NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Grand Rapids, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Grand Rapids, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 71 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 71
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
48 deaths in all
What the records show for Grand Rapids
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Grand Rapids; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 36 miles away. The record near Grand Rapids begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 53% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Grand Rapids. The highest rating among the 71 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on June 5, 2010, came within 18 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 18 people. Of the 71, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 31 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 23. The most recent tornado was on May 7, 2024. Of the 605 Ohio cities, 57% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Grand Rapids. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 41 times since 1962, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 84% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Grand Rapids.
Compare Grand Rapids's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Grand Rapids
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 27 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 Grand Rapids: 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 Grand Rapids
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s19(1 EF3+)
- 2000s11(2 EF3+)
- 1990s12
- 1980s9(1 EF3+)
- 1970s9(1 EF3+)
- 1960s8(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 21 mi | 5.6 mi | 18 / 236 |
| Jun 8, 1953 | F4 | 14 mi | 118 mi | 17 / 379 |
| Jun 5, 2010 | EF4 | 18 mi | 8.8 mi | 7 / 28 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F4 | 12 mi | 52.8 mi | 4 / 17 |
| May 2, 1983 | F3 | 6 mi | 5 mi | 1 / 22 |
| Oct 24, 2001 | F3 | 19 mi | 32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1971 | F3 | 25 mi | 39.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF2 | 17 mi | 11.28 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2010 | EF2 | 7 mi | 7.24 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 7 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 71, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Grand Rapids
The Storm Prediction Center has 41 hail reports within 10 miles of Grand Rapids since 1962, made on 31 separate days. Of these, 17 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on May 9, 2000. The most recent report is from August 27, 2024. May has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Grand Rapids
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Toledo Express Airport, OH, 11 miles north of Grand Rapids at 669 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 20°F. May is the wettest at 3.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.3 inches; the year adds up to 35.2 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 19 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 123 nights a year. Snowfall averages 37.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 35.2 inches is more than at 7 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (5%). Weston, 6 miles southeast, has its own station (Hoytville 2 NE, OH): 36.1 inches a year, 0.9 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35 | 20 | 2.4 | 6 | 12.3 |
| Feb | 38 | 22 | 2.3 | 6 | 10.2 |
| Mar | 48 | 30 | 2.6 | 6 | 5.3 |
| Apr | 62 | 40 | 3.5 | 7 | 1.3 |
| May | 73 | 51 | 3.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 61 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 64 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 63 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 55 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 44 | 2.6 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 51 | 35 | 2.7 | 6 | 1.7 |
| Dec | 39 | 26 | 2.4 | 6 | 6.5 |
| Year | 62 | 43 | 35.2 | 74 | 37.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Toledo Express Airport, OH (669 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 Grand Rapids
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 118 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Grand Rapids: 113 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on July 1, 2012.
June 18, 2014: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Grand Rapids — 1 injured.
May 7, 2010: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Grand Rapids — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm downburst winds estimated to be at least 60 mph caused damage throughout northern Wood County. Damage was reported from the Grand Rapids area northeast across Perrysburg Township to near Millbury in the northeast corner of the county.”
June 29, 2015: flood 2 miles from the centre of Grand Rapids — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “The Maumee River flooded it's banks in the city of Grand Rapids in late June due to several days of heavy rain across the entire Maumee Basin. 2 feet in moderate flood stage around 8 pm on the 29th.”
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 Grand Rapids's ZIP code 43522 have filed 68 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $480,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1985: 11 claims (16% of all) and $18,000. The year with the most claims was 1982, with 27. 18% 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, 226 have fewer than Grand Rapids.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1985 | 11 | $18,000 |
Lucas County, which includes Grand Rapids, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 3 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 Lucas County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $111.3 million a year, the 6th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $71.5 million (64%), 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.