NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Burwell, NE
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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Burwell, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 89 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 10 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 89
- EF3 or stronger
- 10
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
12 deaths in all
What the records show for Burwell
The highest rating among the 89 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 30, 1961, came within 13 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on June 7, 1953, killed 11 people. Of the 89, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 43 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 30. The most recent tornado was on July 23, 2025. Of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site, 88% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Burwell. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 165 times since 1959, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Burwell has more hail reports within 10 miles than 62% of the 91 Nebraska cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Burwell
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s16
- 2000s24
- 1990s8(2 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s13(2 EF3+)
- 1960s13(5 EF3+)
- 1950s5(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 7, 1953 | F4 | 18 mi | 15 mi | 11 / 0 |
| May 30, 1961 | F4 | 13 mi | 48.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 5, 1960 | F3 | 9 mi | 10.3 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Jun 3, 1999 | F3 | 12 mi | 14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 1, 1990 | F3 | 8 mi | 25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 20, 1974 | F3 | 13 mi | 63.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jul 20, 1972 | F3 | 10 mi | 32.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1965 | F3 | 19 mi | 44.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 30, 1961 | F3 | 13 mi | 48.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 30, 1961 | F3 | 13 mi | 48.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 19, 2017 | EF2 | 23 mi | 0.65 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF2 | 9 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 89, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Burwell
The Storm Prediction Center has 165 hail reports within 10 miles of Burwell since 1959, made on 90 separate days. Of these, 130 were 1 inch across or larger, and 15 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on July 24, 2002. The most recent report is from July 18, 2025. June has the most reports, 48.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Burwell
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Burwell, NE, 3 miles south of Burwell at 2,176 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 12°F. May is the wettest at 4.0 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.5 inches; the year adds up to 25.8 inches over 50 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 28 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 162 nights a year. Snowfall averages 29.2 inches a year, most of it in February. That 25.8 inches is more than at 21 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (31%). Ord, 18 miles southeast, has its own station (Ord Evelyn Sharp Field, NE): 24.1 inches a year, 1.7 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 12 | 0.5 | 2 | 5.8 |
| Feb | 38 | 16 | 0.7 | 3 | 6.3 |
| Mar | 50 | 25 | 1.4 | 3 | 3.6 |
| Apr | 60 | 35 | 3.1 | 6 | 3.5 |
| May | 70 | 47 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.2 |
| Jun | 80 | 58 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 63 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 60 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 51 | 2.1 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 63 | 37 | 2.1 | 4 | 1.5 |
| Nov | 48 | 24 | 0.9 | 2 | 2.3 |
| Dec | 36 | 15 | 0.7 | 2 | 6.0 |
| Year | 60 | 37 | 25.8 | 50 | 29.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Burwell, NE (2,176 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 Burwell
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 52 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Burwell: 38 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 4 heavy rain events, 3 floods and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $3.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 11, 2002. Of the 89 Nebraska cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 29 have had fewer than Burwell.
August 17, 2014: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Burwell — $2.1 million damage.
June 19, 2025: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Burwell — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Emergency management reports numerous large tree limbs down and building and grandstand damage at the Garfield County Fairgrounds. Power reported out in several locations around town.”
June 12, 2010: flood 5 miles from the centre of Burwell — $140,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorms with prolonged heavy rain falling on already saturated ground caused widespread flooding. Three to five inches of rain contributed to numerous secondary roads being under water or washed away.”
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
Garfield County, which includes Burwell, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1994, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 flood). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Straight-Line Winds, on July 27, 2022. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Garfield County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hail and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $1.4 million a year, the 83rd highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $609,000 (42%), 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 Burwell
- Ord, NE18 mi
- Broken Bow, NE39 mi
- Atkinson, NE53 mi
- Saint Paul, NE53 mi
- Oneill, NE55 mi
- Ravenna, NE57 mi
- Albion, NE57 mi
- Ainsworth, NE63 mi
- Grand Island, NE74 mi
- Gibbon, NE75 mi
- Wood River, NE75 mi
- Central City, NE75 mi
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