NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bradford, VT
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
21 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Bradford, Vermont since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isaias in 2020. Since 1950, 15 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 20
- Tornadoes
- 15
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Bradford
The strongest storm to pass near Bradford was Carol in 1954, a Category 1 hurricane with 83 mph winds when its centre passed 44 miles away. The record near Bradford begins with an unnamed storm in 1858; the most recent system was Isaias in 2020, a tropical storm 44 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 4 systems. Of the 21 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 75 Vermont cities on this site, 36% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Bradford. The strongest of the 15 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on August 25, 1969; its path came within 23 miles. Of the 15, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 6 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 5. The most recent tornado was on July 16, 2024. Bradford has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 72% of the 75 Vermont cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 23 times since 1957, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 75 Vermont cities, 73% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Bradford.
Compare Bradford's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bradford
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 5 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2011 | IreneAug 28 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | overhead | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 31 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | CarolAug 31 | 44 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1938 | Unnamed 1938 stormSep 22 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormSep 9 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 3 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 10 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 24 | overhead | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 30 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1866 | Unnamed 1866 stormOct 30 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1858 | Unnamed 1858 stormSep 16 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bradford: 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 Bradford
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s3
- 2000s2
- 1980s1
- 1970s4
- 1960s4(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 1969 | F3 | 23 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 11, 1966 | F2 | 3 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 16, 2024 | EF1 | 10 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 9, 2009 | EF1 | 16 mi | 0.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 19, 1982 | F1 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1972 | F1 | 1 mi | 3.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1972 | F1 | 24 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1972 | F1 | 25 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 14, 1963 | F1 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 18, 2018 | EF0 | 22 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 18, 2018 | EF0 | 13 mi | 9.45 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 3, 2010 | EF0 | 24 mi | 0.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 15, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bradford
The Storm Prediction Center has 23 hail reports within 10 miles of Bradford since 1957, made on 17 separate days. Of these, 16 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on August 24, 1998. The most recent report is from August 4, 2023. July has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bradford
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Benton 5 SW, NH, 11 miles east of Bradford at 1,200 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 77°F and low of 56°F; January is the coolest, at 26°F and 7°F. October is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.1 inches; the year adds up to 41.4 inches over 88 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 58% of the year's precipitation (24.1 of 41.4 inches); the other six months are drier. Highs reach 90°F on about 1 days a year. Lows fall below freezing on about 173 nights a year. Snowfall averages 71.4 inches a year, most of it in December. That 41.4 inches is more than at 15 of the 33 Vermont stations used on this site (45%). Rumney, NH, 19 miles southeast, has its own station (Plymouth, NH): 44.5 inches a year, 3.1 more than here, and a July average high of 80°F against 77°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26 | 7 | 2.4 | 6 | 17.4 |
| Feb | 29 | 9 | 2.1 | 5 | 14.4 |
| Mar | 38 | 18 | 2.8 | 7 | 14.2 |
| Apr | 52 | 30 | 3.3 | 8 | 2.9 |
| May | 64 | 42 | 3.5 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 73 | 51 | 3.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 77 | 56 | 4.4 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 76 | 54 | 4.4 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 69 | 46 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 56 | 35 | 4.5 | 9 | 1.2 |
| Nov | 43 | 26 | 3.5 | 7 | 3.6 |
| Dec | 32 | 15 | 3.2 | 7 | 17.6 |
| Year | 53 | 32 | 41.4 | 88 | 71.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Benton 5 SW, NH (1,200 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 Bradford
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 82 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bradford: 61 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 floods, 9 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $5.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 21, 2010. July has had the most flash floods, 9 of 9. Of the 74 Vermont cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 22 have had fewer than Bradford.
June 23, 2012: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Bradford — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 16 year old teenage farm worker was injured after being struck by lightning at the Crossroad Farm along the Fairlee/Post Mills line on June 23rd. He eventually died from his injuries on June 27th.”
July 1, 2017: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Bradford — $4.0 million damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorms produced 2 to 5 inches of rain in Orford washing out portions of Route 25A and numerous roads along the Connecticut River.”
July 14, 1996: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Bradford — $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 Bradford's ZIP code 05033 have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $54,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 50% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 43 Vermont cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 5 have fewer than Bradford.
Orange County, which includes Bradford, has been named in 34 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 29 of them major disasters (by incident: 17 severe storms, 11 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on August 20, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Orange County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.2 million a year, the 10th highest of 14 Vermont counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.6 million (76%), 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 Bradford
- Woodsville, NH14 mi
- Rumney, NH19 mi
- Norwich, VT19 mi
- Hanover, NH20 mi
- Williamstown, VT21 mi
- Lisbon, NH21 mi
- Barre, VT22 mi
- South Royalton, VT23 mi
- Canaan, NH24 mi
- Lebanon, NH25 mi
- Plainfield, VT25 mi
- West Lebanon, NH25 mi
All Vermont cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Bradford with another place →