NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bowie, 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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Bowie, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Carla in 1961. Since 1950, 95 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 95
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
11 deaths in all
What the records show for Bowie
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Bowie; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 51 mph winds when its centre passed 5 miles away. The record near Bowie begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was Carla in 1961, a tropical storm 37 miles away. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 84% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Bowie. The highest rating among the 95 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 7 times; the most recent, on May 25, 2024, came within 8 miles. Of the 95, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 33 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 39. The most recent tornado was on April 19, 2025. Of the 753 Texas cities, 57% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Bowie. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 201 times since 1955, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Bowie has more hail reports within 10 miles than 86% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bowie
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 10 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bowie: 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 Bowie
By decade
- 2020s17(2 EF3+)
- 2010s10
- 2000s6
- 1990s24(1 EF3+)
- 1980s5(1 EF3+)
- 1970s15(1 EF3+)
- 1960s8
- 1950s10(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 25, 2024 | EF3 | 8 mi | 47.27 mi | 7 / 80 |
| May 7, 1995 | F3 | 21 mi | 26 mi | 2 / 11 |
| Mar 21, 2022 | EF3 | 9 mi | 34.5 mi | 0 / 9 |
| May 14, 1986 | F3 | 19 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 19, 1976 | F3 | 23 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 2, 1958 | F3 | 8 mi | 18.2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 6, 1955 | F3 | 10 mi | 21.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1965 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 26, 1964 | F2 | 19 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 6, 1963 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 3, 1959 | F2 | 3 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 1954 | F2 | 14 mi | 1.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 95, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bowie
The Storm Prediction Center has 201 hail reports within 10 miles of Bowie since 1955, made on 106 separate days. Of these, 140 were 1 inch across or larger, and 23 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on April 11, 2016. The most recent report is from September 23, 2025. April has the most reports, 75.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bowie
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Bowie, TX, 2 miles east of Bowie at 1,080 feet. July and August are the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 30°F. May is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 35.2 inches over 50 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 83 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 64 nights a year. Snowfall averages 0.7 inches a year, most of it in January. That 35.2 inches is more than at 153 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (49%). Sunset, 9 miles southeast, has its own station (Alvord 3 N, TX): 35.3 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and a July average high of 95°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 30 | 1.6 | 3 | 0.4 |
| Feb | 58 | 34 | 2.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 67 | 42 | 3.0 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 74 | 50 | 3.0 | 4 | 0.0 |
| May | 81 | 59 | 5.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 89 | 68 | 4.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 93 | 72 | 2.6 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 94 | 71 | 2.5 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 86 | 64 | 3.2 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 76 | 52 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 41 | 2.1 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 55 | 32 | 2.1 | 3 | 0.3 |
| Year | 74 | 51 | 35.2 | 50 | 0.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Bowie, TX (1,080 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 Bowie
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 68 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bowie: 44 thunderstorm wind reports, 17 flash floods, 5 floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $6.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on May 22, 2020. May has had the most flash floods, 7 of 17. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 375 have had fewer than Bowie.
March 29, 2007: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of Bowie — 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “Two transformers were knocked out by lightning. An electrical worker burned his retinas as an arc came off the wires while he was repairing them.”
May 22, 2020: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Bowie — $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “Flash flooding occurred across much of the southern half of Montague County after training strong storms produced up to 7 inches of rainfall. In Bowie, many streets were flooded and some buildings were flooded, too.”
May 22, 2020: thunderstorm wind in Bowie — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Damaging straight line winds affected most of the western, northern and central portions of the City of Bowie. Straight-line wind damage was also observed northeast of Bowie along Highway 59, extending almost to the City of Montague.”
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 Bowie's ZIP code 76230 have filed 51 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $788,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1990: 23 claims (45% of all) and $364,000. 59% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 433 Texas cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 168 have fewer than Bowie.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1990 | 23 | $364,000 |
Montague County, which includes Bowie, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1981, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 fires, 5 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 3 ice storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 17, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Montague County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Low for hail 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 $15.6 million a year, the 105th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.1 million (20%), 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 Bowie
- Sunset, TX9 mi
- Alvord, TX17 mi
- Chico, TX17 mi
- Nocona, TX22 mi
- Henrietta, TX23 mi
- Bridgeport, TX24 mi
- Decatur, TX27 mi
- Jacksboro, TX28 mi
- Muenster, TX30 mi
- Paradise, TX30 mi
- Poolville, TX37 mi
- Boyd, TX37 mi
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