NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Dallas, TX
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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Dallas, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Carla in 1961. Since 1950, 196 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 196
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
24 deaths in all
What the records show for Dallas
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Dallas; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 53 miles away. The record near Dallas begins with an unnamed storm in 1871; the most recent system was Carla in 1961, a tropical storm 36 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 2 systems. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 67% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Dallas. The highest rating among the 196 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on December 26, 2015, came within 12 miles. Of the 196, 16 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 67 have come since 2000. April and May have had the most tornadoes, 40 each. The most recent tornado was on March 4, 2025. Dallas has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 91% of the 753 Texas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 299 times since 1956, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Dallas has more hail reports within 10 miles than 93% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Dallas
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 27 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 9 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1871 | Unnamed 1871 stormJun 5 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Dallas: 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 Dallas
By decade
- 2020s12
- 2010s34(4 EF3+)
- 2000s21(1 EF3+)
- 1990s39(1 EF3+)
- 1980s16(1 EF3+)
- 1970s46(1 EF3+)
- 1960s17(1 EF3+)
- 1950s11(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 26, 2015 | EF4 | 12 mi | 13.04 mi | 10 / 468 |
| Apr 25, 1994 | F4 | 12 mi | 6 mi | 3 / 48 |
| Apr 2, 1957 | F3 | 4 mi | 17.2 mi | 10 / 200 |
| Oct 20, 2019 | EF3 | 7 mi | 15.76 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 26, 2015 | EF3 | 17 mi | 8.52 mi | 0 / 46 |
| Apr 3, 2012 | EF3 | 19 mi | 7.73 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 28, 2000 | F3 | 12 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 13, 1984 | F3 | 9 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 28 |
| May 26, 1976 | F3 | 7 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 12, 1969 | F3 | 3 mi | 45.9 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 4, 1959 | F3 | 12 mi | 27.6 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jun 12, 1957 | F3 | 11 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 196, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Dallas
The Storm Prediction Center has 299 hail reports within 10 miles of Dallas since 1956, made on 186 separate days. Of these, 207 were 1 inch across or larger, and 35 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on April 12, 1986. The most recent report is from March 25, 2025. May has the most reports, 75.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Dallas
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Dallas Love Field, TX, 5 miles northwest of Dallas at 440 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 97°F and low of 78°F; January is the coolest, at 58°F and 38°F. October is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and July the driest at 1.7 inches; the year adds up to 38.4 inches over 52 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 108 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 23 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.7 inches a year, most of it in February. That 38.4 inches is more than at 198 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (63%). Addison, 11 miles north, has its own station (Richardson, TX): 42.0 inches a year, 3.6 more than here, and a July average high of 94°F against 97°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58 | 38 | 2.6 | 4 | 0.1 |
| Feb | 62 | 42 | 2.8 | 4 | 0.9 |
| Mar | 70 | 49 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.3 |
| Apr | 77 | 57 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| May | 85 | 66 | 4.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 93 | 74 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 97 | 78 | 1.7 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 97 | 77 | 2.2 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 90 | 70 | 3.1 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 80 | 59 | 4.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 68 | 48 | 2.9 | 4 | 0.1 |
| Dec | 59 | 40 | 3.2 | 4 | 0.3 |
| Year | 78 | 58 | 38.4 | 52 | 1.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Dallas Love Field, TX (440 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 Dallas
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 296 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Dallas: 150 thunderstorm wind reports, 120 flash floods, 13 floods, 10 lightning strikes and 3 heavy rain events. They killed 13 people and injured 14, and the NWS estimated $376.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 112 mph, on June 1, 1996. May has had the most flash floods, 27 of 120. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 738 have had fewer than Dallas.
June 9, 2019: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Dallas — 1 killed, 6 injured, $10.0 million damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds caused a crane collapse onto an apartment complex in the city of Dallas, TX, killing one person and injuring 6 others. The collapse also cause severe damage to an adjoining parking garage.”
October 8, 2018: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Dallas — 1 killed, 5 injured, $10,000 damage.
NWS: “Broadcast Media reported that 1 person was killed and 5 others injured when the frame of a residential structure which was under construction collapsed due to strong outflow winds from a thunderstorm.”
December 21, 2013: heavy rain event 9 miles from the centre of Dallas — 1 killed, 1 injured, $13,000 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 Dallas's 46 ZIP codes have filed 1,623 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $33.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1991: 284 claims (17% of all) and $3.4 million, then Early summer storms in 2015 with 91 and Dallas Flash Floods in 2022 with 43. 32% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 433 Texas cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 391 have fewer than Dallas.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1991 | 284 | $3.4 million |
| Early summer storms2015 | 91 | $3.9 million |
| Dallas Flash Floods2022 | 43 | $2.9 million |
| Hurricane Allen1980 | 27 | $297,000 |
| March storm2008 | 17 | $151,000 |
| 2026-06-Arthur-TS2026 | 11 | $520,000 |
Dallas County, which includes Dallas, has been named in 28 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 6 severe storms, 4 fires, 4 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 17, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Dallas County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $973.2 million a year, the 2nd highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $323.7 million (33%), 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 Dallas
- Mesquite, TX11 mi
- Addison, TX11 mi
- Irving, TX11 mi
- Garland, TX11 mi
- Richardson, TX12 mi
- Balch Springs, TX12 mi
- Hutchins, TX13 mi
- Sunnyvale, TX13 mi
- Duncanville, TX14 mi
- Grand Prairie, TX14 mi
- Carrollton, TX14 mi
- Lancaster, TX15 mi
All Texas cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Dallas with another place →