NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cape Girardeau, MO
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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cape Girardeau, Missouri since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 139 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 139
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
18 deaths in all
What the records show for Cape Girardeau
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Cape Girardeau; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 48 mph winds when its centre passed 67 miles away. The record near Cape Girardeau begins with an unnamed storm in 1906; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 34 miles away. Of the 5 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Cape Girardeau has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 87% of the 334 Missouri cities on this site. The highest rating among the 139 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 6 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2025, came within 24 miles. The deadliest, an EF2 on April 5, 2023, killed 5 people. Of the 139, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 81 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 39. The most recent tornado was on June 7, 2025. Cape Girardeau has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 85% of the 334 Missouri cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 118 times since 1957, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Cape Girardeau has more hail reports within 10 miles than 55% of the 334 Missouri cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cape Girardeau
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 29 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cape Girardeau: 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 Cape Girardeau
By decade
- 2020s22(2 EF3+)
- 2010s36(1 EF3+)
- 2000s23(2 EF3+)
- 1990s12
- 1980s11
- 1970s15
- 1960s9
- 1950s11(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 16, 2025 | EF3 | 24 mi | 16.1 mi | 2 / 10 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF3 | 25 mi | 28.64 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 13 mi | 19.3 mi | 1 / 10 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF3 | 20 mi | 14.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 2003 | F3 | 7 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 21, 1957 | F3 | 22 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 5, 2023 | EF2 | 18 mi | 20.66 mi | 5 / 4 |
| Jun 4, 2012 | EF2 | 25 mi | 0.5 mi | 3 / 0 |
| Dec 18, 1957 | F2 | 11 mi | 0.5 mi | 3 / 1 |
| May 15, 1986 | F2 | 21 mi | 4 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Dec 15, 1971 | F2 | 7 mi | 27 mi | 1 / 26 |
| Apr 29, 1963 | F2 | 17 mi | 10.7 mi | 1 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 139, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cape Girardeau
The Storm Prediction Center has 118 hail reports within 10 miles of Cape Girardeau since 1957, made on 93 separate days. Of these, 65 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 25, 1961. The most recent report is from November 18, 2025. April has the most reports, 40.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cape Girardeau
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport, MO, 7 miles south of Cape Girardeau at 336 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 26°F. May is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 48.0 inches over 75 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 47 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 90 nights a year. That 48.0 inches is more than at 115 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (86%). Jackson, 8 miles northwest, has its own station (Jackson, MO): 50.5 inches a year, 2.5 more than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 26 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Feb | 48 | 30 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Mar | 58 | 37 | 4.7 | 7 |
| Apr | 69 | 47 | 5.2 | 8 |
| May | 78 | 58 | 5.3 | 8 |
| Jun | 87 | 66 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Jul | 89 | 69 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Aug | 88 | 66 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Sep | 82 | 58 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Oct | 71 | 46 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Nov | 57 | 37 | 4.3 | 6 |
| Dec | 46 | 30 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Year | 68 | 47 | 48.0 | 75 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport, MO (336 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 Cape Girardeau
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 355 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cape Girardeau: 163 floods, 142 thunderstorm wind reports, 26 flash floods, 19 heavy rain events and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $42.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on March 14, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 209 have had fewer than Cape Girardeau.
January 3, 2000: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Cape Girardeau — 3 injured, $250,000 damage.
July 1, 2019: flood 5 miles from the centre of Cape Girardeau — $10.0 million damage.
NWS: “The Mississippi River finally fell below flood stage at the Thebes river gage after spending about four and one-half months above flood stage. While the crest was among the ten highest on record, the extended duration of the flood played an even greater role on the impact.”
July 1, 2019: flood 6 miles from the centre of Cape Girardeau — $9.0 million 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 Cape Girardeau's 2 ZIP codes have filed 868 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $8.6 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1986: 305 claims (35% of all) and $3.6 million, then Midwest Flooding in 1993 with 82 and Not a named storm in 1982 with 66. 59% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 163 have fewer than Cape Girardeau.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1986 | 305 | $3.6 million |
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 82 | $1.3 million |
| Not a named storm1982 | 66 | $301,000 |
| Early winter storms2015 | 29 | $1.9 million |
| Mid-spring storms2011 | 20 | $215,000 |
| March storm2008 | 10 | $58,000 |
Cape Girardeau County, which includes Cape Girardeau, has been named in 29 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 23 of them major disasters (by incident: 16 severe storms, 6 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 3, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cape Girardeau County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $68.0 million a year, the 9th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $21.0 million (31%), 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 Cape Girardeau
- Scott City, MO8 mi
- Jackson, MO8 mi
- Chaffee, MO12 mi
- Jonesboro, IL15 mi
- Benton, MO16 mi
- Oran, MO18 mi
- Anna, IL21 mi
- Dongola, IL22 mi
- Cobden, IL23 mi
- Marble Hill, MO23 mi
- Advance, MO25 mi
- Makanda, IL29 mi
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