NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Jefferson City, MO
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Jefferson City, Missouri since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1902. Since 1950, 75 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 75
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Jefferson City
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Jefferson City; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1902, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 52 miles away. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 62% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Jefferson City. The highest rating among the 75 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 22, 2019, passed within a mile of the city centre. The deadliest, an F1 on April 10, 2001, killed 1 person. Of the 75, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 20 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 16. The most recent tornado was on April 20, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities, 72% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Jefferson City. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 130 times since 1958, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Jefferson City has more hail reports within 10 miles than 59% of the 334 Missouri cities.
Compare Jefferson City's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Jefferson City
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 52 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 Jefferson 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 Jefferson City
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s8(1 EF3+)
- 2000s11
- 1990s15
- 1980s18(1 EF3+)
- 1970s10
- 1960s10
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22, 2019 | EF3 | in town | 32.68 mi | 0 / 33 |
| May 1, 1983 | F3 | 17 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 20, 2025 | EF2 | 14 mi | 2.61 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 13, 2006 | F2 | 17 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 7, 1990 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 3, 1986 | F2 | 14 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1980 | F2 | 18 mi | 42.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 1973 | F2 | 18 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 24, 1967 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 14, 1966 | F2 | 18 mi | 7.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 1966 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 10, 2001 | F1 | 25 mi | 3 mi | 1 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 75, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Jefferson City
The Storm Prediction Center has 130 hail reports within 10 miles of Jefferson City since 1958, made on 80 separate days. Of these, 87 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on March 27, 2020. The most recent report is from March 14, 2025. April has the most reports, 34.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Jefferson City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Jefferson City Wtp, MO, 2 miles northeast of Jefferson City at 650 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 21°F. May is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 2.2 inches; the year adds up to 43.5 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 37 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 106 nights a year. Snowfall averages 8.9 inches a year, most of it in January and February. That 43.5 inches is more than at 63 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (47%). Holts Summit, 7 miles northeast, has its own station (Jefferson City Mem Airport, MO): 39.7 inches a year, 3.8 less than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 21 | 2.2 | 5 | 2.9 |
| Feb | 45 | 25 | 2.3 | 4 | 2.9 |
| Mar | 56 | 34 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Apr | 67 | 44 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 75 | 55 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 64 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 69 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 67 | 4.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 58 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 69 | 46 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 55 | 35 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 44 | 26 | 2.3 | 4 | 2.5 |
| Year | 66 | 45 | 43.5 | 71 | 8.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Jefferson City Wtp, MO (650 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 Jefferson City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 111 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Jefferson City: 86 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods, 8 floods, 4 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $3.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 7, 1999. August has had the most flash floods, 3 of 12. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 106 have had fewer than Jefferson City.
June 24, 2008: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Jefferson City — 1 injured.
NWS: “A 17 year old male was struck by lightning in Binder Memorial State Park west of Jefferson City. The victim was revived by paramedics and airlifted to a local hospital.”
June 26, 2018: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Jefferson City — 1 injured.
NWS: “Storms were moving through the area. One person was struck by lightning in his front yard in Jefferson City.”
June 3, 2019: flood 3 miles from the centre of Jefferson City — $2.0 million damage.
NWS: “The Missouri River at Jefferson City rose above 33 feet during the late evening hours of June 3rd, which is 3 feet above Major Flood stage and remained that high through the evening of June 8th. This was the period when the river was at it's highest levels for this event.”
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 Jefferson City's 2 ZIP codes have filed 448 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $9.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1995: 141 claims (31% of all) and $1.8 million, then Midwest Flooding in 1993 with 87 and Early winter storms in 2015 with 17. The year with the most claims was 1993, with 102. 60% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 157 have fewer than Jefferson City.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1995 | 141 | $1.8 million |
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 87 | $2.5 million |
| Early winter storms2015 | 17 | $195,000 |
Cole County, which includes Jefferson City, has been named in 26 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 7 floods, 4 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cole County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $42.7 million a year, the 16th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $20.1 million (47%), 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.