NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Manitowoc, WI
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 Manitowoc, Wisconsin since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 42 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 42
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Manitowoc
The strongest of the 42 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on July 5, 1994; its path came within 14 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on April 21, 1974, killed 2 people. Of the 42, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 17 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 14. The most recent tornado was on July 19, 2025. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site, 87% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Manitowoc. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 37 times since 1988, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 73% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Manitowoc.
Compare Manitowoc's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Manitowoc
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s10
- 2000s6
- 1990s4(1 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s6(1 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 5, 1994 | F4 | 14 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 21, 1974 | F3 | 14 mi | 58.6 mi | 2 / 18 |
| Jul 5, 1994 | F2 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1981 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 7, 1980 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 30, 1967 | F2 | 17 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 28, 2018 | EF1 | 19 mi | 0.98 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 2013 | EF1 | 22 mi | 10.59 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 2013 | EF1 | 13 mi | 33.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 2013 | EF1 | 20 mi | 20.69 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 2013 | EF1 | 22 mi | 19.15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 10, 2011 | EF1 | 25 mi | 1.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 42, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Manitowoc
The Storm Prediction Center has 37 hail reports within 10 miles of Manitowoc since 1988, made on 30 separate days. Of these, 21 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 1, 2006. The most recent report is from August 3, 2023. July has the most reports, 8.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Manitowoc
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Manitowoc, WI, 2 miles east of Manitowoc at 584 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 77°F and low of 60°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 13°F. June is the wettest at 4.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 31.5 inches over 66 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 139 nights a year. Snowfall averages 34.6 inches a year, most of it in December. That 31.5 inches is more than at 15 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (9%). Two Rivers, 7 miles northeast, has its own station (Two Rivers, WI): 32.0 inches a year, 0.5 more than here, and a July average high of 76°F against 77°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 13 | 1.8 | 5 | 7.8 |
| Feb | 29 | 16 | 1.2 | 4 | 10.0 |
| Mar | 39 | 25 | 1.8 | 4 | 3.2 |
| Apr | 50 | 34 | 3.3 | 7 | 1.4 |
| May | 62 | 44 | 3.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 72 | 54 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 77 | 60 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 76 | 60 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 69 | 53 | 2.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 56 | 42 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 43 | 30 | 2.0 | 5 | 0.9 |
| Dec | 32 | 20 | 1.7 | 4 | 11.1 |
| Year | 52 | 38 | 31.5 | 66 | 34.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Manitowoc, WI (584 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 Manitowoc
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 82 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Manitowoc: 73 thunderstorm wind reports, 5 floods and 4 flash floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $20.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 7, 2013.
June 12, 2008: flash flood 2 miles from the centre of Manitowoc — $20.2 million damage.
NWS: “10 inches in Valders, caused the Manitowoc River to rise three feet in four hours. Resultant flooding washed out part of State Highway 57 near Kiel and created a large pothole on Clarks Mills Road.”
March 15, 2019: flood 10 miles from the centre of Manitowoc — $170,000 damage.
May 31, 1998: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Manitowoc — $150,000 damage.
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 Manitowoc's ZIP code 54220 have filed 13 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $82,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 15% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 128 Wisconsin cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 14 have fewer than Manitowoc.
Manitowoc County, which includes Manitowoc, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Manitowoc County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $32.4 million a year, the 26th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $15.0 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.