NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Grove City, 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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Grove City, Pennsylvania since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 66 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 66
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
35 deaths in all
What the records show for Grove City
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Grove City; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 61 mph winds when its centre passed 64 miles away. The record near Grove City begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 12 miles away. Of the 10 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 73% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Grove City. The strongest of the 66 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 31, 1985; its path came within 10 miles, and it killed 18 people. Of the 66, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 31 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 14. The most recent tornado was on May 21, 2025. Grove City has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 57% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 75 times since 1956, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Grove City has more hail reports within 10 miles than 72% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities.
Compare Grove City's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Grove City
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 31 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Grove City: 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 Grove City
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s13
- 2000s11
- 1990s10
- 1980s10(2 EF3+)
- 1970s10(1 EF3+)
- 1960s1
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F5 | 10 mi | 47 mi | 18 / 310 |
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 20 mi | 56.2 mi | 16 / 125 |
| May 2, 1972 | F3 | 22 mi | 7.9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 18 mi | 7 mi | 1 / 19 |
| May 25, 2004 | F2 | 24 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 8, 1992 | F2 | 16 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 8, 1992 | F2 | 21 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Oct 3, 1986 | F2 | 3 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1985 | F2 | 15 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 7, 1981 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1981 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 24, 1977 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 66, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Grove City
The Storm Prediction Center has 75 hail reports within 10 miles of Grove City since 1956, made on 43 separate days. Of these, 44 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 April 14, 2024. The most recent report is from October 6, 2024. August has the most reports, 16.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Grove City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Slippery Rock 1 SSW, PA, 8 miles south of Grove City at 1,260 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 45.3 inches over 96 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 54% of the year's precipitation (24.5 of 45.3 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (5); a normal September there has highs of 74°F and 4.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 142 nights a year. That 45.3 inches is more than at 84 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (57%). Volant, 9 miles southwest, has its own station (New Castle 1 N, PA): 42.0 inches a year, 3.3 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 81°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 17 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Feb | 37 | 18 | 2.7 | 7 |
| Mar | 46 | 25 | 3.4 | 8 |
| Apr | 59 | 35 | 3.9 | 9 |
| May | 69 | 45 | 4.1 | 9 |
| Jun | 77 | 54 | 4.8 | 9 |
| Jul | 81 | 58 | 4.6 | 9 |
| Aug | 80 | 56 | 4.0 | 7 |
| Sep | 74 | 50 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Oct | 62 | 39 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Nov | 49 | 31 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Dec | 38 | 23 | 3.2 | 8 |
| Year | 59 | 38 | 45.3 | 96 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Slippery Rock 1 SSW, PA (1,260 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 Grove City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 194 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Grove City: 174 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods and 7 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $2.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 83 mph, on July 8, 2014. June has had the most flash floods, 5 of 13. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 224 have had fewer than Grove City.
July 17, 2010: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Grove City — 1 injured, $25,000 damage.
NWS: “Emergency management reported a tree down on a car on near Interstate 79 at Grove City. One minor injury reported.”
July 20, 2023: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Grove City — 1 injured, $5,000 damage.
NWS: “A tree reportedly fell onto a vehicle, with the occupant suffering a minor injury.”
February 28, 2011: flood 6 miles from the centre of Grove City — $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
Mercer County, which includes Grove City, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Mercer County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for hurricanes and tornadoes; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $34.1 million a year, the 28th highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $29.1 million (85%), 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 Grove City
- Harrisville, PA6 mi
- Slippery Rock, PA9 mi
- Volant, PA9 mi
- Mercer, PA9 mi
- Stoneboro, PA11 mi
- New Wilmington, PA13 mi
- Polk, PA14 mi
- Sandy Lake, PA15 mi
- West Sunbury, PA15 mi
- Portersville, PA15 mi
- New Castle, PA18 mi
- Prospect, PA19 mi
All Pennsylvania cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Grove City with another place →