NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lake Havasu City, 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 Lake Havasu City, Arizona since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 2 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 2
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Lake Havasu City
The strongest of the 2 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F1 on September 18, 1972; its path came within 19 miles. The most recent tornado was on August 7, 1997. Of the 134 Arizona cities on this site, 83% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Lake Havasu City. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 5 times since 1981, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 134 Arizona cities, 66% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Lake Havasu City.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Lake Havasu City
By decade
- 1990s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 18, 1972 | F1 | 19 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 7, 1997 | F0 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 2 of 2, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lake Havasu City
The Storm Prediction Center has 5 hail reports within 10 miles of Lake Havasu City since 1981. Of these, 4 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently October 24, 1992. The most recent report is from March 15, 2023.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lake Havasu City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lake Havasu City, AZ, 3 miles west of Lake Havasu City at 449 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 109°F and low of 83°F; December is the coolest, at 64°F and 42°F. January is the wettest at 0.8 inches of precipitation on average and May and June the driest at 0.0 inches; the year adds up to 4.3 inches over 9 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 178 days a year, almost all from March to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 1 nights a year. That 4.3 inches is more than at 4 of the 76 Arizona stations used on this site (5%). Parker, 27 miles south, has its own station (Parker, AZ): 4.6 inches a year, 0.3 more than here, and a July average high of 108°F against 109°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 65 | 43 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Feb | 70 | 46 | 0.6 | 1 |
| Mar | 78 | 51 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Apr | 86 | 58 | 0.2 | 0 |
| May | 95 | 67 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Jun | 105 | 76 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Jul | 109 | 83 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Aug | 108 | 82 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Sep | 102 | 75 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Oct | 89 | 62 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Nov | 75 | 50 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Dec | 64 | 42 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Year | 87 | 61 | 4.3 | 9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lake Havasu City, AZ (449 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 Lake Havasu City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 67 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lake Havasu City: 39 thunderstorm wind reports, 21 flash floods, 5 lightning strikes, 1 flood and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 3 people and injured 9, and the NWS estimated $7.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 3, 2014. August has had the most flash floods, 8 of 21. Of the 130 Arizona cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 67 have had fewer than Lake Havasu City.
July 13, 2012: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Lake Havasu City — 1 killed, $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “Major flash flooding affected Lake Havasu City. One man drowned when a car was swept down a wash, and there were nine swift water rescues involving a total of 11 people.”
July 17, 2021: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Lake Havasu City — 1 killed.
NWS: “A man drowned on the California side of Lake Havasu. Thunderstorm winds gusting to 46 mph contributed to the drowning.”
September 4, 2022: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Lake Havasu City — 1 killed.
NWS: “Waves estimated to be six feet high swept across Lake Havasu due to severe thunderstorm winds. Multiple boaters in distress were rescued from their crafts and from the water.”
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
Mohave County, which includes Lake Havasu City, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 fires, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Mohave County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $104.9 million a year, the 6th highest of 15 Arizona counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $73.6 million (70%), 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 Lake Havasu City
- Parker, AZ27 mi
- Needles, CA28 mi
- Mohave Valley, AZ31 mi
- Fort Mohave, AZ39 mi
- Bullhead City, AZ45 mi
- Laughlin, NV48 mi
- Golden Valley, AZ48 mi
- Kingman, AZ55 mi
- Quartzsite, AZ58 mi
- Blythe, CA63 mi
- Bagdad, AZ68 mi
- Wickenburg, AZ95 mi
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