NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Hugo, OK
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 Hugo, Oklahoma since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 78 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 78
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Hugo
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Hugo; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1902, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 25 miles away. The record near Hugo begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm 47 miles away. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Hugo is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site. The strongest of the 78 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 2, 1982; its path came within 8 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 2, 1982, killed 10 people. Of the 78, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 27 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 27. The most recent tornado was on May 20, 2025. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 97% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Hugo. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 93 times since 1956, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 90% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Hugo.
Compare Hugo's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Hugo
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1918 | Unnamed 1918 stormAug 7 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Hugo: 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 Hugo
By decade
- 2020s8(1 EF3+)
- 2010s8(1 EF3+)
- 2000s11
- 1990s10
- 1980s20(4 EF3+)
- 1970s5
- 1960s9(3 EF3+)
- 1950s7(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 1982 | F5 | 8 mi | 53 mi | 0 / 29 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F4 | 24 mi | 23 mi | 10 / 170 |
| Nov 4, 2022 | EF4 | 6 mi | 44.71 mi | 0 / 11 |
| May 13, 1981 | F4 | 16 mi | 8.8 mi | 0 / 30 |
| May 4, 1960 | F4 | 9 mi | 30.8 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 9, 2016 | EF3 | 14 mi | 13.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F3 | 11 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 27, 1969 | F3 | 25 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1961 | F3 | 1 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1956 | F3 | 20 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 30, 1954 | F3 | in town | 1 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Dec 13, 2022 | EF2 | 24 mi | 10.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 78, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Hugo
The Storm Prediction Center has 93 hail reports within 10 miles of Hugo since 1956, made on 73 separate days. Of these, 46 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on August 21, 1979. The most recent report is from October 4, 2023. April has the most reports, 26.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Hugo
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Antlers, OK, 16 miles north of Hugo at 470 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 52°F and 29°F. May is the wettest at 6.3 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 48.2 inches over 64 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 73 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 71 nights a year. That 48.2 inches is more than at 75 of the 82 Oklahoma stations used on this site (91%). Powderly, TX, 14 miles south, has its own station (Paris, TX): 49.0 inches a year, 0.8 more than here, and a July average high of 96°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 52 | 29 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Feb | 57 | 33 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Mar | 65 | 40 | 4.1 | 6 |
| Apr | 73 | 49 | 4.4 | 6 |
| May | 80 | 59 | 6.3 | 7 |
| Jun | 88 | 68 | 4.3 | 6 |
| Jul | 93 | 71 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Aug | 93 | 69 | 3.1 | 4 |
| Sep | 86 | 62 | 3.9 | 5 |
| Oct | 76 | 50 | 4.9 | 5 |
| Nov | 64 | 39 | 3.9 | 4 |
| Dec | 55 | 31 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Year | 73 | 50 | 48.2 | 64 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Antlers, OK (470 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 Hugo
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 83 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Hugo: 63 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 flash floods and 9 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $580,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on March 31, 2013. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 76 have had fewer than Hugo.
May 20, 2015: flood 4 miles from the centre of Hugo — 1 killed.
NWS: “A man drove into flood waters on Ballpark Road north of Hugo during the evening of May 21st. The vehicle became stranded.”
May 28, 2001: thunderstorm wind in Hugo — $325,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm wind estimated at 80 miles an hour produced a large amount of damage in the Hugo area. Several businesses including a radio station, lumber company, sale barn, veterinary clinic and a feed lot received 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
Choctaw County, which includes Hugo, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 6 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on July 19, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Choctaw County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.2 million a year, the 57th highest of 77 Oklahoma counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.3 million (25%), is from tornadoes.
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 Hugo
- Powderly, TX14 mi
- Fort Towson, OK15 mi
- Antlers, OK16 mi
- Boswell, OK20 mi
- Sumner, TX24 mi
- Blossom, TX25 mi
- Paris, TX25 mi
- Valliant, OK25 mi
- Detroit, TX28 mi
- Honey Grove, TX37 mi
- Clarksville, TX38 mi
- Idabel, OK40 mi
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