4 miles north, has its own station (Hartford Brainard Field, CT): 42.9 inches a year, 2.1 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 84°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station New Haven, CT, 24 miles south, averaged 75°F in August and 37°F in February over 2021–2025. No month averaged 80°F. Sea level at the Bridgeport tide gauge, 38 miles from Berlin, has risen 1.35 ± 0.08 inches per decade from 1964 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 13.5 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 81 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 37 | 19 | 3.1 | 5 | 39 |
| Feb | 39 | 20 | 2.9 | 5 | 37 |
| Mar | 48 | 28 | 4.1 | 6 | 41 |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 4.1 | 7 | 48 |
| May | 70 | 48 | 3.5 | 7 | 57 |
| Jun | 79 | 57 | 4.1 | 7 | 65 |
| Jul | 84 | 63 | 3.4 | 6 | 74 |
| Aug | 82 | 61 | 3.5 | 6 | 75 |
| Sep | 75 | 54 | 4.3 | 5 | 72 |
| Oct | 64 | 42 | 4.5 | 6 | 63 |
| Nov | 52 | 32 | 3.4 | 6 | 53 |
| Dec | 42 | 25 | 4.1 | 7 | 43 |
| Year | 61 | 40 | 45.0 | 74 | 56 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Meriden Markham Municipal Airport, CT (103 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station New Haven, CT, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Berlin
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 212 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Berlin: 134 thunderstorm wind reports, 40 flash floods, 25 floods and 13 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $2.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 110 mph, on July 21, 2010. September has had the most flash floods, 18 of 40. Of the 186 Connecticut cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 118 have had fewer than Berlin.
June 22, 2024: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Berlin — 3 injured.
July 15, 2002: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Berlin — 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
June 26, 2009: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Berlin — $250,000 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 Berlin's ZIP code 06037 have filed 67 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $414,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1992: 19 claims (28% of all) and $115,000, then Not a named storm in 1982 with 13. 58% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 128 Connecticut cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 69 have fewer than Berlin.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1992 | 19 | $115,000 |
| Not a named storm1982 | 13 | $63,000 |
Hartford County, which includes Berlin, has been named in 30 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1978, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 hurricanes, 8 snowstorms, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Isaias, on January 12, 2021.
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).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Berlin
- New Britain, CT4 mi
- Cromwell, CT5 mi
- Newington, CT5 mi
- Southington, CT5 mi
- Meriden, CT6 mi
- Plainville, CT6 mi
- Rocky Hill, CT6 mi
- Middletown, CT7 mi
- Plantsville, CT7 mi
- Wethersfield, CT7 mi
- Middlefield, CT8 mi
- Farmington, CT8 mi
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