NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Chadron, 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 Chadron, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 49 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 49
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Chadron
The highest rating among the 49 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on June 4, 1994, came within 21 miles. The deadliest, an F2 on June 4, 1999, killed 1 person. Of the 49, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 15 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 23. The most recent tornado was on June 5, 2022. Of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site, 97% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Chadron. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 131 times since 1955, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Of the 91 Nebraska cities, 59% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Chadron.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Chadron
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s7
- 2000s7
- 1990s13(2 EF3+)
- 1980s9
- 1970s5
- 1960s5
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 4, 1994 | F3 | 21 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1993 | F3 | 19 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1999 | F2 | 18 mi | 15 mi | 1 / 54 |
| Jun 19, 1983 | F2 | 14 mi | 22 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1982 | F2 | 19 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 1982 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 14, 1962 | F2 | 17 mi | 18.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 1960 | F2 | 6 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 11, 2013 | EF1 | 17 mi | 0.99 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 31, 1985 | F1 | 23 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 23, 1982 | F1 | 11 mi | 11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1981 | F1 | 25 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 49, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Chadron
The Storm Prediction Center has 131 hail reports within 10 miles of Chadron since 1955, made on 94 separate days. Of these, 101 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on July 5, 1965. The most recent report is from June 29, 2025. June has the most reports, 46.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Chadron
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chadron 3SW, NE, 3 miles west of Chadron at 3,383 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 13°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 44 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 173 nights a year. Snowfall averages 50.3 inches a year, most of it in December. That 18.7 inches is more than at 5 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (7%). Pine Ridge, SD, 27 miles northeast, has its own station (Pine Ridge Airport, SD): 16.7 inches a year, 2.0 less than here, and the same July average high, 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 13 | 0.6 | 2 | 5.8 |
| Feb | 41 | 15 | 0.6 | 2 | 8.6 |
| Mar | 52 | 23 | 1.3 | 3 | 7.9 |
| Apr | 59 | 31 | 2.2 | 6 | 5.6 |
| May | 69 | 42 | 3.0 | 7 | 1.4 |
| Jun | 81 | 52 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 89 | 59 | 1.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 56 | 1.7 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 46 | 1.5 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 64 | 33 | 1.4 | 3 | 4.7 |
| Nov | 50 | 22 | 0.7 | 3 | 6.3 |
| Dec | 39 | 13 | 0.6 | 2 | 10.0 |
| Year | 62 | 34 | 18.7 | 44 | 50.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chadron 3SW, NE (3,383 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 Chadron
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 88 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Chadron: 79 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 heavy rain events, 3 flash floods and 2 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $301,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 104 mph, on June 28, 2016.
July 22, 2010: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Chadron — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “Hail damage to many cars, shattered windows at Walmart parking lot. Many business signs were blown out or had holes in them from the hail.”
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
Dawes County, which includes Chadron, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1991, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 3 fires, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, on May 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Dawes County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hail and lightning; Very Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $4.3 million a year, the 68th highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.2 million (27%), 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 Chadron
- Pine Ridge, SD27 mi
- Oglala, SD33 mi
- Alliance, NE47 mi
- Hot Springs, SD48 mi
- Gordon, NE54 mi
- Kyle, SD58 mi
- Hermosa, SD68 mi
- Minatare, NE70 mi
- Scottsbluff, NE72 mi
- Mitchell, NE72 mi
- Bayard, NE73 mi
- Martin, SD74 mi
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