NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Big Flats, NY
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
9 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Big Flats, New York since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Frances in 2004. Since 1950, 20 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 8
- Tornadoes
- 20
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Big Flats
The strongest storm to pass near Big Flats was Hazel in 1954, a Category 1 hurricane with 77 mph winds when its centre passed 47 miles away. The record near Big Flats begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Frances in 2004, a tropical storm 58 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1970s, with 2 systems. Of the 9 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 809 New York cities on this site, 49% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Big Flats. The highest rating among the 20 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 2, 1983, came within 16 miles. The deadliest, an F1 on August 28, 1988, killed 1 person. Of the 20, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 7. The most recent tornado was on September 2, 2014. Of the 809 New York cities, 76% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Big Flats. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 80 times since 1968, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Big Flats has more hail reports within 10 miles than 88% of the 809 New York cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Big Flats
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | FrancesSep 9 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 23 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 16 | 47 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 17 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 14 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 14 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Big Flats: 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 Big Flats
By decade
- 2010s8
- 2000s2
- 1990s3
- 1980s4(2 EF3+)
- 1970s1
- 1960s1
- 1950s1(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 1983 | F3 | 24 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 2, 1983 | F3 | 16 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Aug 30, 1955 | F3 | 12 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF2 | 13 mi | 0.86 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 1990 | F2 | 24 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 2, 1983 | F2 | 20 mi | 9.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 1988 | F1 | 24 mi | 13 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Aug 7, 1972 | F1 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Sep 2, 2014 | EF1 | 13 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 13, 2014 | EF1 | 19 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 26, 2012 | EF1 | 13 mi | 13.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 26, 2012 | EF1 | 4 mi | 8.81 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 20, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Big Flats
The Storm Prediction Center has 80 hail reports within 10 miles of Big Flats since 1968, made on 38 separate days. Of these, 54 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on July 3, 1975. The most recent report is from February 21, 2023. June has the most reports, 29.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Big Flats
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Elmira Corning Regional Airport, NY, 3 miles east of Big Flats at 955 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 16°F. August is the wettest at 3.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 32.4 inches over 73 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 12 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 153 nights a year. That 32.4 inches is more than at 4 of the 137 New York stations used on this site (3%). Corning, 5 miles west, has its own station (Corning, NY): 38.9 inches a year, 6.5 more than here, and a July average high of 79°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 16 | 1.7 | 5 |
| Feb | 36 | 17 | 1.3 | 4 |
| Mar | 45 | 24 | 2.4 | 5 |
| Apr | 58 | 34 | 2.8 | 7 |
| May | 70 | 44 | 3.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 78 | 54 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Jul | 82 | 58 | 3.4 | 7 |
| Aug | 81 | 57 | 3.6 | 7 |
| Sep | 73 | 49 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Oct | 61 | 39 | 3.0 | 7 |
| Nov | 49 | 30 | 2.2 | 5 |
| Dec | 39 | 23 | 2.0 | 5 |
| Year | 59 | 37 | 32.4 | 73 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Elmira Corning Regional Airport, NY (955 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 Big Flats
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 220 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Big Flats: 192 thunderstorm wind reports, 26 flash floods and 2 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $2.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 71 mph, on July 21, 2003. August has had the most flash floods, 13 of 26. Of the 798 New York cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 418 have had fewer than Big Flats.
June 27, 2002: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Big Flats — 4 injured, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “Strong thunderstorm winds took down a tree on church Street in Elmira. The snapped off 6 feet from the ground.”
May 18, 2000: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Big Flats — 1 injured.
September 7, 2011: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Big Flats — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Major flash flooding took place across most of the small streams, creeks and poor drainage areas in eastern Chemung County. Many roads and bridges were washed out.”
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 Big Flats's ZIP code 14814 have filed 27 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $138,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 22% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 549 New York cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 169 have fewer than Big Flats.
Chemung County, which includes Big Flats, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 20, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Chemung County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.1 million a year, the 51st highest of 62 New York counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $14.2 million (79%), 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 Big Flats
- Corning, NY5 mi
- Horseheads, NY6 mi
- Pine City, NY7 mi
- Elmira, NY8 mi
- Painted Post, NY9 mi
- Beaver Dams, NY9 mi
- Millerton, PA14 mi
- Campbell, NY14 mi
- Erin, NY15 mi
- Montour Falls, NY15 mi
- Watkins Glen, NY16 mi
- Lawrenceville, PA16 mi
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