NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cocoa Beach, FL
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
83 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cocoa Beach, Florida since 1851, 26 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Milton in 2024. Since 1950, 127 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 26
- Tropical storms
- 57
- Tornadoes
- 127
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
36 deaths in all
What the records show for Cocoa Beach
The strongest storm to pass near Cocoa Beach was an unnamed storm in 1854, a Category 3 hurricane with 127 mph winds when its centre passed 69 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was David in 1979, whose centre came within 1 mile. The record near Cocoa Beach begins with an unnamed storm in 1852; the most recent system was Milton in 2024, a Category 1 hurricane 7 miles away. Of the 83 systems, 15 have come since 2000. Cocoa Beach has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 53% of the 407 Florida cities on this site. The strongest of the 127 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 4, 1966; its path came within 8 miles, and it killed 11 people. The deadliest, an F3 on February 22, 1998, killed 25 people. Of the 127, 15 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 22. The most recent tornado was on September 7, 2025. Cocoa Beach has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 407 Florida cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 64 times since 1970, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Cocoa Beach has more hail reports within 10 miles than 73% of the 407 Florida cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cocoa Beach
Of the 83 tracks on the map, 30 were moving northeast as they passed Cocoa Beach, 22 northwest and 20 north. The unnamed 1854 storm, the strongest pass, was heading northwest; its centre passed 69 miles northeast of Cocoa Beach. Within 75 miles of Cocoa Beach, 10 of the 83 came ashore, 5 of them as hurricanes. In the last 30 seasons (1996–2025), 16 came near Cocoa Beach: 5.3 a decade, against 4.6 a decade from 1851 to 1995.
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | MiltonOct 10 | 7 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2022 | NicoleNov 10 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2022 | IanSep 29 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2022 | AlexJun 4 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 3 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2016 | MatthewOct 7 | 33 mi | Category 3 (123 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2016 | JuliaSep 13 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | FayAug 20 | overhead | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2006 | ErnestoAug 31 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2005 | TammyOct 5 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2005 | OpheliaSep 8 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2004 | JeanneSep 26 | 64 mi | Category 2 (99 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2004 | FrancesSep 5 | 61 mi | Category 1 (85 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2004 | CharleyAug 14 | 51 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2001 | GabrielleSep 15 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1999 | IreneOct 16 | 38 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1995 | JerryAug 24 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1995 | ErinAug 2 | 34 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1994 | GordonNov 16 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1988 | KeithNov 23 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1988 | ChrisAug 28 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1985 | BobJul 24 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1984 | IsidoreSep 27 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1984 | DianaSep 9 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1983 | BarryAug 25 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1981 | DennisAug 18 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 4 | 1 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1976 | DottieAug 20 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1974 | Unnamed 1974 stormOct 7 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1969 | GerdaSep 8 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1968 | DollyAug 10 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1968 | BrendaJun 19 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1968 | AbbyJun 5 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1964 | CleoAug 28 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1962 | AlmaAug 27 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1960 | FlorenceSep 24 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | DonnaSep 11 | 60 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1959 | Unnamed 1959 stormJun 18 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1956 | Unnamed 1956 stormOct 16 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | Unnamed 1954 stormJun 20 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1953 | HazelOct 9 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1953 | Unnamed 1953 stormJul 12 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1951 | HowOct 2 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1950 | KingOct 18 | 47 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1950 | EasySep 6 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 16 | 67 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1939 | Unnamed 1939 stormAug 12 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1937 | Unnamed 1937 stormAug 30 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1937 | Unnamed 1937 stormJul 30 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormAug 21 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormSep 4 | 68 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 8 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormJul 28 | 12 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1925 | Unnamed 1925 stormDec 1 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1921 | Unnamed 1921 stormOct 26 | 52 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1921 | Unnamed 1921 stormOct 16 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 1 | 15 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormJun 29 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormOct 21 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormOct 5 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 21 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormOct 9 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormSep 26 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 12 | 40 mi | Category 3 (121 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 27 | 36 mi | Category 3 (121 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormOct 25 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormOct 7 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormOct 6 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormOct 30 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormAug 24 | 18 mi | Category 1 (93 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1880 | Unnamed 1880 stormAug 29 | 8 mi | Category 2 (101 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormOct 20 | 36 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1873 | Unnamed 1873 stormOct 7 | 24 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 23 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1871 | Unnamed 1871 stormAug 25 | 29 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1871 | Unnamed 1871 stormAug 17 | 54 mi | Category 1 (87 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1870 | Unnamed 1870 stormOct 21 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormNov 1 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormOct 28 | 18 mi | Category 1 (85 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1858 | Unnamed 1858 stormSep 14 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormSep 7 | 69 mi | Category 3 (127 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1853 | Unnamed 1853 stormOct 19 | 73 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormSep 12 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cocoa Beach: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Cocoa Beach
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s17
- 2000s18
- 1990s30(1 EF3+)
- 1980s17
- 1970s21(3 EF3+)
- 1960s13(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 1966 | F4 | 8 mi | 135.8 mi | 11 / 530 |
| Feb 22, 1998 | F3 | 21 mi | 28 mi | 25 / 150 |
| Jun 19, 1972 | F3 | 11 mi | 3.8 mi | 0 / 23 |
| Jun 19, 1972 | F3 | 5 mi | 4.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 5, 1970 | F3 | 23 mi | 1.9 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Oct 24, 2005 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 24, 1983 | F2 | 7 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 7, 1983 | F2 | 11 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 3, 1979 | F2 | 18 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 9, 1979 | F2 | in town | 0.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jan 28, 1973 | F2 | 14 mi | 5.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 18, 1972 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 11 |
The strongest 12 of 127, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cocoa Beach
The Storm Prediction Center has 64 hail reports within 10 miles of Cocoa Beach since 1970, made on 42 separate days. Of these, 33 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 29, 2023. The most recent report is from January 19, 2025. March has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cocoa Beach
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Melbourne WFO, FL, 15 miles south of Cocoa Beach at 35 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 73°F; January is the coolest, at 72°F and 51°F. September is the wettest at 8.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.3 inches; the year adds up to 55.3 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 69% of the year's precipitation (38.3 of 55.3 inches); the other six months are drier. October has brought the most of the 83 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (25); a normal October there has highs of 84°F and 5.3 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 76 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 2 nights a year. That 55.3 inches is more than at 70 of the 125 Florida stations used on this site (56%). Cape Canaveral, 4 miles north, has its own station (Titusville 7 E, FL): 48.7 inches a year, 6.6 less than here, and an August average high of 89°F against 91°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Trident Pier, Port Canaveral, FL, 6 miles north, averaged 87°F in September and 69°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from May to October. Sea level at the Port Canaveral tide gauge, 6 miles from Cocoa Beach, has risen 2.52 ± 0.26 inches per decade from 1994 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 25.2 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 137 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 72 | 51 | 2.8 | 5 | 69 |
| Feb | 75 | 53 | 2.3 | 4 | 71 |
| Mar | 78 | 56 | 2.9 | 4 | 75 |
| Apr | 82 | 61 | 2.5 | 4 | 79 |
| May | 86 | 67 | 3.8 | 6 | 83 |
| Jun | 89 | 72 | 7.5 | 10 | 85 |
| Jul | 91 | 73 | 6.8 | 10 | 87 |
| Aug | 91 | 73 | 7.5 | 11 | 86 |
| Sep | 89 | 73 | 8.6 | 10 | 87 |
| Oct | 84 | 68 | 5.3 | 7 | 83 |
| Nov | 79 | 60 | 2.6 | 4 | 77 |
| Dec | 74 | 54 | 2.7 | 4 | 72 |
| Year | 82 | 63 | 55.3 | 79 | 79 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Melbourne WFO, FL (35 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Trident Pier, Port Canaveral, FL, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Cocoa Beach
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 125 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cocoa Beach: 109 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 lightning strikes, 5 heavy rain events and 2 flash floods. They killed 4 people and injured 13, and the NWS estimated $6.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on October 21, 2002.
June 4, 2025: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Cocoa Beach — 2 killed.
July 28, 2017: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Cocoa Beach — 1 killed, 1 injured.
April 16, 2023: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Cocoa Beach — 1 killed, 1 injured.
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 Cocoa Beach's ZIP code 32931 have filed 434 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $2.5 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Tropical Storm Fay in 2008: 74 claims (17% of all) and $158,000, then Hurricane Frances in 2004 with 70 and Flooding in 1984 with 43. The year with the most claims was 2004, with 97. 75% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 340 Florida cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 195 have fewer than Cocoa Beach.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm Fay2008 | 74 | $158,000 |
| Hurricane Frances2004 | 70 | $212,000 |
| Flooding1984 | 43 | $85,000 |
| Hurricane Irma2017 | 34 | $912,000 |
| Hurricane Jeanne2004 | 24 | $204,000 |
| Hurricane Matthew2016 | 21 | $163,000 |
Brevard County, which includes Cocoa Beach, has been named in 45 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 26 of them major disasters (by incident: 24 hurricanes, 6 fires, 4 severe storms, 4 tropical storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Milton, on October 11, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Brevard County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for hurricanes and lightning; Relatively High for tornadoes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for coastal flooding and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $389.3 million a year, the 8th highest of 67 Florida counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $281.5 million (72%), is from hurricanes.
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 Cocoa Beach
- Cape Canaveral, FL4 mi
- Merritt Island, FL6 mi
- Rockledge, FL7 mi
- Indian Harbour Beach, FL11 mi
- Cocoa, FL12 mi
- Melbourne, FL13 mi
- Indialantic, FL16 mi
- Melbourne Beach, FL22 mi
- Titusville, FL22 mi
- Palm Bay, FL23 mi
- Malabar, FL25 mi
- Harmony, FL26 mi
All Florida cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Cocoa Beach with another place →