NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Clayton, MI
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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Clayton, Michigan since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 72 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 72
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
47 deaths in all
What the records show for Clayton
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Clayton; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 1 mile away. The record near Clayton begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 6 systems, one has come since 2000. Clayton has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 76% of the 546 Michigan cities on this site. The highest rating among the 72 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 11, 1965, came within 5 miles. Of the 72, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on September 7, 2021. Clayton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 58% of the 546 Michigan cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 69 times since 1984, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Clayton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 78% of the 546 Michigan cities.
Compare Clayton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Clayton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 4 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Clayton: 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 Clayton
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s4
- 2000s3
- 1990s10(1 EF3+)
- 1980s17
- 1970s15
- 1960s14(3 EF3+)
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 5 mi | 90.3 mi | 23 / 294 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 6 mi | 80.5 mi | 21 / 293 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 17 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 22, 1964 | F3 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 19 mi | 19.3 mi | 2 / 31 |
| Jun 6, 2010 | EF2 | 24 mi | 13.01 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Sep 25, 1984 | F2 | 12 mi | 2.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 1, 1983 | F2 | 15 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 1983 | F2 | 10 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 1983 | F2 | 10 mi | 1.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1979 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 72, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Clayton
The Storm Prediction Center has 69 hail reports within 10 miles of Clayton since 1984, made on 43 separate days. Of these, 34 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on June 19, 2021. The most recent report is from June 15, 2023. June has the most reports, 23.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Clayton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Adrian Lenawee Co Airport, MI, 7 miles east of Clayton at 796 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 3.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.5 inches; the year adds up to 29.9 inches over 61 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 12 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 132 nights a year. That 29.9 inches is more than at 9 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (7%). Hudson, 7 miles west, has its own station (Morenci, MI): 38.1 inches a year, 8.2 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 17 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Feb | 35 | 19 | 1.5 | 4 |
| Mar | 45 | 27 | 2.0 | 4 |
| Apr | 59 | 37 | 3.0 | 6 |
| May | 70 | 48 | 3.1 | 7 |
| Jun | 80 | 58 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Jul | 84 | 62 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Aug | 81 | 60 | 2.8 | 5 |
| Sep | 75 | 52 | 2.6 | 5 |
| Oct | 62 | 42 | 2.6 | 5 |
| Nov | 48 | 32 | 2.3 | 5 |
| Dec | 36 | 24 | 1.9 | 4 |
| Year | 59 | 40 | 29.9 | 61 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Adrian Lenawee Co Airport, MI (796 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 Clayton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 98 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Clayton: 96 thunderstorm wind reports, 1 flash flood and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $3.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 9, 2000.
May 9, 2000: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Clayton — 3 injured, $960,000 damage.
May 21, 2004: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Clayton — 1 injured.
April 12, 1996: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Clayton — $1.0 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
Lenawee County, which includes Clayton, has been named in 6 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 2 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 hurricane, 1 tornado). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 27, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lenawee County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $30.4 million a year, the 21st highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $14.8 million (49%), 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.