NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lock Haven, PA
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
12 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lock Haven, Pennsylvania since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 27 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 11
- Tornadoes
- 27
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Lock Haven
The strongest storm to pass near Lock Haven was Hazel in 1954, a Category 1 hurricane with 78 mph winds when its centre passed 6 miles away. The record near Lock Haven begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 74 miles away. Of the 12 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 45% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Lock Haven. The strongest of the 27 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 31, 1985; its path came within 5 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on May 31, 1985, killed 6 people. Of the 27, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 12. The most recent tornado was on July 2, 2023. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities, 93% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Lock Haven. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 32 times since 1985, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities, 69% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Lock Haven.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lock Haven
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 16 | 6 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 14 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 14 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lock Haven: 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 Lock Haven
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s4
- 2000s3
- 1990s9
- 1980s2(2 EF3+)
- 1970s4(1 EF3+)
- 1960s1
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 5 mi | 69 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 15 mi | 19 mi | 6 / 60 |
| Jul 29, 1976 | F3 | 9 mi | 25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1966 | F2 | 25 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 2, 2023 | EF1 | 24 mi | 2.12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 2, 2023 | EF1 | 23 mi | 1.47 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 2, 2023 | EF1 | 20 mi | 0.62 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 1, 2017 | EF1 | 14 mi | 1.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 26, 2011 | EF1 | 18 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 2011 | EF1 | 22 mi | 5.57 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 7, 2007 | EF1 | 17 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1998 | F1 | 14 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 27, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lock Haven
The Storm Prediction Center has 32 hail reports within 10 miles of Lock Haven since 1985, made on 22 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 26, 2011. The most recent report is from August 29, 2024. May has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lock Haven
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lock Haven Sewage Plt, PA, 1 mile south of Lock Haven at 566 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 18°F. September is the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.2 inches; the year adds up to 41.9 inches over 84 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 55% of the year's precipitation (23.2 of 41.9 inches); the other six months are drier. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 139 nights a year. Snowfall averages 29.6 inches a year, most of it in February. That 41.9 inches is more than at 34 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (23%). Howard, 15 miles southwest, has its own station (Millheim, PA): 42.4 inches a year, 0.5 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35 | 18 | 2.8 | 6 | 7.5 |
| Feb | 38 | 19 | 2.2 | 6 | 7.9 |
| Mar | 48 | 27 | 3.1 | 7 | 6.2 |
| Apr | 62 | 36 | 3.6 | 8 | 0.6 |
| May | 73 | 47 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 57 | 3.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 61 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 60 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 76 | 53 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 64 | 41 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 51 | 31 | 3.0 | 6 | 1.4 |
| Dec | 40 | 24 | 3.0 | 7 | 5.9 |
| Year | 61 | 39 | 41.9 | 84 | 29.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lock Haven Sewage Plt, PA (566 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 Lock Haven
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 174 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lock Haven: 162 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 floods, 5 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 2 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $2.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on October 20, 2016. July has had the most flash floods, 2 of 5. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 71 have had fewer than Lock Haven.
June 27, 2013: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Lock Haven — 1 killed, $2.1 million damage.
October 20, 2016: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Lock Haven — 1 killed, $25,000 damage.
June 30, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Lock Haven — 2 injured.
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 Lock Haven's ZIP code 17745 have filed 270 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $2.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1984: 125 claims (46% of all) and $532,000, then Tropical Storm Ivan in 2004 with 48. 64% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 553 Pennsylvania cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 494 have fewer than Lock Haven.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1984 | 125 | $532,000 |
| Tropical Storm Ivan2004 | 48 | $1.5 million |
Clinton County, which includes Lock Haven, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Clinton County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes and inland flooding; Very Low for hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $13.8 million a year, the 58th highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.3 million (82%), 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 Lock Haven
- Mill Hall, PA4 mi
- Jersey Shore, PA10 mi
- Loganton, PA10 mi
- Howard, PA15 mi
- Linden, PA16 mi
- Cogan Station, PA22 mi
- South Williamsport, PA22 mi
- Allenwood, PA22 mi
- Williamsport, PA23 mi
- Spring Mills, PA23 mi
- Renovo, PA24 mi
- Bellefonte, PA24 mi
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