NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Elgin, OK
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 Elgin, Oklahoma since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Erin in 2007. Since 1950, 165 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 165
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
9 deaths in all
What the records show for Elgin
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Elgin; the strongest was Erin in 2007, a tropical storm with 49 mph winds when its centre passed 59 miles away. The record near Elgin begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was Erin in 2007. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site, 36% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Elgin. The highest rating among the 165 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 17, 1976, came within 17 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on May 24, 1957, killed 4 people. Of the 165, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 57 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 74. The most recent tornado was on April 27, 2024. Elgin has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 216 Oklahoma cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 251 times since 1957, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Elgin has more hail reports within 10 miles than 80% of the 216 Oklahoma cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Elgin
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | ErinAug 19 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 10 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Elgin: 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 Elgin
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s32
- 2000s9
- 1990s22(2 EF3+)
- 1980s17
- 1970s17(2 EF3+)
- 1960s27(2 EF3+)
- 1950s25(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 1957 | F4 | 14 mi | 21.6 mi | 4 / 5 |
| Apr 17, 1976 | F4 | 17 mi | 32.9 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Apr 10, 1979 | F3 | 10 mi | 4.5 mi | 3 / 100 |
| May 3, 1999 | F3 | 18 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 3, 1999 | F3 | 10 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 20, 1967 | F3 | 16 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 4, 1960 | F3 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 1954 | F3 | 18 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1981 | F2 | 24 mi | 29.1 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Apr 10, 1979 | F2 | 16 mi | 74.1 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Oct 10, 2021 | EF2 | 21 mi | 8.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2019 | EF2 | 19 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 165, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Elgin
The Storm Prediction Center has 251 hail reports within 10 miles of Elgin since 1957, made on 141 separate days. Of these, 175 were 1 inch across or larger, and 23 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 5 days, most recently June 15, 2023. The most recent report is from August 11, 2025. May has the most reports, 88.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Elgin
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lawton, OK, 14 miles southwest of Elgin at 1,150 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 96°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 51°F and 28°F. May is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 34.2 inches over 49 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 83 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 70 nights a year. That 34.2 inches is more than at 25 of the 82 Oklahoma stations used on this site (30%). Fletcher, 6 miles northeast, has its own station (Anadarko 3 E, OK): 31.8 inches a year, 2.4 less than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 96°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 51 | 28 | 1.2 | 2 |
| Feb | 56 | 31 | 1.7 | 3 |
| Mar | 64 | 41 | 2.4 | 4 |
| Apr | 73 | 49 | 3.3 | 5 |
| May | 82 | 59 | 5.0 | 6 |
| Jun | 90 | 68 | 4.2 | 6 |
| Jul | 96 | 72 | 2.9 | 4 |
| Aug | 96 | 72 | 3.5 | 4 |
| Sep | 86 | 64 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Oct | 76 | 51 | 2.9 | 4 |
| Nov | 63 | 39 | 2.1 | 3 |
| Dec | 53 | 30 | 1.9 | 3 |
| Year | 74 | 50 | 34.2 | 49 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lawton, OK (1,150 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 Elgin
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 78 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Elgin: 63 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods and 3 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $475,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 93 mph, on May 31, 1999. May has had the most flash floods, 8 of 12. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 85 have had fewer than Elgin.
May 20, 2015: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Elgin — 1 killed, $30,000 damage.
May 28, 2012: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Elgin — $210,000 damage.
NWS: “Wind damage was also reported in the area with several power poles snapped at ground level and damage to many cars and residential roofs. A large cell tower toppled on the east side of Lawton.”
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 Elgin's ZIP code 73538 have filed 24 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1992, and were paid $1.5 million 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 92 Oklahoma cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 31 have fewer than Elgin.
Comanche County, which includes Elgin, has been named in 36 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 25 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 8 ice storms, 5 fires, 4 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on July 19, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Comanche County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $50.8 million a year, the 6th highest of 77 Oklahoma counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $19.7 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 Elgin
- Fletcher, OK6 mi
- Fort Sill, OK11 mi
- Apache, OK12 mi
- Lawton, OK13 mi
- Rush Springs, OK20 mi
- Marlow, OK21 mi
- Anadarko, OK21 mi
- Cache, OK22 mi
- Duncan, OK25 mi
- Walters, OK27 mi
- Chickasha, OK28 mi
- Carnegie, OK31 mi
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