NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Meadville, 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
9 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Meadville, Pennsylvania since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 69 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 69
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
32 deaths in all
What the records show for Meadville
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Meadville; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 59 mph winds when its centre passed 63 miles away. The record near Meadville begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 38 miles away. Of the 9 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 79% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Meadville. The highest rating among the 69 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 31, 1985, came within 21 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on May 31, 1985, killed 16 people. Of the 69, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 30 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on June 9, 2025. Meadville has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 64% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 74 times since 1970, with stones up to 3.8 inches. Meadville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 71% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Meadville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 31 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 14 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Meadville: 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 Meadville
By decade
- 2020s4
- 2010s15
- 2000s11
- 1990s7
- 1980s19(5 EF3+)
- 1970s6(2 EF3+)
- 1960s1
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 12 mi | 56.2 mi | 16 / 125 |
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 21 mi | 14 mi | 12 / 82 |
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 23 mi | 28 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 4 mi | 23 mi | 2 / 0 |
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 19 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 2, 1972 | F3 | 7 mi | 7.9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jun 2, 1971 | F3 | 16 mi | 29.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 24 mi | 7 mi | 1 / 19 |
| May 31, 1985 | F2 | 11 mi | 4 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Oct 2, 2018 | EF2 | 10 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 5, 2017 | EF2 | 20 mi | 6.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 2004 | F2 | 8 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 69, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Meadville
The Storm Prediction Center has 74 hail reports within 10 miles of Meadville since 1970, made on 53 separate days. Of these, 40 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.8 inches, fell on September 25, 1994. The most recent report is from May 2, 2025. June has the most reports, 27.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Meadville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Port Meadville Airport, PA, 3 miles west of Meadville at 1,400 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 80°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 18°F. July is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.0 inches; the year adds up to 41.4 inches over 89 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 2 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 125 nights a year. That 41.4 inches is more than at 29 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (20%). Guys Mills, 11 miles east, has its own station (Titusville Wtr Wks, PA): 46.4 inches a year, 5.0 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 18 | 2.5 | 6 |
| Feb | 35 | 19 | 2.0 | 6 |
| Mar | 44 | 27 | 2.9 | 7 |
| Apr | 58 | 37 | 3.8 | 9 |
| May | 69 | 48 | 3.7 | 8 |
| Jun | 76 | 56 | 4.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 80 | 61 | 4.9 | 8 |
| Aug | 78 | 59 | 3.7 | 7 |
| Sep | 72 | 53 | 4.2 | 7 |
| Oct | 60 | 42 | 3.7 | 9 |
| Nov | 48 | 33 | 3.0 | 7 |
| Dec | 37 | 25 | 2.6 | 7 |
| Year | 57 | 40 | 41.4 | 89 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Port Meadville Airport, PA (1,400 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 Meadville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 231 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Meadville: 221 thunderstorm wind reports, 5 flash floods and 5 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $8.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on August 15, 2019. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 5. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 71 have had fewer than Meadville.
June 10, 1999: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Meadville — 1 killed, 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
July 9, 1999: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Meadville — $1.4 million damage.
NWS: “A damaging line of severe thunderstorms packing estimated winds of 60 to 85 mph moved across the county knocking down as many as 1000 trees. The majority of the damage occurred along a path from near Linesville to Harmonsburg to Meadville.”
January 12, 2018: flood in Meadville — $1.3 million damage.
NWS: “On January 12th a combination of rainfall, snowmelt, and most notably an ice jam resulted in significant flooding on the French Creek in Meadville. A warm up on January 11 and 12th cause an entire loss of the area snowpack which contributed about a half an inch of runoff the the river basin.”
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 Meadville's ZIP code 16335 have filed 87 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $234,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1996: 14 claims (16% of all) and $20,000. The year with the most claims was 2004, with 20. 17% 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, 353 have fewer than Meadville.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1996 | 14 | $20,000 |
Crawford County, which includes Meadville, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 3 hurricanes, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Crawford County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes and hail; 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 34th highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $22.4 million (84%), 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 Meadville
- Saegertown, PA7 mi
- Conneaut Lake, PA8 mi
- Cochranton, PA10 mi
- Guys Mills, PA11 mi
- Cambridge Springs, PA13 mi
- Conneautville, PA13 mi
- Linesville, PA15 mi
- Edinboro, PA16 mi
- Sandy Lake, PA18 mi
- Jamestown, PA18 mi
- Centerville, PA20 mi
- Greenville, PA20 mi
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