NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cherokee, IA
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 Cherokee, Iowa since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 100 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 100
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Cherokee
The highest rating among the 100 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on October 4, 2013, came within 16 miles. Of the 100, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 49 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on May 31, 2024. Of the 241 Iowa cities on this site, 84% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Cherokee. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 101 times since 1959, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Cherokee has more hail reports within 10 miles than 58% of the 241 Iowa cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Cherokee
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s21(2 EF3+)
- 2000s12
- 1990s7
- 1980s15
- 1970s6(1 EF3+)
- 1960s13(2 EF3+)
- 1950s10(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 4, 2013 | EF4 | 16 mi | 24.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 1952 | F4 | 6 mi | 24.1 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 9, 2011 | EF3 | 23 mi | 10.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 1, 1971 | F3 | 19 mi | 11.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1964 | F3 | 22 mi | 9.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1964 | F3 | 18 mi | 67 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Dec 15, 2021 | EF2 | 20 mi | 4.77 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 11, 2008 | EF2 | 22 mi | 13.08 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 11, 2008 | EF2 | 16 mi | 5.73 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 12, 1994 | F2 | 20 mi | 17.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 7, 1991 | F2 | 12 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 7, 1984 | F2 | 19 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 100, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cherokee
The Storm Prediction Center has 101 hail reports within 10 miles of Cherokee since 1959, made on 69 separate days. Of these, 54 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on April 9, 2011. The most recent report is from August 9, 2025. May has the most reports, 31.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cherokee
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cherokee, IA, in Cherokee at 1,210 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 7°F. June is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.7 inches; the year adds up to 31.4 inches over 57 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 165 nights a year. Snowfall averages 37.8 inches a year, most of it in December. That 31.4 inches is more than at 13 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (10%). Storm Lake, 20 miles east, has its own station (Sioux Rapids 4 E, IA): 32.0 inches a year, 0.6 more than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 7 | 0.7 | 2 | 7.5 |
| Feb | 32 | 11 | 0.8 | 2 | 8.4 |
| Mar | 45 | 23 | 1.7 | 4 | 5.2 |
| Apr | 59 | 34 | 3.2 | 6 | 2.7 |
| May | 71 | 47 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 81 | 58 | 5.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 62 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 59 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 50 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 62 | 36 | 2.3 | 4 | 0.5 |
| Nov | 46 | 24 | 1.5 | 3 | 4.0 |
| Dec | 32 | 13 | 0.9 | 3 | 9.4 |
| Year | 58 | 35 | 31.4 | 57 | 37.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cherokee, IA (1,210 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 Cherokee
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 78 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cherokee: 52 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 8 floods and 4 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $1.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on December 15, 2021. June has had the most flash floods, 6 of 14. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 124 have had fewer than Cherokee.
June 26, 2005: flood 3 miles from the centre of Cherokee — 1 killed, $115,000 damage.
August 1, 2006: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Cherokee — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds destroyed the Maryhill Catholic Church, a structure which had stood since being rebuilt in 1905 after a lightning strike and fire. The winds also blew a hog shed 200 yards off its foundation, blew down or uprooted several large trees, and blew down power lines.”
July 22, 2010: thunderstorm wind in Cherokee — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds caused widespread tree damage, including several large trees blown down. Several homes and businesses were damaged by falling trees, and other had shingle and other roof 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 Cherokee's ZIP code 51012 have filed 140 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $1.6 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from June Midwest Flooding in 2024: 14 claims (10% of all) and $667,000, then Midwest Flooding in 1993 with 14. The year with the most claims was 2013, with 39. 26% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 91 Iowa cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 70 have fewer than Cherokee.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| June Midwest Flooding2024 | 14 | $667,000 |
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 14 | $65,000 |
Cherokee County, which includes Cherokee, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 20 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 severe storms, 6 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on June 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cherokee County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.7 million a year, the 71st highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.6 million (43%), 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 Cherokee
- Alta, IA13 mi
- Storm Lake, IA20 mi
- Remsen, IA20 mi
- Kingsley, IA25 mi
- Ida Grove, IA29 mi
- Hartley, IA30 mi
- Orange City, IA32 mi
- Le Mars, IA32 mi
- Moville, IA32 mi
- Sheldon, IA34 mi
- Spencer, IA34 mi
- Sac City, IA36 mi
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