NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit La Plata, MO
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 La Plata, Missouri since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 45 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 45
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for La Plata
The highest rating among the 45 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 23, 1975, came within 24 miles. The deadliest, an EF2 on May 13, 2009, killed 2 people. Of the 45, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 18 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on August 9, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 98% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than La Plata. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 49 times since 1957, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Of the 334 Missouri cities, 89% have more hail reports within 10 miles than La Plata.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of La Plata
By decade
- 2020s4
- 2010s5
- 2000s9
- 1990s6
- 1980s4
- 1970s10(5 EF3+)
- 1960s6(1 EF3+)
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 1975 | F4 | 24 mi | 28.2 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Apr 20, 1973 | F4 | 5 mi | 3.8 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Jun 12, 1970 | F4 | 22 mi | 16.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 9 mi | 59 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 13, 1974 | F3 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 12, 1970 | F3 | 15 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 13, 2009 | EF2 | 14 mi | 5.8 mi | 2 / 6 |
| Aug 4, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 1.64 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 24, 2021 | EF2 | 19 mi | 31.37 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 2003 | F2 | 21 mi | 22.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F2 | 9 mi | 17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F2 | 8 mi | 53.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 45, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in La Plata
The Storm Prediction Center has 49 hail reports within 10 miles of La Plata since 1957, made on 39 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on June 30, 1993. The most recent report is from May 28, 2019. June has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in La Plata
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Kirksville Regional Airport, MO, 6 miles north of La Plata at 966 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 39.3 inches over 65 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 24 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 125 nights a year. That 39.3 inches is more than at 11 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (8%). Kirksville, 12 miles north, has its own station (Kirksville, MO): 42.6 inches a year, 3.3 more than here, and the same July average high, 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 17 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Feb | 40 | 21 | 1.8 | 4 |
| Mar | 52 | 31 | 2.6 | 6 |
| Apr | 63 | 41 | 3.9 | 7 |
| May | 72 | 52 | 5.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 82 | 61 | 5.1 | 8 |
| Jul | 86 | 65 | 4.4 | 5 |
| Aug | 84 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Sep | 77 | 54 | 3.7 | 5 |
| Oct | 65 | 43 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Nov | 51 | 31 | 2.4 | 4 |
| Dec | 39 | 22 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Year | 62 | 42 | 39.3 | 65 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Kirksville Regional Airport, MO (966 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 La Plata
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 61 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of La Plata: 41 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 5 heavy rain events and 1 flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $22,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 1, 2010. July has had the most flash floods, 10 of 14. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 126 have had fewer than La Plata.
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
Macon County, which includes La Plata, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 17 of them major disasters (by incident: 13 severe storms, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 3, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Macon County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and lightning; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.6 million a year, the 78th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.6 million (53%), 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 La Plata
- Kirksville, MO12 mi
- Macon, MO19 mi
- Edina, MO20 mi
- Brookfield, MO33 mi
- Marceline, MO33 mi
- Milan, MO35 mi
- Shelbina, MO35 mi
- Memphis, MO35 mi
- Huntsville, MO40 mi
- Unionville, MO40 mi
- Moberly, MO42 mi
- Salisbury, MO42 mi
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