NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Madison, NE
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 Madison, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 127 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 127
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
12 deaths in all
What the records show for Madison
The highest rating among the 127 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 5 times; the most recent, on June 16, 2014, came within 7 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on May 30, 1954, killed 6 people. Of the 127, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 53 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 56. The most recent tornado was on June 25, 2024. Madison has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 56% of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 72 times since 1960, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 91 Nebraska cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Madison.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Madison
By decade
- 2020s28
- 2010s13(3 EF3+)
- 2000s12
- 1990s23
- 1980s15
- 1970s10(3 EF3+)
- 1960s15(2 EF3+)
- 1950s11(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 30, 1954 | F4 | 5 mi | 29.9 mi | 6 / 23 |
| May 8, 1965 | F4 | 24 mi | 125.7 mi | 4 / 53 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF4 | 23 mi | 11.5 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF4 | 18 mi | 23.94 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF4 | 7 mi | 12.11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 4, 1977 | F3 | 19 mi | 7.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 1975 | F3 | 16 mi | 15.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 6, 1975 | F3 | 23 mi | 44.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 21, 1962 | F3 | 22 mi | 71.7 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Dec 15, 2021 | EF2 | 25 mi | 6.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 2012 | EF2 | 11 mi | 0.75 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 1998 | F2 | 23 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 17 |
The strongest 12 of 127, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Madison
The Storm Prediction Center has 72 hail reports within 10 miles of Madison since 1960, made on 56 separate days. Of these, 54 were 1 inch across or larger, and 14 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 17, 1968. The most recent report is from July 10, 2025. June has the most reports, 19.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Madison
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Madison, NE, in Madison at 1,580 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 10°F. June is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.6 inches; the year adds up to 28.4 inches over 52 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 22 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 161 nights a year. That 28.4 inches is more than at 37 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (54%). Norfolk, 13 miles north, has its own station (Norfolk Karl Stefan Airport, NE): 27.0 inches a year, 1.4 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 10 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Feb | 36 | 15 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Mar | 49 | 24 | 1.5 | 3 |
| Apr | 61 | 36 | 2.9 | 5 |
| May | 72 | 48 | 4.2 | 8 |
| Jun | 82 | 59 | 4.5 | 7 |
| Jul | 85 | 62 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Aug | 83 | 61 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Sep | 77 | 51 | 2.5 | 4 |
| Oct | 64 | 37 | 2.7 | 4 |
| Nov | 48 | 25 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Dec | 35 | 14 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Year | 60 | 37 | 28.4 | 52 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Madison, NE (1,580 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 Madison
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 41 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Madison: 35 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods and 2 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $124,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 29, 2000.
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 Madison's ZIP code 68748 have filed 29 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $100,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1999, with 10. 24% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 41 Nebraska cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 14 have fewer than Madison.
Madison County, which includes Madison, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 17 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 6 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Straight-Line Winds, on September 6, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Madison County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $26.8 million a year, the 9th highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $12.0 million (45%), 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 Madison
- Norfolk, NE13 mi
- Stanton, NE15 mi
- Pierce, NE26 mi
- Columbus, NE28 mi
- Albion, NE31 mi
- Schuyler, NE32 mi
- Wayne, NE34 mi
- West Point, NE37 mi
- David City, NE43 mi
- Oakland, NE49 mi
- Hartington, NE55 mi
- Central City, NE57 mi
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