NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kimball, NE
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 Kimball, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 121 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 121
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Kimball
The highest rating among the 121 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 27, 1985, came within 23 miles. Of the 121, 12 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 48 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 57. The most recent tornado was on July 6, 2025. Of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site, 52% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Kimball. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 140 times since 1958, with stones up to 4.25 inches. Of the 91 Nebraska cities, 52% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Kimball.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Kimball
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s25
- 2000s12
- 1990s29
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16
- 1960s14(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1985 | F3 | 23 mi | 48 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1960 | F3 | 18 mi | 26.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 2005 | F2 | 12 mi | 17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 31, 1978 | F2 | 10 mi | 25.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 31, 1978 | F2 | 22 mi | 20.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 1977 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1954 | F2 | in town | 19.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 2023 | EF1 | 5 mi | 1.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 12, 2017 | EF1 | 17 mi | 4.19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 12, 2017 | EF1 | 15 mi | 0.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2008 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 14, 1997 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 121, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kimball
The Storm Prediction Center has 140 hail reports within 10 miles of Kimball since 1958, made on 100 separate days. Of these, 111 were 1 inch across or larger, and 23 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.25 inches, fell on May 24, 2010. The most recent report is from September 10, 2025. June has the most reports, 51.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kimball
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Kimball 2NE, NE, 1 mile east of Kimball at 4,708 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 55°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 13°F. May is the wettest at 2.8 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.3 inches; the year adds up to 16.0 inches over 40 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 36 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 184 nights a year. Snowfall averages 29.8 inches a year, most of it in December. That 16.0 inches is more than at 4 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (6%). Sidney, 34 miles east, has its own station (Sidney Municipal Airport, NE): 15.9 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 13 | 0.3 | 1 | 3.5 |
| Feb | 42 | 14 | 0.4 | 2 | 4.6 |
| Mar | 52 | 22 | 0.9 | 2 | 4.8 |
| Apr | 58 | 29 | 1.7 | 4 | 3.9 |
| May | 67 | 40 | 2.8 | 6 | 1.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 49 | 2.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 55 | 2.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 53 | 1.8 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 43 | 1.4 | 4 | 0.3 |
| Oct | 62 | 31 | 1.2 | 3 | 1.8 |
| Nov | 50 | 20 | 0.5 | 2 | 4.1 |
| Dec | 41 | 13 | 0.5 | 2 | 5.8 |
| Year | 62 | 32 | 16.0 | 40 | 29.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Kimball 2NE, NE (4,708 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 Kimball
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 45 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kimball: 25 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 5 heavy rain events and 2 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $80,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on June 29, 2016. July has had the most flash floods, 6 of 13. Of the 89 Nebraska cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 66 have had fewer than Kimball.
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
Kimball County, which includes Kimball, has been named in 8 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1997, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, on May 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kimball County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail; Very Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $3.6 million a year, the 71st highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $930,000 (26%), 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 Kimball
- Sidney, NE34 mi
- Gering, NE39 mi
- Bayard, NE41 mi
- Minatare, NE44 mi
- Scottsbluff, NE45 mi
- Sterling, CO48 mi
- Mitchell, NE49 mi
- Cheyenne, WY61 mi
- Torrington, WY67 mi
- Ault, CO68 mi
- Brush, CO70 mi
- Fort Morgan, CO70 mi
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