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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Darlington, 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

31 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Darlington, Maryland since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ida in 2021. Since 1950, 77 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
3

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
28

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
77

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
1

no recorded deaths

What the records show for Darlington

The strongest storm to pass near Darlington was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 89 mph winds when its centre passed 24 miles away. The record near Darlington begins with an unnamed storm in 1861; the most recent system was Ida in 2021, a tropical storm directly overhead. The 1870s and the 1950s were the busiest decades, with 4 systems each. Of the 31 systems, 5 have come since 2000. Darlington has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 14% of the 239 Maryland cities on this site. The strongest of the 77 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on July 27, 1994; its path came within 24 miles. Of the 77, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 38 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on September 4, 2025. Of the 239 Maryland cities, 74% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Darlington. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 52 times since 1969, with stones up to 2.25 inches. Of the 239 Maryland cities, 55% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Darlington.

Compare Darlington's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Darlington

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Darlington, Maryland, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2021IdaSep 1overheadTropical storm (39 mph)Category 4
2020IsaiasAug 422 miTropical storm (66 mph)Category 1
2012SandyOct 3018 miTropical storm (64 mph)Category 3
2008HannaSep 657 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
2006ErnestoSep 225 miTropical storm (41 mph)Category 1
1996BerthaJul 1356 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1992DanielleSep 2614 miTropical storm (39 mph)Tropical storm
1955DianeAug 1817 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1955ConnieAug 1333 miTropical storm (56 mph)Category 4
1954HazelOct 1559 miCategory 1 (82 mph)Category 4
1952AbleSep 122 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 2
1949Unnamed 1949 stormAug 2957 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1944Unnamed 1944 stormAug 370 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1943Unnamed 1943 stormOct 132 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1934Unnamed 1934 stormJun 197 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2
1933Unnamed 1933 stormAug 2447 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1929Unnamed 1929 stormOct 210 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 48 miTropical storm (51 mph)Category 1
1904Unnamed 1904 stormSep 1574 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 1
1903Unnamed 1903 stormSep 1674 miTropical storm (70 mph)Category 2
1899Unnamed 1899 stormNov 16 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 2
1893Unnamed 1893 stormOct 2349 miTropical storm (44 mph)Tropical storm
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2918 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 3
1888Unnamed 1888 stormSep 1166 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1888Unnamed 1888 stormAug 2168 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1878Unnamed 1878 stormOct 2324 miCategory 1 (89 mph)Category 2
1877Unnamed 1877 stormOct 470 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 3
1874Unnamed 1874 stormSep 2961 miTropical storm (59 mph)Category 1
1872Unnamed 1872 stormOct 2660 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1863Unnamed 1863 stormSep 1963 miTropical storm (55 mph)Tropical storm
1861Unnamed 1861 stormSep 2874 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Darlington: 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 Darlington

By decade

  • 2020s12
  • 2010s12
  • 2000s14
  • 1990s22(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s3
  • 1970s11
  • 1960s2
  • 1950s1
Strongest tornadoes near Darlington, Maryland
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Jul 27, 1994F324 mi4 mi0 / 11
Sep 1, 2021EF216 mi5.92 mi0 / 0
Aug 4, 2020EF225 mi35.78 mi0 / 0
Sep 18, 2004F29 mi2 mi0 / 0
May 2, 2002F212 mi4.5 mi0 / 0
May 31, 1998F218 mi7 mi0 / 0
Jul 27, 1994F224 mi4 mi0 / 0
May 15, 1981F221 mi1.5 mi0 / 2
Jun 29, 1980F29 mi2 mi0 / 10
Sep 5, 1979F217 mi0.5 mi0 / 0
Aug 17, 1974F223 mi0.7 mi0 / 0
Jul 19, 1959F210 mi0.8 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 77, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Darlington

The Storm Prediction Center has 52 hail reports within 10 miles of Darlington since 1969, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 33 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.25 inches, fell on August 18, 2011. The most recent report is from August 17, 2025. June has the most reports, 17.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Darlington

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Conowingo Dam, MD, 3 miles northeast of Darlington at 40 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 25°F. September is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 48.2 inches over 82 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 55% of the year's precipitation (26.5 of 48.2 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 31 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (11); a normal September there has highs of 79°F and 5.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 37 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 106 nights a year. That 48.2 inches is more than at 36 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (88%). Churchville, 6 miles south, has its own station (Aberdeen Phillips Field, MD): 47.2 inches a year, 1.0 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 88°F.

Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Chesapeake City, MD, 23 miles east, averaged 84°F in July and 38°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Chesapeake City tide gauge, 23 miles from Darlington, has risen 1.76 ± 0.12 inches per decade from 1972 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 17.6 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 111 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Conowingo Dam, MD
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Water °F
Jan40253.6838
Feb43262.6639
Mar51344.2846
Apr64443.4757
May74543.9867
Jun83644.5776
Jul88694.7784
Aug85674.5682
Sep79605.1776
Oct67484.5665
Nov55373.2653
Dec45314.0742
Year644648.28260

Averages for 1991–2020 at Conowingo Dam, MD (40 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Chesapeake City, MD, 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.

Maryland weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Darlington

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 513 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Darlington: 392 thunderstorm wind reports, 56 flash floods, 54 floods, 7 lightning strikes and 4 heavy rain events. They killed 3 people and injured 18, and the NWS estimated $3.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on May 11, 2013. August has had the most flash floods, 19 of 56. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 150 have had fewer than Darlington.

  • August 31, 2018: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Darlington — 2 killed.

  • August 31, 2014: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Darlington — 1 killed, 1 injured.

  • August 18, 2017: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Darlington — 10 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 Darlington's ZIP code 21034 have filed 19 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $425,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 16% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 150 Maryland cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 26 have fewer than Darlington.

Harford County, which includes Darlington, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1971, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 6 snowstorms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Harford County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes and coastal flooding; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $51.4 million a year, the 7th highest of 24 Maryland counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $29.9 million (58%), 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 Darlington