NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cambridge, MD
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
49 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cambridge, Maryland since 1851, 4 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Elsa in 2021. Since 1950, 38 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 4
- Tropical storms
- 45
- Tornadoes
- 38
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Cambridge
The strongest storm to pass near Cambridge was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 93 mph winds when its centre passed 58 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1924, whose centre came within 44 miles. The record near Cambridge begins with an unnamed storm in 1856; the most recent system was Elsa in 2021, a tropical storm 30 miles away. The 1870s and the 1880s were the busiest decades, with 5 systems each. Of the 49 systems, 9 have come since 2000. Cambridge has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 88% of the 239 Maryland cities on this site. The strongest of the 38 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 28, 2002; its path came within 23 miles, and it killed 3 people. Of the 38, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 24 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Of the 239 Maryland cities, 90% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Cambridge. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 23 times since 1990, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 239 Maryland cities, 83% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Cambridge.
Compare Cambridge's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cambridge
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 8 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2011 | IreneAug 28 | 66 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2008 | HannaSep 6 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2004 | GastonAug 31 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2004 | CharleyAug 15 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1999 | FloydSep 16 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 13 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1992 | DanielleSep 26 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1983 | DeanSep 30 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1963 | Unnamed 1963 stormJun 3 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1961 | Unnamed 1961 stormSep 14 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 21 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 3 | overhead | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 23 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 12 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 44 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 12 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 10 | 68 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | overhead | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 25 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 11 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJul 2 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 23 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 58 mi | Category 1 (93 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 26 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 18 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 27 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1856 | Unnamed 1856 stormAug 20 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cambridge: 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 Cambridge
By decade
- 2020s6
- 2010s4
- 2000s14(2 EF3+)
- 1990s5
- 1980s4
- 1970s3
- 1960s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 2002 | F4 | 23 mi | 38 mi | 3 / 122 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 11 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 4, 2020 | EF2 | 18 mi | 1.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1995 | F2 | 23 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 13, 1983 | F2 | 25 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1984 | F1 | 11 mi | 18 mi | 1 / 14 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF1 | 14 mi | 11.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 4, 2020 | EF1 | 23 mi | 3.01 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 14, 2003 | F1 | 3 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F1 | 16 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 2001 | F1 | 8 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1994 | F1 | 25 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 38, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cambridge
The Storm Prediction Center has 23 hail reports within 10 miles of Cambridge since 1990, made on 15 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on April 28, 2002. The most recent report is from June 2, 2022. May and July have the most reports, 7 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cambridge
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Royal Oak 2 SSW, MD, 13 miles northwest of Cambridge at 10 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 29°F. August is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 47.7 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 47.7 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 49 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (18); a normal September there has highs of 80°F and 4.2 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 32 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 69 nights a year. Snowfall averages 14.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 47.7 inches is more than at 31 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (76%). Mardela Springs, 20 miles east, has its own station (Salisbury, MD): 48.0 inches a year, 0.3 more than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 88°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Cambridge, MD, 3 miles northeast, averaged 83°F in July and 39°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Cambridge tide gauge, 3 miles from Cambridge, has risen 1.59 ± 0.06 inches per decade from 1943 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 15.9 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 97 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 29 | 3.5 | 7 | 5.1 | 39 |
| Feb | 47 | 31 | 3.1 | 6 | 4.8 | 40 |
| Mar | 56 | 37 | 4.4 | 7 | 2.3 | 48 |
| Apr | 67 | 47 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.1 | 58 |
| May | 75 | 56 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 | 67 |
| Jun | 84 | 66 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 | 76 |
| Jul | 88 | 70 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 | 83 |
| Aug | 86 | 68 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 | 82 |
| Sep | 80 | 62 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 | 76 |
| Oct | 69 | 51 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 | 65 |
| Nov | 58 | 41 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 | 54 |
| Dec | 49 | 33 | 3.9 | 7 | 1.8 | 43 |
| Year | 67 | 49 | 47.7 | 79 | 14.1 | 61 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Royal Oak 2 SSW, MD (10 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Cambridge, MD, 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 Cambridge
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 117 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cambridge: 83 thunderstorm wind reports, 18 heavy rain events, 10 flash floods, 4 lightning strikes and 2 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on February 24, 2012. August has had the most flash floods, 5 of 10. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 19 have had fewer than Cambridge.
July 5, 2001: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Cambridge — 1 injured, $3,000 damage.
February 24, 2012: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Cambridge — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Scattered severe thunderstorms moved from west to east across Dorchester county from 350 pm through 415 pm. The first areas of damage occurred from Maple Dam Road to Pintail Point just west and south of Cambridge.”
May 13, 2000: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Cambridge — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds downed a large 110 foot tall, 7 ton sail being constructed adjacent to the Choptank River. The sail fell and damaged the deck around the site, and a nearby wall.”
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 Cambridge's ZIP code 21613 have filed 440 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $9.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Isabel in 2003: 281 claims (64% of all) and $6.7 million, then Hurricane Fran in 1996 with 26. 72% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 150 Maryland cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 139 have fewer than Cambridge.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Isabel2003 | 281 | $6.7 million |
| Hurricane Fran1996 | 26 | $170,000 |
Dorchester County, which includes Cambridge, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 5 snowstorms, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Isaias, on February 4, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Dorchester County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for coastal flooding; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes; Relatively Low for tornadoes, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hail and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $15.7 million a year, the 18th highest of 24 Maryland counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.8 million (37%), is from coastal 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 Cambridge
- Trappe, MD8 mi
- East New Market, MD9 mi
- Hurlock, MD14 mi
- Easton, MD16 mi
- Preston, MD17 mi
- St Michaels, MD18 mi
- Mardela Springs, MD20 mi
- Federalsburg, MD20 mi
- Lusby, MD22 mi
- Saint Leonard, MD23 mi
- Hebron, MD24 mi
- Port Republic, MD24 mi
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