NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Mendota, CA
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 Mendota, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 9 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 9
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Mendota
The highest rating among the 9 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 20, 2002, came within 23 miles. Of the 9, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on March 2, 2019. Of the 705 California cities on this site, 63% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Mendota. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 2 times since 1971, with stones up to 0.75 inches (penny size). Of the 705 California cities, 57% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Mendota.
Compare Mendota's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Mendota
By decade
- 2010s2
- 2000s3
- 1990s3
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 2002 | F1 | 23 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 14, 1998 | F1 | 10 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 22, 1967 | F1 | 13 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 2, 2019 | EF0 | 4 mi | 0.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 17, 2012 | EF0 | 8 mi | 0.01 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 27, 2000 | F0 | 17 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 27, 2000 | F0 | 17 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 13, 1995 | F0 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 20, 1991 | F0 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 9 of 9, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Mendota
The Storm Prediction Center has 2 hail reports within 10 miles of Mendota since 1971. None of them reached 1 inch. The largest size, 0.75 inches (penny size), was reported on 2 days, most recently March 15, 2008. The most recent report is from March 15, 2008.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Mendota
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 7 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Mendota: 4 thunderstorm wind reports, 2 heavy rain events and 1 flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $50,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on September 11, 2017.
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
Fresno County, which includes Mendota, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 fires, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 3, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Fresno County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes; Very Low for strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $557.3 million a year, the 13th highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $166.1 million (30%), 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 Mendota
- Firebaugh, CA11 mi
- San Joaquin, CA17 mi
- Kerman, CA18 mi
- Dos Palos, CA25 mi
- Madera, CA28 mi
- Chowchilla, CA29 mi
- Riverdale, CA32 mi
- Los Banos, CA34 mi
- Caruthers, CA35 mi
- Coalinga, CA36 mi
- Fresno, CA36 mi
- Pinedale, CA36 mi
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