NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kirkland, AZ
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 Kirkland, Arizona since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 16 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 16
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Kirkland
The strongest of the 16 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on August 10, 1972; its path came within 24 miles. Of the 16, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. August and September have had the most tornadoes, 5 each. The most recent tornado was on May 6, 2025. Kirkland has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 61% of the 134 Arizona cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 7 times since 1994, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 134 Arizona cities, 60% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Kirkland.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Kirkland
By decade
- 2020s4
- 2010s1
- 1990s5
- 1970s2(1 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 10, 1972 | F3 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 16, 1993 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 13, 1996 | F1 | 23 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 2, 1959 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 2025 | EF0 | 23 mi | 0.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 9, 2023 | EF0 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 17, 2023 | EF0 | 19 mi | 5.47 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 11, 2021 | EF0 | 23 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 27, 2014 | EF0 | 13 mi | 2.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 15, 1999 | F0 | 24 mi | — | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 14, 1999 | F0 | 9 mi | — | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 1998 | F0 | 5 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 16, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kirkland
The Storm Prediction Center has 7 hail reports within 10 miles of Kirkland since 1994. All were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on August 2, 2005. The most recent report is from September 2, 2022.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kirkland
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Prescott, AZ, 15 miles northeast of Kirkland at 5,205 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 61°F; December is the coolest, at 52°F and 24°F. August is the wettest at 2.8 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.2 inches; the year adds up to 16.6 inches over 36 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 44 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 128 nights a year. Snowfall averages 10.2 inches a year, most of it in February. That 16.6 inches is more than at 63 of the 76 Arizona stations used on this site (83%). Prescott Valley, 23 miles northeast, has its own station (Prescott Love Field, AZ): 13.1 inches a year, 3.5 less than here, and the same July average high, 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 24 | 1.5 | 3 | 1.9 |
| Feb | 55 | 26 | 1.8 | 4 | 3.1 |
| Mar | 61 | 32 | 1.5 | 3 | 2.5 |
| Apr | 68 | 37 | 0.6 | 2 | 0.4 |
| May | 76 | 45 | 0.5 | 2 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 87 | 54 | 0.2 | 1 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 90 | 61 | 2.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 60 | 2.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 82 | 52 | 1.6 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 40 | 1.0 | 2 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 62 | 30 | 0.9 | 2 | 0.9 |
| Dec | 52 | 24 | 1.5 | 3 | 1.4 |
| Year | 70 | 40 | 16.6 | 36 | 10.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Prescott, AZ (5,205 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 Kirkland
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 17 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kirkland: 6 flash floods, 6 heavy rain events, 4 thunderstorm wind reports and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $9,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 63 mph, on July 16, 2006. August has had the most flash floods, 4 of 6. Of the 130 Arizona cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 25 have had fewer than Kirkland.
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
Yavapai County, which includes Kirkland, has been named in 26 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 13 fires, 5 floods, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Yavapai County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for inland flooding; Relatively Moderate for hail and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $107.8 million a year, the 5th highest of 15 Arizona counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $69.7 million (65%), 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 Kirkland
- Prescott, AZ14 mi
- Prescott Valley, AZ23 mi
- Dewey, AZ25 mi
- Chino Valley, AZ25 mi
- Mayer, AZ29 mi
- Bagdad, AZ29 mi
- Wickenburg, AZ33 mi
- Paulden, AZ35 mi
- Black Canyon City, AZ37 mi
- Clarkdale, AZ40 mi
- Cottonwood, AZ41 mi
- Camp Verde, AZ45 mi
All Arizona cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Kirkland with another place →