NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lafayette, IN
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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lafayette, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 126 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 126
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
25 deaths in all
What the records show for Lafayette
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Lafayette; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 5 miles away. The record near Lafayette begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 37% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Lafayette. The highest rating among the 126 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 26, 1994, came within 8 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 18 people. Of the 126, 21 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 55 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 31. The most recent tornado was on June 18, 2025. Lafayette has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 77% of the 356 Indiana cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 103 times since 1962, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Lafayette has more hail reports within 10 miles than 83% of the 356 Indiana cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lafayette
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lafayette: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Lafayette
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s31(1 EF3+)
- 2000s14
- 1990s14(1 EF3+)
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s23(4 EF3+)
- 1960s21(3 EF3+)
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 15 mi | 108.7 mi | 18 / 285 |
| Apr 26, 1994 | F4 | 8 mi | 14 mi | 3 / 70 |
| Mar 20, 1976 | F4 | 8 mi | 16.7 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 5 mi | 21.8 mi | 0 / 44 |
| Apr 9, 1953 | F3 | 10 mi | 156.7 mi | 3 / 22 |
| Jun 2, 1980 | F3 | 24 mi | 18.1 mi | 1 / 16 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF3 | 4 mi | 37.91 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1978 | F3 | 2 mi | 27.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 18 mi | 25.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 29, 1963 | F3 | 16 mi | 23.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1961 | F3 | 16 mi | 23.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 18 mi | 10.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 126, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lafayette
The Storm Prediction Center has 103 hail reports within 10 miles of Lafayette since 1962, made on 65 separate days. Of these, 55 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 3 days, most recently August 25, 2014. The most recent report is from May 24, 2024. April has the most reports, 25.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lafayette
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lafayette Purdue Univ Airport, IN, 4 miles west of Lafayette at 599 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 18°F. June is the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.8 inches; the year adds up to 37.0 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 20 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 116 nights a year. That 37.0 inches is more than at 3 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (3%). West Lafayette, 6 miles northwest, has its own station (W Lafayette 6 NW, IN): 39.7 inches a year, 2.7 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 18 | 2.2 | 5 |
| Feb | 38 | 21 | 1.8 | 4 |
| Mar | 50 | 30 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Apr | 62 | 40 | 3.8 | 7 |
| May | 73 | 51 | 4.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 4.6 | 8 |
| Jul | 84 | 63 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Aug | 83 | 62 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Sep | 77 | 54 | 2.6 | 5 |
| Oct | 65 | 43 | 2.9 | 6 |
| Nov | 50 | 33 | 2.9 | 6 |
| Dec | 38 | 24 | 2.3 | 5 |
| Year | 61 | 42 | 37.0 | 72 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lafayette Purdue Univ Airport, IN (599 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 Lafayette
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 251 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lafayette: 199 thunderstorm wind reports, 41 floods, 9 flash floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $3.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 87 mph, on June 22, 2016. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 139 have had fewer than Lafayette.
June 21, 2011: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Lafayette — 1 killed, 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
July 8, 2001: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Lafayette — 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
March 8, 2009: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Lafayette — 1 injured, $12,000 damage.
NWS: “A semi-trailer was blown off Interstate 65 by thunderstorm winds. The driver was traveling north on I-65 about 10 miles north of Frankfort when the wind forced his empty vehicle off the road, tearing the roof open.”
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
Flood insurance policyholders in Lafayette's 4 ZIP codes have filed 93 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $1.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1985: 10 claims (11% of all) and $23,000. The year with the most claims was 2003, with 22. 12% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 109 have fewer than Lafayette.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1985 | 10 | $23,000 |
Tippecanoe County, which includes Lafayette, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 flood). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Tippecanoe County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $49.5 million a year, the 11th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $20.6 million (42%), 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 Lafayette
- West Lafayette, IN6 mi
- Battle Ground, IN11 mi
- Mulberry, IN11 mi
- Rossville, IN13 mi
- Otterbein, IN14 mi
- Brookston, IN15 mi
- Delphi, IN18 mi
- Frankfort, IN20 mi
- Attica, IN20 mi
- Flora, IN22 mi
- Thorntown, IN23 mi
- Crawfordsville, IN25 mi
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