NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Defiance, MO
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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Defiance, Missouri since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 128 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 128
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
39 deaths in all
What the records show for Defiance
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Defiance; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 48 mph winds when its centre passed 48 miles away. The record near Defiance begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 43% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Defiance. The highest rating among the 128 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 22, 2011, came within 17 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on February 10, 1959, killed 21 people. Of the 128, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 72 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on June 4, 2025. Defiance has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 76% of the 334 Missouri cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 194 times since 1960, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Defiance has more hail reports within 10 miles than 81% of the 334 Missouri cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Defiance
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Defiance: 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 Defiance
By decade
- 2020s19(1 EF3+)
- 2010s38(3 EF3+)
- 2000s15
- 1990s12
- 1980s10(2 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s13(3 EF3+)
- 1950s17(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 10, 1959 | F4 | 15 mi | 23.9 mi | 21 / 345 |
| Feb 24, 1956 | F4 | 15 mi | 77.6 mi | 6 / 36 |
| Jan 24, 1967 | F4 | 13 mi | 25 mi | 3 / 216 |
| Apr 22, 2011 | EF4 | 17 mi | 21.3 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Dec 10, 2021 | EF3 | 3 mi | 27.3 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Dec 31, 2010 | EF3 | 22 mi | 6.65 mi | 1 / 6 |
| May 31, 2013 | EF3 | 2 mi | 31.71 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Nov 15, 1988 | F3 | 9 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Apr 29, 1984 | F3 | 19 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 24, 1967 | F3 | 17 mi | 21.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 14, 1966 | F3 | 16 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 26 |
| Mar 25, 1954 | F3 | 8 mi | 21.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 128, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Defiance
The Storm Prediction Center has 194 hail reports within 10 miles of Defiance since 1960, made on 102 separate days. Of these, 119 were 1 inch across or larger, and 19 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 6 days, most recently April 3, 2014. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 66.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Defiance
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Weldon Spring NWS, MO, 6 miles east of Defiance at 610 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 39°F and 21°F. May is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.4 inches; the year adds up to 44.4 inches over 70 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 36 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 105 nights a year. Snowfall averages 13.5 inches a year, most of it in January. That 44.4 inches is more than at 74 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (55%). Saint Peters, 11 miles northeast, has its own station (St Peters 2 SE, MO): 42.4 inches a year, 2.0 less than here, and the same July average high, 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | 21 | 2.6 | 4 | 4.1 |
| Feb | 45 | 24 | 2.4 | 4 | 3.7 |
| Mar | 55 | 33 | 3.7 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Apr | 67 | 44 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.2 |
| May | 76 | 54 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 63 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 67 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 65 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 57 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 68 | 46 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 55 | 35 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.8 |
| Dec | 44 | 26 | 3.1 | 5 | 3.0 |
| Year | 66 | 45 | 44.4 | 70 | 13.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Weldon Spring NWS, MO (610 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 Defiance
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 186 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Defiance: 171 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 1 flood and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $50.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 120 mph, on April 9, 2015. July has had the most flash floods, 4 of 13. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 115 have had fewer than Defiance.
July 26, 2022: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Defiance — 1 killed, $50.0 million damage.
NWS: “Up to 10 inches of rain fell in a period of 8 hours causing catastrophic flooding in portions of St. Louis County.”
July 23, 2017: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Defiance — 3 injured.
August 10, 2010: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Defiance — 1 injured, $200,000 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 Defiance's ZIP code 63341 have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1993, and were paid $147,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 42% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 8 have fewer than Defiance.
St. Charles County, which includes Defiance, has been named in 28 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 9 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on August 8, 2022. FEMA's National Risk Index gives St. Charles County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively High for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $215.2 million a year, the 4th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $115.9 million (54%), 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 Defiance
- Lake St Louis, MO7 mi
- O Fallon, MO8 mi
- Wentzville, MO9 mi
- Saint Peters, MO11 mi
- Wildwood, MO11 mi
- Chesterfield, MO12 mi
- Foristell, MO12 mi
- Saint Charles, MO13 mi
- Pacific, MO14 mi
- Ballwin, MO15 mi
- Wright City, MO15 mi
- Eureka, MO16 mi
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