NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Friant, CA
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 Friant, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 21 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 21
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Friant
The strongest of the 21 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on March 22, 1962; its path came within 17 miles. Of the 21, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 6 have come since 2000. March and April have had the most tornadoes, 4 each. The most recent tornado was on March 1, 2024. Friant has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 67% of the 705 California cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 3 times since 2001, with stones up to 0.75 inches (penny size). Of the 705 California cities, 44% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Friant.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Friant
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s3
- 2000s2
- 1990s6
- 1980s2
- 1970s1
- 1960s3
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 22, 1962 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 17, 2019 | EF1 | 15 mi | 0.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 2002 | F1 | 21 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 19, 1980 | F1 | 18 mi | 1.7 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F1 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 19, 1957 | F1 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 1, 2024 | EF0 | 20 mi | 0.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 15, 2019 | EF0 | 12 mi | 0.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 18, 2010 | EF0 | 22 mi | 0.53 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 2001 | F0 | 14 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 26, 1997 | F0 | 9 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 26, 1997 | F0 | 7 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 21, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Friant
The Storm Prediction Center has 3 hail reports within 10 miles of Friant since 2001, made on 2 separate days. None of them reached 1 inch. The largest size, 0.75 inches (penny size), was reported on 2 days, most recently January 14, 2006. The most recent report is from January 14, 2006.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Friant
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Friant Government Camp, CA, 2 miles southwest of Friant at 410 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 99°F and low of 62°F; December is the coolest, at 56°F and 37°F. January is the wettest at 3.1 inches of precipitation on average and July and August the driest at 0.0 inches; the year adds up to 14.8 inches over 32 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 118 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 17 nights a year. That 14.8 inches is more than at 103 of the 226 California stations used on this site (46%). Clovis, 12 miles south, has its own station (Fresno Yosemite International Airport, CA): 11.0 inches a year, 3.8 less than here, and a July average high of 98°F against 99°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56 | 38 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Feb | 61 | 40 | 2.5 | 6 |
| Mar | 66 | 43 | 2.5 | 5 |
| Apr | 73 | 44 | 1.4 | 3 |
| May | 83 | 50 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Jun | 92 | 56 | 0.2 | 1 |
| Jul | 99 | 62 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Aug | 98 | 60 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Sep | 92 | 57 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Oct | 80 | 50 | 0.8 | 1 |
| Nov | 66 | 42 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Dec | 56 | 37 | 2.5 | 5 |
| Year | 77 | 48 | 14.8 | 32 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Friant Government Camp, CA (410 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 Friant
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 39 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Friant: 34 floods, 3 heavy rain events, 1 thunderstorm wind report and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $39,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on June 22, 2022.
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
Madera County, which includes Friant, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 fires, 6 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 3, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Madera County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for hail and lightning; Relatively Low for strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $161.6 million a year, the 29th highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $44.7 million (28%), 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 Friant
- Clovis, CA12 mi
- Coarsegold, CA13 mi
- Pinedale, CA14 mi
- Auberry, CA15 mi
- Tollhouse, CA17 mi
- North Fork, CA17 mi
- Fresno, CA18 mi
- Madera, CA20 mi
- Sanger, CA22 mi
- Del Rey, CA26 mi
- Oakhurst, CA27 mi
- Fowler, CA28 mi
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