NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Maquoketa, IA
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Maquoketa, Iowa since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 116 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 116
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Maquoketa
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Maquoketa; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 6 miles away. Maquoketa is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 241 Iowa cities on this site. The strongest of the 116 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 11, 1965; its path came within 3 miles, and it killed 1 person. The deadliest, an F3 on June 20, 1974, killed 1 person. Of the 116, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 57 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 23. The most recent tornado was on July 11, 2025. Of the 241 Iowa cities, 62% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Maquoketa. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 47 times since 1961, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 241 Iowa cities, 93% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Maquoketa.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Maquoketa
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Maquoketa: 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 Maquoketa
By decade
- 2020s27
- 2010s21
- 2000s9
- 1990s25(3 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s9(1 EF3+)
- 1960s11(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 3 mi | 91.5 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Jun 20, 1974 | F3 | 22 mi | 10.6 mi | 1 / 20 |
| May 15, 1998 | F3 | 25 mi | 47 mi | 0 / 47 |
| Jun 19, 1993 | F3 | 16 mi | 14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 13, 1992 | F3 | 19 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1988 | F3 | 21 mi | 32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1953 | F3 | 18 mi | 38.6 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jul 11, 2025 | EF2 | 15 mi | 2.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 14 mi | 18.02 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 19.56 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 18 mi | 16.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 6, 2017 | EF2 | 18 mi | 34.68 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 116, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Maquoketa
The Storm Prediction Center has 47 hail reports within 10 miles of Maquoketa since 1961, made on 33 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 2 days, most recently June 25, 2024. The most recent report is from June 25, 2024. June has the most reports, 11.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Maquoketa
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Maquoketa, IA, in Maquoketa at 668 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 11°F. June is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 36.7 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 10 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 153 nights a year. Snowfall averages 30.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 36.7 inches is more than at 62 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (50%). Bellevue, 15 miles northeast, has its own station (Bellevue L&D 12, IA): 37.9 inches a year, 1.2 more than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 11 | 1.3 | 4 | 8.4 |
| Feb | 31 | 15 | 1.7 | 4 | 8.0 |
| Mar | 45 | 26 | 2.2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Apr | 59 | 37 | 3.4 | 7 | 0.9 |
| May | 70 | 49 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 79 | 60 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 63 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 61 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 52 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 62 | 40 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.3 |
| Nov | 46 | 28 | 2.1 | 5 | 1.7 |
| Dec | 33 | 18 | 1.8 | 5 | 7.1 |
| Year | 57 | 38 | 36.7 | 69 | 30.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Maquoketa, IA (668 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 Maquoketa
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 96 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Maquoketa: 87 thunderstorm wind reports, 5 floods and 4 flash floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $6.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on August 24, 1998.
April 2, 2007: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Maquoketa — 1 injured, $5,000 damage.
NWS: “A farm sustained damage to a machine shed and the residence as the storm moved through the area. Several tree limbs were blown down, one of which broke a bedroom window of the residence.”
July 17, 2016: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Maquoketa — $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “Local law enforcement reported significant damage to a building with nearby trees twisted and some farm equipment knocked over.”
July 7, 2003: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Maquoketa — $605,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous trees down citywide”
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
Jackson County, which includes Maquoketa, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 8 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on June 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Jackson County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.1 million a year, the 45th highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.7 million (47%), 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 Maquoketa
- Bellevue, IA15 mi
- De Witt, IA20 mi
- Cascade, IA22 mi
- Peosta, IA25 mi
- Galena, IL26 mi
- East Dubuque, IL28 mi
- Savanna, IL28 mi
- Monticello, IA28 mi
- Clinton, IA28 mi
- Epworth, IA28 mi
- Dubuque, IA29 mi
- Camanche, IA29 mi
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