NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cambridge, 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
18 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cambridge, New York since 1851, 2 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isaias in 2020. Since 1950, 27 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 2
- Tropical storms
- 16
- Tornadoes
- 27
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Cambridge
The strongest storm to pass near Cambridge was Gloria in 1985, a Category 1 hurricane with 81 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1938, whose centre came within 16 miles. The record near Cambridge begins with an unnamed storm in 1863; the most recent system was Isaias in 2020, a tropical storm 15 miles away. The 1890s and the 1970s were the busiest decades, with 3 systems each. Of the 18 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Cambridge has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 51% of the 809 New York cities on this site. The highest rating among the 27 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 31, 1998, came within 8 miles. Of the 27, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on August 29, 2020. Of the 809 New York cities, 54% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Cambridge. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 34 times since 1973, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 809 New York cities, 60% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Cambridge.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cambridge
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2011 | IreneAug 28 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 65 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1976 | BelleAug 10 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1952 | AbleSep 2 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1938 | Unnamed 1938 stormSep 21 | 16 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 3 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormOct 1 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 24 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 24 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1866 | Unnamed 1866 stormOct 30 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 19 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (46 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
- 2020s5
- 2010s1
- 2000s4
- 1990s7(1 EF3+)
- 1980s2
- 1970s4
- 1960s3(1 EF3+)
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1998 | F3 | 8 mi | 30.5 mi | 0 / 68 |
| Jun 24, 1960 | F3 | 19 mi | 16 mi | 0 / 9 |
| Jun 11, 1976 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 1973 | F2 | 10 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 29, 1969 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 22, 1955 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 29, 2020 | EF1 | 13 mi | 2.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 29, 2020 | EF1 | 17 mi | 0.26 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 10, 2020 | EF1 | 15 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 29, 2020 | EF1 | 23 mi | 8.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 15, 2020 | EF1 | 20 mi | 1.78 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 21, 2019 | EF1 | 18 mi | 0.38 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 27, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cambridge
The Storm Prediction Center has 34 hail reports within 10 miles of Cambridge since 1973, made on 21 separate days. Of these, 16 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 1, 2011. The most recent report is from July 21, 2022. June has the most reports, 14.
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 Bennington Morse St Airport, VT, 12 miles southeast of Cambridge at 826 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 57°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 13°F. July is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 38.8 inches over 82 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 59% of the year's precipitation (22.9 of 38.8 inches); the other six months are drier. August has brought the most of the 18 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (7); a normal August there has highs of 79°F and 3.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 152 nights a year. That 38.8 inches is more than at 33 of the 137 New York stations used on this site (24%). Greenwich, 7 miles northwest, has its own station (Saratoga Springs 4 SW, NY): 46.4 inches a year, 7.6 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 81°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 13 | 2.4 | 5 |
| Feb | 35 | 14 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Mar | 44 | 23 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Apr | 57 | 34 | 2.5 | 7 |
| May | 69 | 44 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Jun | 76 | 52 | 4.1 | 8 |
| Jul | 81 | 57 | 4.7 | 8 |
| Aug | 79 | 55 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Sep | 72 | 48 | 3.8 | 6 |
| Oct | 60 | 38 | 3.6 | 7 |
| Nov | 49 | 29 | 2.8 | 7 |
| Dec | 38 | 21 | 2.9 | 7 |
| Year | 58 | 36 | 38.8 | 82 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Bennington Morse St Airport, VT (826 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 Cambridge
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 268 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cambridge: 229 thunderstorm wind reports, 26 floods, 11 flash floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on May 24, 2004. July has had the most flash floods, 6 of 11. Of the 798 New York cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 164 have had fewer than Cambridge.
July 19, 2015: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Cambridge — 1 injured.
May 24, 2004: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Cambridge — $500,000 damage.
May 24, 2004: thunderstorm wind in Cambridge — $400,000 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
Washington County, which includes Cambridge, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1976, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 hurricanes, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 20, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Washington County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $19.4 million a year, the 47th highest of 62 New York counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $13.7 million (71%), 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 Cambridge
- Greenwich, NY7 mi
- North Bennington, VT10 mi
- Hoosick Falls, NY11 mi
- Johnsonville, NY11 mi
- Schuylerville, NY11 mi
- Salem, NY11 mi
- Arlington, VT12 mi
- Schaghticoke, NY14 mi
- Argyle, NY14 mi
- Stillwater, NY15 mi
- Bennington, VT15 mi
- Melrose, NY18 mi
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