NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Gladstone, MI
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 Gladstone, Michigan since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Cristobal in 2020. Since 1950, 12 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 12
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Gladstone
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Gladstone; the strongest was Cristobal in 2020, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 68 miles away. Of the 546 Michigan cities on this site, 85% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Gladstone. The highest rating among the 12 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on July 11, 1987, passed within a mile of the city centre. Of the 12, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 3 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on August 31, 2020. Of the 546 Michigan cities, 92% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Gladstone. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 41 times since 1980, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Gladstone has more hail reports within 10 miles than 59% of the 546 Michigan cities.
Compare Gladstone's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Gladstone
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | CristobalJun 10 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Gladstone: 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 Gladstone
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2000s2
- 1990s3
- 1980s2(2 EF3+)
- 1970s3
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 11, 1987 | F3 | in town | 71 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 1986 | F3 | 23 mi | 24.3 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Jul 19, 1992 | F2 | 1 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jul 20, 1972 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 31, 2020 | EF1 | 9 mi | 0.61 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1998 | F1 | 4 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 14, 1974 | F1 | 7 mi | 5.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1968 | F1 | 16 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 25, 2008 | EF0 | 5 mi | 0.09 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 30, 2002 | F0 | 5 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 28, 1993 | F0 | 4 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1973 | F0 | 12 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 12, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Gladstone
The Storm Prediction Center has 41 hail reports within 10 miles of Gladstone since 1980, made on 27 separate days. Of these, 22 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on June 18, 2012. The most recent report is from May 22, 2019. July has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Gladstone
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cornell 5SE, MI, 6 miles west of Gladstone at 794 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 55°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 8°F. September is the wettest at 3.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.1 inches; the year adds up to 30.1 inches over 67 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 181 nights a year. Snowfall averages 42.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 30.1 inches is more than at 12 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (9%). Escanaba, 7 miles south, has its own station (Escanaba, MI): 28.9 inches a year, 1.2 less than here, and a July average high of 77°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 8 | 1.2 | 4 | 10.3 |
| Feb | 30 | 9 | 1.1 | 3 | 8.4 |
| Mar | 41 | 18 | 1.4 | 4 | 7.9 |
| Apr | 53 | 29 | 2.5 | 6 | 3.1 |
| May | 66 | 40 | 2.9 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 76 | 50 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 55 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 54 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 72 | 47 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 58 | 36 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.4 |
| Nov | 44 | 26 | 2.2 | 5 | 3.7 |
| Dec | 33 | 16 | 1.7 | 5 | 8.7 |
| Year | 55 | 32 | 30.1 | 67 | 42.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cornell 5SE, MI (794 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 Gladstone
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 85 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Gladstone: 61 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 heavy rain events, 4 flash floods, 3 floods and 3 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $949,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 9, 2005.
May 17, 1998: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Gladstone — 2 injured, $400,000 damage.
July 5, 2021: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Gladstone — 1 injured, $100,000 damage.
May 15, 2025: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Gladstone — $100,000 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
Delta County, which includes Gladstone, has been named in 6 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 2 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought, 1 hurricane, 1 snowstorm). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 27, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Delta County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.7 million a year, the 42nd highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.7 million (53%), 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.