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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Dayton, 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

54 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Dayton, Texas since 1851, 13 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Beryl in 2024. Since 1950, 149 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
13

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
41

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
149

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
11

9 deaths in all

What the records show for Dayton

The strongest storm to pass near Dayton was Audrey in 1957, a Category 3 hurricane with 125 mph winds when its centre passed 73 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Ike in 2008, whose centre came within 10 miles. The record near Dayton begins with an unnamed storm in 1854; the most recent system was Beryl in 2024, a tropical storm 52 miles away. The 1940s and the 1980s were the busiest decades, with 8 systems each. Of the 54 systems, 9 have come since 2000. Dayton has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 86% of the 753 Texas cities on this site. The strongest of the 149 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on November 21, 1992; its path came within 2 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on May 27, 1969, killed 3 people. Of the 149, 14 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 51 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 31. The most recent tornado was on December 28, 2024. Dayton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 78% of the 753 Texas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 32 times since 1974, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 753 Texas cities, 83% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Dayton.

Compare Dayton's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Dayton

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Dayton, Texas, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2024BerylJul 852 miTropical storm (66 mph)Category 5
2021NicholasSep 1431 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
2017CindyJun 2268 miTropical storm (48 mph)Tropical storm
2008IkeSep 1310 miCategory 2 (101 mph)Category 4
2008EdouardAug 5overheadTropical storm (45 mph)Tropical storm
2007HumbertoSep 1347 miCategory 1 (92 mph)Category 1
2005RitaSep 2456 miCategory 1 (82 mph)Category 5
2003GraceAug 3148 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
2001AllisonJun 657 miTropical storm (52 mph)Tropical storm
1995DeanJul 3163 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1989JerryOct 162 miTropical storm (54 mph)Category 1
1989ChantalAug 14 miTropical storm (66 mph)Category 1
1989AllisonJun 2726 miTropical storm (39 mph)Tropical storm
1987Unnamed 1987 stormAug 1023 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1986BonnieJun 2630 miTropical storm (64 mph)Category 1
1983AliciaAug 1843 miCategory 1 (90 mph)Category 3
1982ChrisSep 1167 miTropical storm (63 mph)Tropical storm
1980DanielleSep 545 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1979ClaudetteJul 2539 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1973Unnamed 1973 stormSep 1213 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1973DeliaSep 572 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 1
1970FeliceSep 1624 miTropical storm (56 mph)Tropical storm
1963CindySep 183 miTropical storm (41 mph)Tropical storm
1959DebraJul 2513 miTropical storm (56 mph)Category 1
1957BerthaAug 1017 miTropical storm (45 mph)Tropical storm
1957AudreyJun 2773 miCategory 3 (125 mph)Category 3
1949Unnamed 1949 stormOct 419 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 2
1947Unnamed 1947 stormAug 2546 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 1
1945Unnamed 1945 stormAug 2873 miTropical storm (59 mph)Category 3
1943Unnamed 1943 stormJul 2727 miCategory 1 (87 mph)Category 2
1942Unnamed 1942 stormAug 2112 miTropical storm (64 mph)Category 1
1941Unnamed 1941 stormSep 2434 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 3
1940Unnamed 1940 stormSep 2456 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1940Unnamed 1940 stormAug 824 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 2
1938Unnamed 1938 stormOct 1743 miTropical storm (43 mph)Tropical storm
1934Unnamed 1934 stormAug 2765 miCategory 1 (81 mph)Category 1
1932Unnamed 1932 stormAug 1473 miCategory 2 (106 mph)Category 4
1921Unnamed 1921 stormJun 2368 miTropical storm (54 mph)Category 1
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 1757 miCategory 3 (117 mph)Category 4
1900Unnamed 1900 stormSep 955 miCategory 3 (119 mph)Category 4
1899Unnamed 1899 stormJun 2766 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1898Unnamed 1898 stormSep 2823 miTropical storm (47 mph)Tropical storm
1897Unnamed 1897 stormSep 13overheadTropical storm (72 mph)Category 1
1895Unnamed 1895 stormOct 752 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1891Unnamed 1891 stormJul 616 miTropical storm (71 mph)Category 1
1888Unnamed 1888 stormJul 642 miTropical storm (45 mph)Tropical storm
1886Unnamed 1886 stormJun 1451 miCategory 2 (98 mph)Category 2
1882Unnamed 1882 stormSep 1534 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1879Unnamed 1879 stormAug 2333 miCategory 2 (97 mph)Category 2
1875Unnamed 1875 stormSep 1819 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1871Unnamed 1871 stormJun 911 miTropical storm (49 mph)Tropical storm
1871Unnamed 1871 stormJun 448 miTropical storm (47 mph)Tropical storm
1863Unnamed 1863 stormSep 2945 miTropical storm (61 mph)Tropical storm
1854Unnamed 1854 stormSep 2069 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2

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

By decade

  • 2020s10(2 EF3+)
  • 2010s18
  • 2000s23
  • 1990s34(2 EF3+)
  • 1980s17
  • 1970s27(2 EF3+)
  • 1960s13(3 EF3+)
  • 1950s7(2 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Dayton, Texas
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Nov 21, 1992F42 mi30 mi0 / 16
May 27, 1969F321 mi1.5 mi3 / 0
Dec 13, 1977F36 mi25.1 mi1 / 40
Oct 28, 1974F322 mi3.3 mi1 / 7
Feb 11, 1950F316 mi12 mi1 / 12
Dec 28, 2024EF324 mi10.34 mi0 / 10
Jan 24, 2023EF317 mi23.3 mi0 / 0
Nov 21, 1992F39 mi32 mi0 / 1
Sep 12, 1961F312 mi0.5 mi0 / 0
Sep 11, 1961F324 mi1 mi0 / 22
Oct 22, 1957F314 mi4.3 mi0 / 1
Apr 15, 1994F212 mi5 mi1 / 20

The strongest 12 of 149, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Dayton

The Storm Prediction Center has 32 hail reports within 10 miles of Dayton since 1974, made on 26 separate days. Of these, 21 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on May 5, 1974. The most recent report is from May 2, 2025. April and May have the most reports, 9 each.

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

Weather by month in Dayton

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Liberty, TX, 6 miles east of Dayton at 35 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 94°F and low of 74°F; January is the coolest, at 64°F and 41°F. September is the wettest at 6.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.9 inches; the year adds up to 62.8 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 55% of the year's precipitation (34.5 of 62.8 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 54 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (19); a normal September there has highs of 90°F and 6.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 101 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 14 nights a year. That 62.8 inches is more than at 307 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (98%). Huffman, 13 miles west, has its own station (Baytown, TX): 64.7 inches a year, 1.9 more than here, and an August average high of 92°F against 94°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Liberty, TX
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"
Jan64415.17
Feb67453.96
Mar74524.06
Apr79584.65
May86665.55
Jun91726.17
Jul93745.07
Aug94745.56
Sep90696.97
Oct83596.35
Nov72494.75
Dec65435.27
Year805862.872

Averages for 1991–2020 at Liberty, TX (35 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.

Texas weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Dayton

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 45 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Dayton: 35 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on April 20, 2012. May has had the most flash floods, 3 of 8. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 138 have had fewer than Dayton.

  • May 29, 2005: lightning strike in Dayton — 1 injured.

    NWS: “15 year old male injured when lightning struck his home as he was talking on the phone.”

  • October 31, 2015: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Dayton — $705,000 damage.

    NWS: “High rainfall rates created flooding in both towns of Dayton and Liberty. The underpass at the intersection of US Highway 90 and FM 321, along with other streets in Dayton, were closed due to high water.”

  • May 26, 2016: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Dayton — $400,000 damage.

    NWS: “Numerous roads and bridges under water. Damage estimated.”

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 Dayton's ZIP code 77535 have filed 1,076 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $34.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Harvey in 2017: 248 claims (23% of all) and $17.6 million, then Flooding in 1994 with 173 and Tropical Storm Imelda in 2019 with 110. 59% 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, 375 have fewer than Dayton.

Flood insurance claims in Dayton by named event
EventClaimsPaid
Hurricane Harvey2017248$17.6 million
Flooding1994173$2.2 million
Tropical Storm Imelda2019110$6.8 million
Fall severe storms201521$1.0 million
Tropical Storm Allison200115$51,000
Hurricane Ike200814$149,000

Liberty County, which includes Dayton, has been named in 38 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 27 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 floods, 10 hurricanes, 8 severe storms, 5 fires). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Beryl, on July 9, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Liberty County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for tornadoes; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $32.5 million a year, the 56th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $9.9 million (30%), 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 Dayton