NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Grafton, OH
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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Grafton, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 91 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 91
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
40 deaths in all
What the records show for Grafton
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Grafton; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1892, a tropical storm with 56 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. The record near Grafton begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 26 miles away. None of the 5 systems has come since 2000. Grafton has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 46% of the 605 Ohio cities on this site. The highest rating among the 91 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 11, 1965, passed within a mile of the city centre. Of the 91, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 26. The most recent tornado was on August 13, 2025. Grafton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 72% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 100 times since 1960, with stones up to 2.25 inches. Grafton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 68% of the 605 Ohio cities.
Compare Grafton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Grafton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 22 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Grafton: 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 Grafton
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s8
- 2000s10
- 1990s22(1 EF3+)
- 1980s5(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s7(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | in town | 22 mi | 18 / 200 |
| Jun 8, 1953 | F4 | 12 mi | 118 mi | 17 / 379 |
| May 2, 1983 | F3 | 21 mi | 12 mi | 1 / 25 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F3 | 4 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Aug 20, 1962 | F2 | 16 mi | 0.5 mi | 4 / 20 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 21 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 17 mi | 9.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 21, 2001 | F2 | 12 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 5 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Aug 26, 1986 | F2 | 11 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jul 13, 1975 | F2 | 7 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 91, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Grafton
The Storm Prediction Center has 100 hail reports within 10 miles of Grafton since 1960, made on 71 separate days. Of these, 54 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.25 inches, fell on March 28, 2020. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 36.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Grafton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Elyria 3 E, OH, 7 miles north of Grafton at 730 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 36°F and 22°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 19 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 115 nights a year. Snowfall averages 43.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 41.9 inches is more than at 68 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (53%). Lagrange, 4 miles west, has its own station (Oberlin, OH): 40.1 inches a year, 1.8 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | 22 | 2.8 | 8 | 12.9 |
| Feb | 40 | 23 | 2.4 | 7 | 10.2 |
| Mar | 49 | 30 | 3.0 | 7 | 7.6 |
| Apr | 63 | 40 | 3.8 | 8 | 1.9 |
| May | 73 | 51 | 3.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 65 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 63 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 56 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 46 | 3.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 52 | 36 | 3.0 | 8 | 2.2 |
| Dec | 41 | 27 | 3.1 | 8 | 8.8 |
| Year | 62 | 43 | 41.9 | 88 | 43.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Elyria 3 E, OH (730 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 Grafton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 214 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Grafton: 192 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods and 8 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $36.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on November 5, 2017. May has had the most flash floods, 6 of 14. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 319 have had fewer than Grafton.
May 12, 2014: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Grafton — $25.0 million damage.
May 12, 2014: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Grafton — $2.5 million damage.
August 20, 2005: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Grafton — $2.0 million 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 Grafton's ZIP code 44044 have filed 22 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $174,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 23% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 111 have fewer than Grafton.
Lorain County, which includes Grafton, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lorain 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 and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $65.9 million a year, the 10th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $42.7 million (65%), 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 Grafton
- Lagrange, OH4 mi
- Columbia Station, OH7 mi
- Elyria, OH7 mi
- Valley City, OH7 mi
- Litchfield, OH8 mi
- North Ridgeville, OH8 mi
- Oberlin, OH9 mi
- Olmsted Falls, OH10 mi
- Strongsville, OH11 mi
- Berea, OH12 mi
- Brunswick, OH12 mi
- North Olmsted, OH12 mi
All Ohio cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Grafton with another place →