NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Dracut, MA
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
44 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Dracut, Massachusetts since 1851, 8 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Elsa in 2021. Since 1950, 50 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 8
- Tropical storms
- 36
- Tornadoes
- 50
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Dracut
The strongest storm to pass near Dracut was an unnamed storm in 1869, a Category 2 hurricane with 104 mph winds when its centre passed 54 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1858, whose centre came within 3 miles. The record near Dracut begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Elsa in 2021, a tropical storm 44 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1960s, with 6 systems. Of the 44 systems, 4 have come since 2000. Of the 346 Massachusetts cities on this site, 76% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Dracut. The highest rating among the 50 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on September 29, 1974, came within 7 miles. The deadliest, an F1 on August 9, 1972, killed 1 person. Of the 50, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 20. The most recent tornado was on September 6, 2025. Dracut has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 346 Massachusetts cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 70 times since 1963, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Dracut has more hail reports within 10 miles than 72% of the 346 Massachusetts cities.
Compare Dracut's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Dracut
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 8 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | HannaSep 7 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2007 | BarryJun 5 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1999 | FloydSep 17 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 14 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1991 | BobAug 19 | 39 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 39 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1976 | BelleAug 10 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1966 | AlmaJun 14 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1961 | EstherSep 26 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1961 | Unnamed 1961 stormSep 15 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | DonnaSep 12 | overhead | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1959 | CindyJul 11 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1954 | CarolAug 31 | 11 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormSep 15 | 42 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormSep 9 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 21 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 5 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1908 | Unnamed 1908 stormMay 31 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormJun 30 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 69 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 17 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 24 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 10 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 10 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 12 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 22 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 24 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 30 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 27 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1869 | Unnamed 1869 stormOct 4 | 54 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1869 | Unnamed 1869 stormSep 8 | 8 mi | Category 1 (94 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormNov 3 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 28 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1858 | Unnamed 1858 stormSep 16 | 3 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormOct 19 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Dracut: 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 Dracut
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s2
- 1990s1
- 1980s3
- 1970s10(2 EF3+)
- 1960s16
- 1950s15
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 3, 1970 | F3 | 13 mi | 35.4 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Sep 29, 1974 | F3 | 7 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 28, 2014 | EF2 | 24 mi | 1.93 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jul 21, 1972 | F2 | 4 mi | 7.6 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Aug 28, 1965 | F2 | 2 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 9, 1963 | F2 | 14 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1963 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 2, 1961 | F2 | 9 mi | 5.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 25, 1958 | F2 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 11, 1958 | F2 | 12 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 5, 1957 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 21, 1956 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 50, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Dracut
The Storm Prediction Center has 70 hail reports within 10 miles of Dracut since 1963, made on 46 separate days. Of these, 39 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 3 days, most recently August 20, 2004. The most recent report is from August 15, 2024. June and July have the most reports, 21 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Dracut
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lowell, MA, 4 miles southwest of Dracut at 110 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 16°F. October is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 48.6 inches over 89 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 48.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 44 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (17); a normal September there has highs of 76°F and 3.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 20 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 148 nights a year. That 48.6 inches is more than at 32 of the 65 Massachusetts stations used on this site (49%). Pelham, NH, 4 miles north, has its own station (Hudson 1 SSE, NH): 46.2 inches a year, 2.4 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 16 | 3.6 | 8 |
| Feb | 37 | 17 | 3.2 | 7 |
| Mar | 45 | 24 | 4.3 | 8 |
| Apr | 59 | 35 | 4.1 | 8 |
| May | 70 | 45 | 3.8 | 8 |
| Jun | 79 | 55 | 4.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 85 | 61 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Aug | 83 | 59 | 4.0 | 7 |
| Sep | 76 | 52 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Oct | 62 | 40 | 5.0 | 8 |
| Nov | 51 | 30 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Dec | 40 | 22 | 4.5 | 8 |
| Year | 60 | 38 | 48.6 | 89 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lowell, MA (110 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 Dracut
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 243 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Dracut: 159 thunderstorm wind reports, 39 floods, 32 flash floods and 13 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $2.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on July 24, 1999. July has had the most flash floods, 16 of 32. Of the 339 Massachusetts cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 272 have had fewer than Dracut.
September 6, 2014: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Dracut — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
September 6, 2014: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Dracut — 1 injured.
July 1, 2015: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Dracut — 1 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 Dracut's ZIP code 01826 have filed 24 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $348,000 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 229 Massachusetts cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 72 have fewer than Dracut.
Middlesex County, which includes Dracut, has been named in 35 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1985, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 severe storms, 8 snowstorms, 7 hurricanes, 5 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 27, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Middlesex County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hurricanes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and heat waves; Relatively Low for coastal flooding; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $321.9 million a year, the highest of 14 Massachusetts counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $224.4 million (70%), 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.