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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Massapequa, NY

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

53 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Massapequa, New York since 1851, 13 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ida in 2021. Since 1950, 24 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
13

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
40

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
24

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
0

1 deaths in all

What the records show for Massapequa

The strongest storm to pass near Massapequa was an unnamed storm in 1938, a Category 3 hurricane with 121 mph winds when its centre passed 30 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Gloria in 1985, whose centre came within 10 miles. The record near Massapequa begins with an unnamed storm in 1856; the most recent system was Ida in 2021, a tropical storm 17 miles away. The 1860s and the 1900s were the busiest decades, with 5 systems each. Of the 53 systems, 7 have come since 2000. Massapequa has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 94% of the 809 New York cities on this site. The highest rating among the 24 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 3 times; the most recent, on September 7, 1998, came within 12 miles. The deadliest, an EF1 on September 16, 2010, killed 1 person. Of the 24, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 12 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on November 13, 2021. Of the 809 New York cities, 64% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Massapequa. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 48 times since 1981, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Massapequa has more hail reports within 10 miles than 59% of the 809 New York cities.

Compare Massapequa's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Massapequa

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Massapequa, New York, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2021IdaSep 217 miTropical storm (45 mph)Category 4
2021ElsaJul 932 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 1
2020FayJul 1155 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
2013AndreaJun 832 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
2011IreneAug 2825 miTropical storm (62 mph)Category 3
2008HannaSep 71 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
2007BarryJun 463 miTropical storm (41 mph)Tropical storm
1999FloydSep 172 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1996BerthaJul 1314 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1991BobAug 1974 miCategory 2 (106 mph)Category 3
1985GloriaSep 2710 miCategory 1 (86 mph)Category 4
1985HenriSep 2435 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1976BelleAug 109 miTropical storm (72 mph)Category 3
1972AgnesJun 227 miTropical storm (60 mph)Category 1
1971DoriaAug 2826 miTropical storm (59 mph)Tropical storm
1968Unnamed 1968 stormSep 1110 miTropical storm (63 mph)Tropical storm
1961Unnamed 1961 stormSep 1511 miTropical storm (63 mph)Tropical storm
1960DonnaSep 1226 miCategory 2 (98 mph)Category 4
1960BrendaJul 307 miTropical storm (56 mph)Tropical storm
1955DianeAug 193 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2
1954CarolAug 3158 miCategory 3 (115 mph)Category 3
1952AbleSep 159 miTropical storm (55 mph)Category 2
1944Unnamed 1944 stormSep 1544 miCategory 2 (104 mph)Category 5
1944Unnamed 1944 stormAug 370 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1938Unnamed 1938 stormSep 2130 miCategory 3 (121 mph)Category 5
1934Unnamed 1934 stormSep 922 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 2
1934Unnamed 1934 stormJun 199 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2
1924Unnamed 1924 stormSep 3026 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 1
1916Unnamed 1916 stormMay 1727 miTropical storm (56 mph)Tropical storm
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 439 miTropical storm (55 mph)Category 1
1908Unnamed 1908 stormMay 3055 miTropical storm (43 mph)Category 1
1907Unnamed 1907 stormJun 3069 miTropical storm (44 mph)Tropical storm
1904Unnamed 1904 stormSep 1534 miCategory 1 (79 mph)Category 1
1902Unnamed 1902 stormJun 1629 miTropical storm (43 mph)Tropical storm
1900Unnamed 1900 stormOct 143 miTropical storm (39 mph)Tropical storm
1897Unnamed 1897 stormSep 2430 miTropical storm (63 mph)Tropical storm
1894Unnamed 1894 stormOct 1024 miCategory 1 (86 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2972 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2422 miCategory 1 (86 mph)Category 3
1888Unnamed 1888 stormSep 1110 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1888Unnamed 1888 stormAug 2249 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1882Unnamed 1882 stormSep 2424 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1879Unnamed 1879 stormAug 1961 miCategory 1 (89 mph)Category 3
1877Unnamed 1877 stormOct 528 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1874Unnamed 1874 stormSep 2915 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1
1872Unnamed 1872 stormOct 266 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1869Unnamed 1869 stormSep 874 miCategory 3 (115 mph)Category 3
1866Unnamed 1866 stormOct 3033 miTropical storm (60 mph)Tropical storm
1863Unnamed 1863 stormSep 1940 miTropical storm (49 mph)Tropical storm
1861Unnamed 1861 stormNov 343 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1
1861Unnamed 1861 stormSep 2811 miTropical storm (62 mph)Category 1
1858Unnamed 1858 stormSep 1658 miCategory 1 (92 mph)Category 2
1856Unnamed 1856 stormAug 2065 miTropical storm (58 mph)Tropical storm

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Massapequa: 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 Massapequa

By decade

  • 2020s2
  • 2010s7
  • 2000s3
  • 1990s6
  • 1980s1
  • 1970s5
Strongest tornadoes near Massapequa, New York
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Sep 7, 1998F212 mi0.2 mi0 / 6
Sep 18, 1973F21 mi1.9 mi0 / 0
Sep 27, 1970F22 mi0.5 mi0 / 0
Sep 16, 2010EF118 mi4 mi1 / 1
Sep 8, 2012EF123 mi4.74 mi0 / 0
Jul 18, 2007EF115 mi0.67 mi0 / 0
Aug 12, 2005F116 mi0.2 mi0 / 0
Jun 30, 1998F121 mi0.3 mi0 / 0
Jul 23, 1995F13 mi0.2 mi0 / 0
Oct 5, 1985F119 mi1.5 mi0 / 6
Aug 12, 1978F16 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Aug 11, 1971F122 mi0.3 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 24, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Massapequa

The Storm Prediction Center has 48 hail reports within 10 miles of Massapequa since 1981, made on 28 separate days. Of these, 21 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on August 1, 2011. The most recent report is from July 25, 2022. August has the most reports, 17.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Radar-estimated hail days in Massapequa since 2019 →

Weather by month in Massapequa

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wantagh Cedar Creek, NY, 3 miles southwest of Massapequa at 10 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 28°F. December is the wettest at 4.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.8 inches; the year adds up to 42.8 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 49% of the year's precipitation (21.1 of 42.8 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 53 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (22); a normal September there has highs of 78°F and 3.6 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 77 nights a year. That 42.8 inches is more than at 62 of the 137 New York stations used on this site (45%). Amityville, 3 miles east, has its own station (Farmingdale Airport, NY): 38.5 inches a year, 4.3 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.

Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Kings Point, NY, 18 miles northwest, averaged 74°F in August and 38°F in February over 2021–2025. No month averaged 80°F. Sea level at the Kings Point tide gauge, 18 miles from Massapequa, has risen 1.08 ± 0.04 inches per decade from 1931 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 10.8 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 62 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Wantagh Cedar Creek, NY
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Water °F
Jan42283.3640
Feb44292.8638
Mar50354.1742
Apr60433.8648
May70533.3757
Jun79633.8665
Jul85693.2671
Aug84683.7574
Sep78613.6572
Oct67503.7663
Nov56403.1654
Dec47334.4744
Year634742.87256

Averages for 1991–2020 at Wantagh Cedar Creek, NY (10 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Kings Point, NY, from NOAA Tides & Currents. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.

New York weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Massapequa

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 257 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Massapequa: 143 thunderstorm wind reports, 98 flash floods, 10 lightning strikes, 5 floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 15, and the NWS estimated $604,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 24, 2010. August has had the most flash floods, 37 of 98. Of the 798 New York cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 647 have had fewer than Massapequa.

  • September 7, 1998: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Massapequa — 1 killed, 2 injured.

  • July 18, 1997: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Massapequa — 5 injured.

  • July 27, 2008: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Massapequa — 5 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 Massapequa's ZIP code 11758 have filed 5,389 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $296.7 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Sandy in 2012: 2,711 claims (50% of all) and $259.0 million, then Hurricane Irene in 2011 with 691 and December Storm - Nor'easter in 1992 with 475. 92% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 549 New York cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 544 have fewer than Massapequa.

Flood insurance claims in Massapequa by named event
EventClaimsPaid
Hurricane Sandy20122,711$259.0 million
Hurricane Irene2011691$20.5 million
December Storm - Nor'easter1992475$6.6 million
Torrential rain2005325$2.2 million
The "Halloween" Storm1991244$2.5 million
Hurricane Gloria1985187$807,000

Nassau County, which includes Massapequa, has been named in 31 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 hurricanes, 6 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storm and Flooding, on January 30, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Nassau County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for coastal flooding and lightning; Relatively High for hurricanes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and heat waves; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $298.6 million a year, the 5th highest of 62 New York counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $183.9 million (62%), 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 Massapequa