NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kiel, WI
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 Kiel, Wisconsin since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 79 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 79
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Kiel
The strongest of the 79 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on July 18, 1996; its path came within 23 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on April 21, 1974, killed 2 people. Of the 79, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 33 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 22. The most recent tornado was on July 19, 2025. Kiel has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 53% of the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 27 times since 1967, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 88% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Kiel.
Compare Kiel's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Kiel
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s13
- 2000s18
- 1990s8(1 EF3+)
- 1980s12
- 1970s12(2 EF3+)
- 1960s12
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 18, 1996 | F5 | 23 mi | 13.3 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Apr 21, 1974 | F3 | 8 mi | 58.6 mi | 2 / 18 |
| Apr 21, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 22.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 18, 1996 | F2 | 9 mi | 6.4 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Aug 9, 1979 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F2 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 11, 1986 | F2 | 20 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1981 | F2 | 4 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 7, 1980 | F2 | 12 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 19, 1968 | F2 | 21 mi | 28.7 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 30, 1967 | F2 | 7 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 8, 1965 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 79, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kiel
The Storm Prediction Center has 27 hail reports within 10 miles of Kiel since 1967, made on 21 separate days. Of these, 14 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on May 12, 2000. The most recent report is from May 28, 2024. June and July have the most reports, 6 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kiel
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chilton, WI, 10 miles northwest of Kiel at 840 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 26°F and 10°F. June is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 33.9 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 6 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 155 nights a year. Snowfall averages 43.5 inches a year, most of it in January and February. That 33.9 inches is more than at 62 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (38%). Elkhart Lake, 5 miles south, has its own station (Plymouth Wwtp, WI): 33.5 inches a year, 0.4 less than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26 | 10 | 1.5 | 5 | 11.3 |
| Feb | 29 | 12 | 1.3 | 4 | 11.3 |
| Mar | 41 | 22 | 1.9 | 5 | 5.8 |
| Apr | 54 | 34 | 3.1 | 6 | 2.6 |
| May | 67 | 45 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 77 | 56 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 61 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 80 | 59 | 3.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 73 | 51 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 59 | 39 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Nov | 44 | 28 | 2.1 | 5 | 1.9 |
| Dec | 31 | 17 | 1.7 | 5 | 9.9 |
| Year | 55 | 36 | 33.9 | 71 | 43.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chilton, WI (840 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 Kiel
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 68 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kiel: 54 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 4 lightning strikes, 3 heavy rain events and 1 flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $7.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on April 13, 2006. Of the 374 Wisconsin cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 197 have had fewer than Kiel.
June 12, 2008: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Kiel — $5.5 million damage.
April 13, 2006: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Kiel — $400,000 damage.
July 7, 2020: lightning strike in Kiel — $400,000 damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck an apartment complex on Clay Street in Kiel during the early evening hours, causing a fire and extensive structural damage.”
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
Manitowoc County, which includes Kiel, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Manitowoc County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $32.4 million a year, the 26th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $15.0 million (46%), 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.