NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Merrill, 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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Merrill, Wisconsin since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Cristobal in 2020. Since 1950, 62 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 62
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Merrill
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Merrill; the strongest was Cristobal in 2020, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 23 miles away. Merrill is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site. The strongest of the 62 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on August 31, 1977; its path came within 17 miles. Of the 62, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 29 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on May 15, 2025. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 63% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Merrill. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 51 times since 1955, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 53% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Merrill.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Merrill
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | CristobalJun 10 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Merrill: 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 Merrill
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s7(1 EF3+)
- 2000s19
- 1990s11
- 1980s5
- 1970s9(3 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s3(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31, 1977 | F4 | 17 mi | 31.8 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Apr 10, 2011 | EF3 | 1 mi | 21.15 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 28, 1971 | F3 | 10 mi | 78.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 28, 1971 | F3 | 21 mi | 49.6 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 3, 1955 | F3 | 10 mi | 6.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 30, 2002 | F2 | 21 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 16, 1997 | F2 | 12 mi | 3.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 7, 1996 | F2 | 19 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1988 | F2 | 17 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 24, 1984 | F2 | 16 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F2 | 24 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 12, 1974 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 62, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Merrill
The Storm Prediction Center has 51 hail reports within 10 miles of Merrill since 1955, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on July 16, 1997. The most recent report is from July 19, 2025. August has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Merrill
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Merrill, WI, 2 miles east of Merrill at 1,250 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 80°F and low of 57°F; January is the coolest, at 22°F and 3°F. June is the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.1 inches; the year adds up to 33.9 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from June to July. Lows fall below freezing on about 182 nights a year. Snowfall averages 54.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 33.9 inches is more than at 61 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (37%). Wausau, 15 miles south, has its own station (Wausau Dwtn Airport, WI): 34.0 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and the same July average high, 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22 | 3 | 1.2 | 4 | 12.4 |
| Feb | 27 | 5 | 1.1 | 3 | 11.6 |
| Mar | 39 | 17 | 1.8 | 5 | 7.2 |
| Apr | 53 | 30 | 2.9 | 7 | 5.5 |
| May | 67 | 43 | 3.7 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 76 | 53 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 80 | 57 | 3.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 78 | 55 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 70 | 46 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 55 | 35 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.9 |
| Nov | 40 | 23 | 2.1 | 5 | 5.0 |
| Dec | 27 | 11 | 1.5 | 4 | 11.6 |
| Year | 53 | 32 | 33.9 | 72 | 54.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Merrill, WI (1,250 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 Merrill
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 52 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Merrill: 45 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 heavy rain events and 3 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $80,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on June 20, 2007.
July 19, 2025: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Merrill — 1 injured.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds downed trees at Council Grounds State Park near Merrill. The time of this report is an estimate based on radar data.”
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
Lincoln County, which includes Merrill, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 5 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 severe storms, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lincoln County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $19.3 million a year, the 43rd highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.9 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.
Cities near Merrill
- Wausau, WI15 mi
- Athens, WI18 mi
- Marathon, WI18 mi
- Weston, WI20 mi
- Rothschild, WI21 mi
- Tomahawk, WI23 mi
- Edgar, WI23 mi
- Rib Lake, WI24 mi
- Mosinee, WI27 mi
- Antigo, WI28 mi
- Hatley, WI29 mi
- Birnamwood, WI31 mi
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