NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Liberty, 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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Liberty, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1915. Since 1950, 73 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 73
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Liberty
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Liberty; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1892, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Liberty begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1915, a tropical storm 29 miles away. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 65% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Liberty. The highest rating among the 73 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on July 9, 1980, came within 25 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 4 people. Of the 73, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 33 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Of the 356 Indiana cities, 95% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Liberty. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 41 times since 1962, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 356 Indiana cities, 79% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Liberty.
Compare Liberty's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Liberty
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Liberty: 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 Liberty
By decade
- 2020s14
- 2010s13
- 2000s6
- 1990s11(1 EF3+)
- 1980s3(1 EF3+)
- 1970s7(1 EF3+)
- 1960s12(3 EF3+)
- 1950s7
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 17 mi | 35.6 mi | 4 / 17 |
| Jul 9, 1980 | F4 | 25 mi | 11 mi | 2 / 25 |
| Apr 25, 1961 | F4 | 6 mi | 63.1 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 14 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 21 |
| May 10, 1969 | F3 | 22 mi | 54.5 mi | 0 / 25 |
| Sep 19, 1960 | F3 | 19 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 15, 2019 | EF2 | 20 mi | 14.48 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F2 | in town | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F2 | 15 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 28, 1967 | F2 | 19 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 19, 1963 | F2 | 15 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 30, 1960 | F2 | 9 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 73, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Liberty
The Storm Prediction Center has 41 hail reports within 10 miles of Liberty since 1962, made on 32 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 18, 1992. The most recent report is from June 15, 2019. April and June have the most reports, 10 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Liberty
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Brookville, IN, 15 miles south of Liberty at 630 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 21°F. June is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 44.0 inches over 82 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 32 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 119 nights a year. Snowfall averages 17.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 44.0 inches is more than at 61 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (53%). Connersville, 12 miles west, has its own station (Rushville, IN): 45.7 inches a year, 1.7 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 21 | 3.4 | 7 | 6.1 |
| Feb | 42 | 23 | 2.7 | 6 | 5.0 |
| Mar | 53 | 31 | 3.6 | 7 | 2.1 |
| Apr | 66 | 41 | 4.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 51 | 4.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 60 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 64 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 62 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 55 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 68 | 42 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Dec | 43 | 26 | 3.4 | 8 | 4.0 |
| Year | 65 | 42 | 44.0 | 82 | 17.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Brookville, IN (630 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 Liberty
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 127 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Liberty: 89 thunderstorm wind reports, 20 floods, 16 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 2 people and injured 9, and the NWS estimated $649,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 23, 2011. April has had the most flash floods, 7 of 16. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 219 have had fewer than Liberty.
July 19, 1998: thunderstorm wind in Liberty — 2 killed, 6 injured, $25,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous trees downed across the county, one of which fell across a tent, injuring six campers. Also, two people were killed when a boat overturned in the storm on Brookville Lake.”
July 2, 2023: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Liberty — 3 injured, $10,000 damage.
NWS: “Several trees were downed in and around Whitewater Memorial State Park. One tree fell onto a tent, resulting in 3 non-life threatening injuries.”
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
Union County, which includes Liberty, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1991, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 25, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Union County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes; Very Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $4.3 million a year, the 88th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.7 million (41%), 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 Liberty
- Connersville, IN12 mi
- Oxford, OH13 mi
- Camden, OH13 mi
- Centerville, IN13 mi
- Brookville, IN14 mi
- Richmond, IN14 mi
- Eaton, OH16 mi
- Somerville, OH17 mi
- Laurel, IN17 mi
- Cambridge City, IN19 mi
- New Paris, OH19 mi
- Okeana, OH20 mi
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