NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Damascus, MD
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
26 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Damascus, Maryland since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isaias in 2020. Since 1950, 111 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 23
- Tornadoes
- 111
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Damascus
The strongest storm to pass near Damascus was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 91 mph winds when its centre passed 11 miles away. The record near Damascus begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Isaias in 2020, a tropical storm 63 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 26 systems, 3 have come since 2000. Damascus has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 14% of the 239 Maryland cities on this site. The highest rating among the 111 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on September 24, 2001, came within 21 miles. Of the 111, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 68 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 27. The most recent tornado was on June 5, 2024. Damascus has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 78% of the 239 Maryland cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 80 times since 1965, with stones up to 2.25 inches. Damascus has more hail reports within 10 miles than 68% of the 239 Maryland cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Damascus
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1992 | DanielleSep 26 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | DianeAug 18 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 11 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 14 | 43 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 11 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Damascus: 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 Damascus
By decade
- 2020s18
- 2010s27
- 2000s23(1 EF3+)
- 1990s22(1 EF3+)
- 1970s11(1 EF3+)
- 1960s6
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 24, 2001 | F3 | 21 mi | 17.5 mi | 2 / 55 |
| Sep 5, 1979 | F3 | 20 mi | 17.9 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Jul 19, 1996 | F3 | 20 mi | 2.2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jun 5, 2024 | EF2 | 17 mi | 4.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2024 | EF2 | 17 mi | 4.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 2, 2018 | EF2 | 5 mi | 5.45 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F2 | 19 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F2 | 13 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Sep 5, 1979 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 5, 1979 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 23, 1979 | F2 | 24 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 31, 1978 | F2 | 9 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 111, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Damascus
The Storm Prediction Center has 80 hail reports within 10 miles of Damascus since 1965, made on 53 separate days. Of these, 48 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.25 inches, fell on June 2, 1998. The most recent report is from May 3, 2025. June has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Damascus
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Damascus 3 SSW, MD, 1 mile south of Damascus at 700 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 39°F and 25°F. September is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 48.0 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 54% of the year's precipitation (25.7 of 48.0 inches); the other six months are drier. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 98 nights a year. Snowfall averages 31.4 inches a year, most of it in February. That 48.0 inches is more than at 33 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (80%). Montgomery Village, 7 miles south, has its own station (Rockville 1 NE, MD): 41.5 inches a year, 6.5 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | 25 | 3.4 | 6 | 9.4 |
| Feb | 43 | 26 | 3.0 | 6 | 11.1 |
| Mar | 52 | 33 | 4.0 | 7 | 4.8 |
| Apr | 64 | 43 | 3.6 | 7 | 0.2 |
| May | 73 | 53 | 4.4 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 62 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 66 | 4.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 65 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 76 | 58 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 47 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 53 | 36 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.8 |
| Dec | 44 | 30 | 3.9 | 7 | 5.1 |
| Year | 63 | 45 | 48.0 | 80 | 31.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Damascus 3 SSW, MD (700 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 Damascus
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 473 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Damascus: 353 thunderstorm wind reports, 58 floods, 57 flash floods and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $4.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 87 mph, on May 14, 2002. July has had the most flash floods, 24 of 57. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 151 have had fewer than Damascus.
August 11, 2021: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Damascus — 1 killed, $300,000 damage.
July 31, 2025: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Damascus — 1 killed.
August 10, 2021: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Damascus — $2.5 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
Montgomery County, which includes Damascus, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1971, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 hurricanes, 5 severe storms, 5 snowstorms, 3 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Montgomery County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes and tornadoes; Very Low for coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $126.4 million a year, the 3rd highest of 24 Maryland counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $71.0 million (56%), 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 Damascus
- Clarksburg, MD4 mi
- Monrovia, MD5 mi
- Ijamsville, MD6 mi
- Montgomery Village, MD7 mi
- Mount Airy, MD8 mi
- Germantown, MD8 mi
- Boyds, MD8 mi
- New Market, MD9 mi
- Woodbine, MD9 mi
- Gaithersburg, MD10 mi
- Dickerson, MD11 mi
- Glenwood, MD11 mi
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