NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Indianapolis, IN
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 Indianapolis, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 151 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 16 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 151
- EF3 or stronger
- 16
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
32 deaths in all
What the records show for Indianapolis
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Indianapolis; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 61 miles away. The record near Indianapolis begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 65% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Indianapolis. The highest rating among the 151 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on June 11, 1998, came within 10 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 28 people. Of the 151, 24 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 50 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 30. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Indianapolis has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 98% of the 356 Indiana cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 316 times since 1955, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Indianapolis has more hail reports within 10 miles than any other of the 356 Indiana cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Indianapolis
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 35 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 Indianapolis: 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 Indianapolis
By decade
- 2020s11(1 EF3+)
- 2010s21
- 2000s18(1 EF3+)
- 1990s20(3 EF3+)
- 1980s21(1 EF3+)
- 1970s27(3 EF3+)
- 1960s19(6 EF3+)
- 1950s14(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 24 mi | 45.7 mi | 28 / 123 |
| Jun 11, 1998 | F4 | 10 mi | 13.2 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 14, 1972 | F4 | 4 mi | 30 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Apr 25, 1961 | F4 | 23 mi | 63.1 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Oct 11, 1954 | F3 | 21 mi | 4.7 mi | 2 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 20 mi | 20.7 mi | 1 / 25 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF3 | 17 mi | 5.48 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 20, 2002 | F3 | 4 mi | 112 mi | 0 / 127 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 5 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 18 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 10, 1986 | F3 | 15 mi | 35 mi | 0 / 22 |
| Jun 25, 1978 | F3 | 8 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 151, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Indianapolis
The Storm Prediction Center has 316 hail reports within 10 miles of Indianapolis since 1955, made on 141 separate days. Of these, 192 were 1 inch across or larger, and 8 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on June 29, 1965. The most recent report is from April 2, 2025. April has the most reports, 74.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Indianapolis
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Indianapolis SE Side, IN, 7 miles southeast of Indianapolis at 845 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 19°F. June is the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.3 inches; the year adds up to 44.6 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 120 nights a year. That 44.6 inches is more than at 66 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (57%). Carmel, 12 miles north, has its own station (Carmel 3 E, IN): 44.7 inches a year, the same as here, and the same July average high, 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 19 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Feb | 39 | 22 | 2.3 | 5 |
| Mar | 50 | 31 | 3.7 | 8 |
| Apr | 62 | 41 | 4.5 | 8 |
| May | 72 | 52 | 5.0 | 9 |
| Jun | 81 | 62 | 5.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 84 | 64 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Aug | 83 | 63 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Oct | 65 | 44 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Nov | 51 | 33 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Dec | 39 | 24 | 3.3 | 7 |
| Year | 61 | 42 | 44.6 | 79 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Indianapolis SE Side, IN (845 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 Indianapolis
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 404 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Indianapolis: 302 thunderstorm wind reports, 47 flash floods, 40 floods, 8 lightning strikes and 7 heavy rain events. They killed 8 people and injured 52, and the NWS estimated $9.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on January 29, 2008. August has had the most flash floods, 14 of 47. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 326 have had fewer than Indianapolis.
August 13, 2011: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Indianapolis — 7 killed, 43 injured, $975,000 damage.
NWS: “A stage collapse occurred at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in between live performances by Sara Bareilles and Sugarland, as winds estimated at 60 to 70 mph hit the above-stage fly system. These damaging winds appeared to occur with the gust front that was out ahead of the area of precipitation.”
July 9, 2017: flood 6 miles from the centre of Indianapolis — 1 killed, 1 injured, $1,000 damage.
NWS: “According to the IndyStar newspaper, two kayakers rescued from the White River Sunday afternoon have been hospitalized. , police and fire officials were called to the 7300 block Westfield Boulevard for a possible drowning, dispatchers confirmed.”
August 1, 2017: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Indianapolis — 3 injured.
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 Indianapolis's 36 ZIP codes have filed 2,327 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $18.9 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1990: 251 claims (11% of all) and $1.7 million, then 2026-08-Indiana-Flooding in 2026 with 120 and Storm in 2008 with 87. The year with the most claims was 2003, with 392. 21% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 154 have fewer than Indianapolis.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1990 | 251 | $1.7 million |
| 2026-08-Indiana-Flooding2026 | 120 | $1.6 million |
| Storm2008 | 87 | $1.6 million |
| Mid-spring storms2011 | 15 | $46,000 |
| Central U.S. April Flooding2025 | 13 | $280,000 |
| Not a named storm1978 | 10 | $17,000 |
Marion County, which includes Indianapolis, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1991, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 25, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Marion County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively High for inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $284.8 million a year, the highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $163.5 million (57%), 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 Indianapolis
- Beech Grove, IN6 mi
- Carmel, IN12 mi
- Greenwood, IN13 mi
- New Palestine, IN14 mi
- Brownsburg, IN14 mi
- Mccordsville, IN14 mi
- Zionsville, IN14 mi
- Avon, IN14 mi
- Fishers, IN14 mi
- Camby, IN15 mi
- Plainfield, IN15 mi
- Whiteland, IN17 mi
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