NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Drexel, 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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Drexel, Missouri since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 81 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 81
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
48 deaths in all
What the records show for Drexel
The strongest of the 81 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 20, 1957; its path came within 23 miles, and it killed 44 people. Of the 81, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 38 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 29. The most recent tornado was on April 27, 2024. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 63% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Drexel. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 80 times since 1964, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 334 Missouri cities, 65% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Drexel.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Drexel
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s17
- 2000s14(1 EF3+)
- 1990s2
- 1980s10
- 1970s6(1 EF3+)
- 1960s17(3 EF3+)
- 1950s8(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 1957 | F5 | 23 mi | 69.4 mi | 44 / 207 |
| Feb 28, 2007 | EF4 | 18 mi | 24.49 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 4, 1977 | F3 | 3 mi | 29.8 mi | 2 / 15 |
| Apr 12, 1964 | F3 | 16 mi | 19.5 mi | 1 / 10 |
| May 15, 1968 | F3 | 10 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 15, 1960 | F3 | 7 mi | 8.4 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 12, 2006 | F2 | 21 mi | 26 mi | 1 / 13 |
| Apr 27, 2014 | EF2 | 24 mi | 16.13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 4, 2003 | F2 | 19 mi | 22 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1982 | F2 | 14 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 11, 1978 | F2 | 13 mi | 11.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 4, 1977 | F2 | 9 mi | 11.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 81, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Drexel
The Storm Prediction Center has 80 hail reports within 10 miles of Drexel since 1964, made on 50 separate days. Of these, 55 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on August 5, 2003. The most recent report is from April 17, 2025. April has the most reports, 25.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Drexel
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Paola, KS, 18 miles west of Drexel at 860 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 19°F. May is the wettest at 6.1 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 41.2 inches over 63 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 39 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 107 nights a year. That 41.2 inches is more than at 30 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (22%). Cleveland, 11 miles north, has its own station (Olathe Johnson Co Exec Airport, KS): 37.8 inches a year, 3.4 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 19 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Feb | 45 | 23 | 1.7 | 3 |
| Mar | 56 | 33 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Apr | 66 | 43 | 3.8 | 7 |
| May | 75 | 55 | 6.1 | 8 |
| Jun | 84 | 65 | 5.2 | 7 |
| Jul | 89 | 69 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Aug | 87 | 66 | 4.3 | 5 |
| Sep | 80 | 58 | 4.6 | 6 |
| Oct | 69 | 45 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Nov | 55 | 34 | 2.4 | 4 |
| Dec | 43 | 23 | 1.8 | 4 |
| Year | 66 | 44 | 41.2 | 63 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Paola, KS (860 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 Drexel
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 66 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Drexel: 54 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 flash floods and 1 flood. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $68,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on June 15, 2009. June has had the most flash floods, 5 of 11. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 88 have had fewer than Drexel.
August 22, 2017: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Drexel — 1 killed.
NWS: “A vehicle hydroplaned off the road on HWY 69 near 363rd Street. The vehicle left the roadway, then sank into the flooded ditch alongside the road.”
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
Cass County, which includes Drexel, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 3 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cass County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $44.3 million a year, the 15th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $17.5 million (39%), 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 Drexel
- Louisburg, KS9 mi
- Cleveland, MO11 mi
- Adrian, MO14 mi
- La Cygne, KS14 mi
- Peculiar, MO15 mi
- Harrisonville, MO15 mi
- Paola, KS17 mi
- Bucyrus, KS17 mi
- Garden City, MO21 mi
- Belton, MO21 mi
- Butler, MO21 mi
- Raymore, MO21 mi
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