NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Challis, ID
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 Challis, Idaho since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 1 tornado has touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 1
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Challis
The only tornado within 25 miles was an EF0 on April 24, 2008; its path came within 2 miles. Of the 90 Idaho cities on this site, 90% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Challis. Hail has been reported within 10 miles once, in 2007, with stones of 0.75 inches (penny size). Of the 90 Idaho cities, 96% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Challis.
Compare Challis's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Challis
By decade
- 2000s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 24, 2008 | EF0 | 2 mi | 0.12 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 1 of 1, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Challis
The Storm Prediction Center has one hail report within 10 miles of Challis, from July 17, 2007: 0.75 inches (penny size).
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Challis
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Challis Airport, ID, 2 miles southwest of Challis at 5,033 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 52°F; December is the coolest, at 29°F and 11°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 28 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 193 nights a year. That 7.0 inches is more than at 0 of the 66 Idaho stations used on this site (0%).
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29 | 11 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Feb | 37 | 17 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Mar | 49 | 26 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Apr | 57 | 31 | 0.5 | 2 |
| May | 67 | 40 | 0.9 | 3 |
| Jun | 76 | 46 | 0.9 | 3 |
| Jul | 87 | 52 | 0.4 | 2 |
| Aug | 85 | 50 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Sep | 75 | 42 | 0.9 | 2 |
| Oct | 59 | 32 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Nov | 41 | 21 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Dec | 29 | 11 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Year | 57 | 31 | 7.0 | 22 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Challis Airport, ID (5,033 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 Challis
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 21 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Challis: 16 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods and 1 flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $70,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 72 mph, on July 14, 2004.
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
Custer County, which includes Challis, has been named in 7 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1983, 5 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 earthquake, 1 fire, 1 flood). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 9, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Custer County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.6 million a year, the 24th highest of 44 Idaho counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.1 million (48%), 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 Challis
- Salmon, ID41 mi
- Hailey, ID70 mi
- Bellevue, ID79 mi
- Dillon, MT81 mi
- Cascade, ID88 mi
- Darby, MT90 mi
- Mccall, ID94 mi
- Shoshone, ID104 mi
- Gooding, ID113 mi
- Hamilton, MT116 mi
- Mountain Home, ID116 mi
- Council, ID118 mi
All Idaho cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Challis with another place →