NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Crescent, PA
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
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Crescent, Pennsylvania since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 66 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 66
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
11 deaths in all
What the records show for Crescent
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Crescent; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1878, a tropical storm with 51 mph winds when its centre passed 56 miles away. The record near Crescent begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 23 miles away. Of the 7 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 98% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Crescent. The highest rating among the 66 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 31, 1985, came within 16 miles. Of the 66, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 35 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 17. The most recent tornado was on May 21, 2025. Crescent has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 57% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 177 times since 1962, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Crescent has more hail reports within 10 miles than 96% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities.
Compare Crescent's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Crescent
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 31 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Crescent: 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 Crescent
By decade
- 2020s24
- 2010s7
- 2000s4
- 1990s8
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s9
- 1960s3(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 16 mi | 39 mi | 9 / 120 |
| Aug 3, 1963 | F3 | 25 mi | 0.1 mi | 2 / 70 |
| May 11, 2024 | EF2 | 22 mi | 5.84 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 7, 2024 | EF2 | 15 mi | 15.32 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 21, 2021 | EF2 | 21 mi | 15.67 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1981 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1975 | F2 | 1 mi | 45.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 24, 1967 | F2 | 25 mi | 6.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 13, 1956 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 12, 1956 | F2 | 5 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 10, 1954 | F2 | 13 mi | 7.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 21, 2025 | EF1 | 22 mi | 13.89 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 66, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Crescent
The Storm Prediction Center has 177 hail reports within 10 miles of Crescent since 1962, made on 87 separate days. Of these, 90 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 2 days, most recently May 25, 2024. The most recent report is from April 19, 2025.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Crescent
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Pittsburgh International Airport, PA, 5 miles south of Crescent at 1,203 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 36°F and 21°F. July is the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 39.6 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 10 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 114 nights a year. Snowfall averages 44.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 39.6 inches is more than at 11 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (7%). Sewickley, 4 miles east, has its own station (Emsworth L/D Ohio Rvr, PA): 38.3 inches a year, 1.3 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | 21 | 3.0 | 7 | 13.3 |
| Feb | 40 | 23 | 2.6 | 7 | 11.7 |
| Mar | 49 | 30 | 3.2 | 8 | 7.6 |
| Apr | 62 | 41 | 3.3 | 9 | 1.0 |
| May | 72 | 51 | 3.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 79 | 59 | 4.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 62 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 55 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 63 | 44 | 2.8 | 7 | 0.4 |
| Nov | 51 | 34 | 2.9 | 7 | 2.4 |
| Dec | 41 | 27 | 2.8 | 7 | 7.7 |
| Year | 61 | 43 | 39.6 | 86 | 44.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Pittsburgh International Airport, PA (1,203 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 Crescent
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 480 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Crescent: 356 thunderstorm wind reports, 85 flash floods, 25 floods, 13 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $19.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on June 24, 2014. July has had the most flash floods, 24 of 85. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 646 have had fewer than Crescent.
March 25, 1996: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Crescent — 1 injured.
July 5, 2007: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Crescent — $10.0 million damage.
October 6, 2024: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Crescent — $2.0 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
Allegheny County, which includes Crescent, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Allegheny County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for inland flooding; Relatively High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $354.2 million a year, the 2nd highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $295.0 million (83%), 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.