NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Idabel, 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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Idabel, Oklahoma since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 82 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 82
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Idabel
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Idabel; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 8 miles away. The record near Idabel begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Idabel has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 64% of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site. The strongest of the 82 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 2, 1982; its path came within 10 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on April 2, 1982, killed 1 person. Of the 82, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 40 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 31. The most recent tornado was on April 4, 2025. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 95% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Idabel. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 97 times since 1964, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 87% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Idabel.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Idabel
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1918 | Unnamed 1918 stormAug 7 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 62 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 Idabel: 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 Idabel
By decade
- 2020s11(1 EF3+)
- 2010s17
- 2000s12(1 EF3+)
- 1990s7
- 1980s9(2 EF3+)
- 1970s12(1 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s9
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 1982 | F5 | 10 mi | 53 mi | 0 / 29 |
| Nov 4, 2022 | EF4 | 2 mi | 60.23 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F3 | 18 mi | 52 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Apr 9, 2009 | EF3 | 22 mi | 37.18 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Oct 22, 1972 | F3 | 1 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 23, 1953 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.8 mi | 1 / 14 |
| Apr 4, 2025 | EF2 | 13 mi | 21.11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 12, 2015 | EF2 | 20 mi | 7.32 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 14, 2003 | F2 | 5 mi | 78.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 2003 | F2 | 11 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 2000 | F2 | 9 mi | 20.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 23, 2000 | F2 | 13 mi | 12.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 82, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Idabel
The Storm Prediction Center has 97 hail reports within 10 miles of Idabel since 1964, made on 75 separate days. Of these, 52 were 1 inch across or larger, and 8 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on May 20, 1975. The most recent report is from May 20, 2025. April has the most reports, 36.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Idabel
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Idabel, OK, 4 miles north of Idabel at 365 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 94°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 29°F. May is the wettest at 6.4 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 54.6 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 80 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 71 nights a year. Snowfall averages 2.0 inches a year, most of it in February. That 54.6 inches is more than at 80 of the 82 Oklahoma stations used on this site (98%). Broken Bow, 18 miles north, has its own station (Broken Bow 1 N, OK): 55.0 inches a year, 0.4 more than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 94°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 29 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Feb | 59 | 34 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.9 |
| Mar | 67 | 41 | 5.0 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Apr | 75 | 48 | 5.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 82 | 59 | 6.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 89 | 66 | 4.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 94 | 70 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 94 | 69 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 87 | 61 | 4.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 77 | 49 | 5.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 39 | 4.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 57 | 32 | 5.0 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Year | 75 | 50 | 54.6 | 69 | 2.0 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Idabel, OK (365 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 Idabel
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 85 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Idabel: 63 thunderstorm wind reports and 22 flash floods. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $252,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on May 4, 2006. June has had the most flash floods, 7 of 22. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 137 have had fewer than Idabel.
March 8, 2016: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Idabel — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 30 year old male drowned after his SUV drove through a low water crossing and was swept into a flooded Lukfata Creek on Tebo Jones Road south of Broken Bow. A 36 year old male passenger was able to exit the vehicle and swim to shore.”
May 20, 2025: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Idabel — 1 injured.
NWS: “A tree fell onto a home in the Holly Creek community. A resident cut her head while exiting the home.”
May 14, 2003: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Idabel — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “A violent thunderstorm moved rapidly southeast across McCurtain County, OK into Bowie County and Cass County, TX. This thunderstorm also produced a strong tornado in McCurtain County, OK which moved into northeast Texas and a second, stronger microburst, southeast of Maud, TX.”
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 Idabel's ZIP code 74745 have filed 52 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1993, and were paid $839,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2015, with 13. 13% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 92 Oklahoma cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 58 have fewer than Idabel.
McCurtain County, which includes Idabel, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 6 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 fire). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on July 19, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives McCurtain County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.4 million a year, the 36th highest of 77 Oklahoma counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $10.0 million (54%), 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 Idabel
- Valliant, OK18 mi
- Broken Bow, OK18 mi
- Clarksville, TX21 mi
- Avery, TX22 mi
- Fort Towson, OK27 mi
- Foreman, AR28 mi
- De Kalb, TX28 mi
- Detroit, TX29 mi
- Horatio, AR30 mi
- De Queen, AR30 mi
- Blossom, TX34 mi
- Bogata, TX36 mi
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