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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Landers, CA

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 Landers, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 7 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
0

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
7

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
0

no recorded deaths

What the records show for Landers

The strongest of the 7 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on September 7, 1982; its path came within 7 miles. Of the 7, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 4 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on July 19, 2015. Of the 705 California cities on this site, 72% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Landers. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 2 times since 1997, with stones up to 0.75 inches (penny size). Of the 705 California cities, 57% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Landers.

Compare Landers's storm record with another city →

Tornadoes within 25 miles of Landers

By decade

  • 2010s1
  • 2000s3
  • 1980s2
  • 1970s1
Strongest tornadoes near Landers, California
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Sep 7, 1982F27 mi0.5 mi0 / 2
Aug 4, 2008EF18 mi1.08 mi0 / 0
Oct 22, 1974F110 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Jul 19, 2015EF03 mi0.24 mi0 / 0
Aug 14, 2004F06 mi1 mi0 / 0
Jul 7, 2001F015 mi1 mi0 / 0
Aug 1, 1983F02 mi0.3 mi0 / 1

The strongest 7 of 7, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Landers

The Storm Prediction Center has 2 hail reports within 10 miles of Landers since 1997. None of them reached 1 inch. The largest size, 0.75 inches (penny size), was reported on 2 days, most recently September 10, 2011. The most recent report is from September 10, 2011.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Landers

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Yucca Valley, CA, 13 miles south of Landers at 3,249 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 96°F and low of 68°F; December is the coolest, at 58°F and 34°F. January is the wettest at 1.4 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.0 inches; the year adds up to 6.5 inches over 12 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 109 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 31 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.7 inches a year, most of it in December. That 6.5 inches is more than at 21 of the 226 California stations used on this site (9%). Joshua Tree, 13 miles southeast, has its own station (Joshua Tree, CA): 4.6 inches a year, 1.9 less than here, and an August average high of 100°F against 96°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Yucca Valley, CA
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Snow in
Jan58381.420.0
Feb61391.220.7
Mar67400.810.0
Apr73470.310.0
May82520.100.0
Jun91590.000.0
Jul96660.510.0
Aug96680.210.0
Sep89600.210.0
Oct80500.600.0
Nov66410.310.1
Dec58340.920.9
Year77496.5121.7

Averages for 1991–2020 at Yucca Valley, CA (3,249 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.

California weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Landers

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 21 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Landers: 16 flash floods, 3 floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $843,000 in property and crop damage. August has had the most flash floods, 8 of 16. Of the 550 California cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 400 have had fewer than Landers.

  • October 12, 2018: flash flood 1 mile from the centre of Landers — $500,000 damage.

    NWS: “Major flash flooding occurred in the Morongo Basin. 27 inches of rain between midnight and 630 AM PDT.”

  • August 9, 2005: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Landers — $250,000 damage.

    NWS: “Heavy rain and thunderstorms caused flash flooding in the Yucca Valley area. Several vehicles were inundated by a wall of muddy water as it rushed down Highway 247 at Buena Suerte Rd.”

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

San Bernardino County, which includes Landers, has been named in 61 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 30 of them major disasters (by incident: 33 fires, 13 floods, 7 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 3, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives San Bernardino County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for inland flooding; Relatively High for strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $2.08 billion a year, the 3rd highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $959.6 million (46%), 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 Landers