NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Keota, 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 Keota, Oklahoma since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 128 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 128
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
35 deaths in all
What the records show for Keota
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Keota; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1902, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 4 miles away. The record near Keota begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm 52 miles away. Keota has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 64% of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site. The strongest of the 128 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on March 26, 1976; its path came within 11 miles, and it killed 2 people. The deadliest, an F4 on May 5, 1960, killed 16 people. Of the 128, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 62 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 51. The most recent tornado was on June 6, 2025. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 80% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Keota. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 73 times since 1959, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 216 Oklahoma cities, 97% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Keota.
Compare Keota's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Keota
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 4 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 Keota: 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 Keota
By decade
- 2020s17
- 2010s24
- 2000s21
- 1990s15
- 1980s12(1 EF3+)
- 1970s11(2 EF3+)
- 1960s10(4 EF3+)
- 1950s18(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 1976 | F5 | 11 mi | 11.9 mi | 2 / 64 |
| May 5, 1960 | F4 | 5 mi | 62.4 mi | 16 / 106 |
| Jan 22, 1957 | F4 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 10 / 20 |
| May 5, 1960 | F4 | 20 mi | 5.4 mi | 5 / 13 |
| May 5, 1960 | F3 | 7 mi | 23.7 mi | 1 / 0 |
| May 5, 1960 | F3 | 24 mi | 4.5 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 1980 | F3 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 9 |
| May 26, 1973 | F3 | 22 mi | 18.7 mi | 0 / 6 |
| May 20, 1957 | F3 | 10 mi | 20.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 30, 2018 | EF2 | 24 mi | 47 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 28, 2017 | EF2 | 19 mi | 8.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 2015 | EF2 | 11 mi | 15.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 128, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Keota
The Storm Prediction Center has 73 hail reports within 10 miles of Keota since 1959, made on 59 separate days. Of these, 37 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on June 9, 2007. The most recent report is from March 14, 2024. May has the most reports, 22.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Keota
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Sallisaw 2 NW, OK, 14 miles north of Keota at 660 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 48°F and 28°F. May is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 47.5 inches over 62 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 61 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 67 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 47.5 inches is more than at 74 of the 82 Oklahoma stations used on this site (90%). Spiro, 14 miles east, has its own station (Fort Smith Regional Airport, AR): 47.4 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 94°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 28 | 2.8 | 4 | 1.0 |
| Feb | 53 | 32 | 2.6 | 4 | 0.2 |
| Mar | 61 | 40 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Apr | 70 | 49 | 4.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 78 | 59 | 5.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 86 | 67 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 71 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 91 | 70 | 3.6 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 63 | 4.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 50 | 3.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 60 | 40 | 3.9 | 4 | 0.1 |
| Dec | 51 | 32 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.2 |
| Year | 71 | 50 | 47.5 | 62 | 1.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Sallisaw 2 NW, OK (660 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 Keota
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 74 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Keota: 61 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods and 1 flood. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $526,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 2, 2004. May has had the most flash floods, 6 of 12. Of the 216 Oklahoma cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 85 have had fewer than Keota.
June 2, 2004: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Keota — 2 injured, $10,000 damage.
NWS: “A tractor trailer was blown over by thunderstorm winds estimated near 80 miles an hour. The accident occurred near the intersection of Highway 412 and Highway 88.”
February 17, 2022: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Keota — $125,000 damage.
May 24, 2005: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Keota — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “The winds damaged several homes as well.”
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
Haskell County, which includes Keota, has been named in 34 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 25 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 7 ice storms, 6 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on April 30, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Haskell County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.5 million a year, the 56th highest of 77 Oklahoma counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.6 million (27%), 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 Keota
- Spiro, OK14 mi
- Sallisaw, OK15 mi
- Stigler, OK16 mi
- Vian, OK20 mi
- Poteau, OK21 mi
- Muldrow, OK21 mi
- Cameron, OK21 mi
- Wister, OK23 mi
- Pocola, OK23 mi
- Roland, OK23 mi
- Porum, OK24 mi
- Gore, OK24 mi
All Oklahoma cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Keota with another place →