NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Fairfield, PA
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
23 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Fairfield, Pennsylvania since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 82 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 20
- Tornadoes
- 82
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Fairfield
The strongest storm to pass near Fairfield was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 90 mph winds when its centre passed 34 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Hazel in 1954, whose centre came within 3 miles. The record near Fairfield begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 20 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 23 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Fairfield has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 89% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site. The highest rating among the 82 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 4 times; the most recent, on May 22, 1983, came within 8 miles. Of the 82, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 30 have come since 2000. April and June have had the most tornadoes, 15 each. The most recent tornado was on June 5, 2024. Fairfield has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 85% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 23 times since 1962, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities, 81% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Fairfield.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Fairfield
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | DianeAug 18 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 3 mi | Category 1 (82 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 14 | 31 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 34 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Fairfield: 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 Fairfield
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s9
- 2000s12
- 1990s25
- 1980s5(2 EF3+)
- 1970s11
- 1960s6(1 EF3+)
- 1950s5(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22, 1983 | F3 | 8 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 7, 1980 | F3 | 22 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 16, 1961 | F3 | 21 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 5, 1952 | F3 | 21 mi | 17.5 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Sep 24, 2001 | F2 | 21 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1994 | F2 | 12 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 7, 1980 | F2 | 24 mi | 5.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 1979 | F2 | 24 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 1978 | F2 | 19 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 31, 1978 | F2 | 25 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 21, 1976 | F2 | 14 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 25, 1954 | F2 | 9 mi | 13.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 82, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Fairfield
The Storm Prediction Center has 23 hail reports within 10 miles of Fairfield since 1962, made on 22 separate days. Of these, 13 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 4 days, most recently August 22, 2019. The most recent report is from September 7, 2023. June and July have the most reports, 6 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Fairfield
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Emmitsburg 2 SE, MD, 8 miles southeast of Fairfield at 403 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 22°F. September is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 46.8 inches over 85 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (24.5 of 46.8 inches); the other six months are drier. October has brought the most of the 23 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (8); a normal October there has highs of 66°F and 3.8 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 114 nights a year. Snowfall averages 27.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 46.8 inches is more than at 98 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (66%). Orrtanna, 8 miles north, has its own station (S Mountain, PA): 48.6 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 22 | 3.5 | 7 | 8.7 |
| Feb | 43 | 23 | 2.6 | 6 | 8.8 |
| Mar | 52 | 30 | 4.2 | 8 | 4.4 |
| Apr | 64 | 40 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.2 |
| May | 72 | 51 | 4.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 64 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 62 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 5.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 66 | 44 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.8 |
| Dec | 44 | 27 | 3.8 | 7 | 4.5 |
| Year | 64 | 43 | 46.8 | 85 | 27.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Emmitsburg 2 SE, MD (403 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 Fairfield
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 235 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Fairfield: 163 thunderstorm wind reports, 61 floods and 11 flash floods. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $9.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on April 19, 2025. September has had the most flash floods, 7 of 11. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 188 have had fewer than Fairfield.
July 10, 2001: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Fairfield — 3 injured.
June 21, 2021: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Fairfield — $8.0 million damage.
April 19, 2025: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Fairfield — $500,000 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 Fairfield's ZIP code 17320 have filed 20 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $131,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 15% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 553 Pennsylvania cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 114 have fewer than Fairfield.
Adams County, which includes Fairfield, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 floods, 4 severe storms, 4 snowstorms, 3 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Adams County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $27.2 million a year, the 33rd highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $17.3 million (63%), 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 Fairfield
- Emmitsburg, MD5 mi
- Orrtanna, PA8 mi
- Gettysburg, PA9 mi
- Waynesboro, PA10 mi
- Thurmont, MD11 mi
- Fayetteville, PA12 mi
- Smithsburg, MD12 mi
- Biglerville, PA13 mi
- Taneytown, MD13 mi
- Keymar, MD13 mi
- Littlestown, PA14 mi
- Woodsboro, MD16 mi
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