NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Fairfax, IA
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Fairfax, Iowa since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 143 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 143
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
7 deaths in all
What the records show for Fairfax
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Fairfax; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 48 mph winds when its centre passed 15 miles away. Fairfax is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 241 Iowa cities on this site. The highest rating among the 143 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 7, 1984, came within 23 miles. Of the 143, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 76 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 37. The most recent tornado was on July 11, 2025. Fairfax has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 68% of the 241 Iowa cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 201 times since 1956, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Fairfax has more hail reports within 10 miles than 87% of the 241 Iowa cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Fairfax
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Fairfax: 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 Fairfax
By decade
- 2020s24
- 2010s19
- 2000s33(1 EF3+)
- 1990s19
- 1980s16(1 EF3+)
- 1970s17(3 EF3+)
- 1960s8(1 EF3+)
- 1950s7(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 7, 1984 | F4 | 23 mi | 134 mi | 3 / 64 |
| Aug 12, 1974 | F4 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 30, 1954 | F4 | 13 mi | 80.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 1961 | F3 | 18 mi | 87.7 mi | 1 / 12 |
| May 21, 2004 | F3 | 10 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1971 | F3 | 7 mi | 4.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1971 | F3 | 12 mi | 4.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1953 | F3 | 12 mi | 38.6 mi | 0 / 7 |
| May 22, 1962 | F2 | 22 mi | 4.1 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jul 11, 2025 | EF2 | 20 mi | 6.74 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 16 mi | 8.97 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 16 mi | 16.93 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 143, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Fairfax
The Storm Prediction Center has 201 hail reports within 10 miles of Fairfax since 1956, made on 81 separate days. Of these, 136 were 1 inch across or larger, and 10 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on July 11, 2020. The most recent report is from August 15, 2025. April has the most reports, 63.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Fairfax
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cedar Rapids Municipal Airport, IA, 4 miles southeast of Fairfax at 868 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 28°F and 11°F. June is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.0 inches; the year adds up to 36.1 inches over 67 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 12 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 144 nights a year. That 36.1 inches is more than at 43 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (35%). Cedar Rapids, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Cedar Rapids #1, IA): 38.8 inches a year, 2.7 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28 | 11 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Feb | 33 | 16 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Mar | 46 | 27 | 2.0 | 5 |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 3.6 | 7 |
| May | 71 | 50 | 4.3 | 8 |
| Jun | 80 | 60 | 5.6 | 9 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 4.4 | 6 |
| Aug | 81 | 60 | 4.1 | 6 |
| Sep | 75 | 52 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Oct | 62 | 40 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Nov | 46 | 28 | 2.0 | 4 |
| Dec | 33 | 17 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Year | 58 | 38 | 36.1 | 67 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cedar Rapids Municipal Airport, IA (868 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 Fairfax
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 348 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Fairfax: 290 thunderstorm wind reports, 38 flash floods, 9 floods, 6 heavy rain events and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 4 people and injured 210, and the NWS estimated $242.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 140 mph, on August 10, 2020. June has had the most flash floods, 18 of 38. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 208 have had fewer than Fairfax.
August 10, 2020: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Fairfax — 1 killed, 200 injured.
June 30, 2014: thunderstorm wind in Fairfax — 1 killed, 1 injured.
NWS: “Law enforcement reported a business building destroyed by high winds from a severe thunderstorm. One person was killed and another injured due to the collapsed structure.”
June 30, 2014: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Fairfax — 1 killed, 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
Linn County, which includes Fairfax, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 floods, 8 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, on August 17, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Linn County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively High for tornadoes, hail and lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $79.1 million a year, the 3rd highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $36.2 million (46%), 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 Fairfax
- Atkins, IA7 mi
- Swisher, IA7 mi
- Cedar Rapids, IA8 mi
- Amana, IA8 mi
- Hiawatha, IA11 mi
- Ely, IA11 mi
- Robins, IA13 mi
- Marion, IA14 mi
- North Liberty, IA14 mi
- Tiffin, IA15 mi
- Solon, IA16 mi
- Marengo, IA17 mi
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