NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kettle Falls, WA
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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Kettle Falls, Washington since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 6 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 6
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Kettle Falls
The strongest of the 6 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on April 5, 1972; its path came within 6 miles. Of the 6, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and one has come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on April 25, 2008. Of the 226 Washington cities on this site, 49% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Kettle Falls. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 7 times since 1971, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Kettle Falls has more hail reports within 10 miles than 88% of the 226 Washington cities.
Compare Kettle Falls's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Kettle Falls
By decade
- 2000s1
- 1990s2
- 1980s2
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 5, 1972 | F2 | 6 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1997 | F1 | 7 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1997 | F1 | 7 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 25, 1983 | F1 | 16 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 14, 1980 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 25, 2008 | EF0 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 6 of 6, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kettle Falls
The Storm Prediction Center has 7 hail reports within 10 miles of Kettle Falls since 1971, made on 6 separate days. All were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on July 23, 2014. The most recent report is from June 24, 2020.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kettle Falls
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Colville, WA, 11 miles southeast of Kettle Falls at 1,554 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 53°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 23°F. December is the wettest at 2.8 inches of precipitation on average and August and September the driest at 0.7 inches; the year adds up to 19.8 inches over 61 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 38 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 144 nights a year. Snowfall averages 43.4 inches a year, most of it in December. That 19.8 inches is more than at 34 of the 86 Washington stations used on this site (40%).
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 23 | 2.2 | 7 | 14.5 |
| Feb | 42 | 24 | 1.5 | 5 | 5.4 |
| Mar | 53 | 30 | 1.9 | 6 | 2.7 |
| Apr | 63 | 35 | 1.5 | 5 | 0.2 |
| May | 72 | 43 | 1.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 78 | 49 | 2.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 53 | 0.8 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 51 | 0.7 | 2 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 44 | 0.7 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 35 | 1.5 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 44 | 29 | 2.2 | 7 | 5.6 |
| Dec | 34 | 24 | 2.8 | 8 | 15.0 |
| Year | 61 | 36 | 19.8 | 61 | 43.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Colville, WA (1,554 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 Kettle Falls
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 12 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kettle Falls: 7 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 floods and 1 flash flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $32,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 21, 1997.
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
Stevens County, which includes Kettle Falls, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 fires, 4 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 22, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Stevens County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.3 million a year, the 28th highest of 39 Washington counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $10.6 million (58%), 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 Kettle Falls
- Colville, WA15 mi
- Chewelah, WA34 mi
- Valley, WA41 mi
- Loon Lake, WA47 mi
- Tonasket, WA56 mi
- Newport, WA56 mi
- Deer Park, WA58 mi
- Elk, WA59 mi
- Priest River, ID60 mi
- Oldtown, ID61 mi
- Omak, WA62 mi
- Chattaroy, WA65 mi
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