NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Miami Beach, FL
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
85 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Miami Beach, Florida since 1851, 38 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Eta in 2020. Since 1950, 209 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 38
- Tropical storms
- 47
- Tornadoes
- 209
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Miami Beach
The strongest storm to pass near Miami Beach was Andrew in 1992, a Category 5 hurricane with 167 mph winds when its centre passed 22 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1888, whose centre crossed the city. The record near Miami Beach begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Eta in 2020, a tropical storm 73 miles away. Of the 85 systems, 9 have come since 2000. Miami Beach has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 88% of the 407 Florida cities on this site. The highest rating among the 209 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 4 times; the most recent, on March 1, 1980, came within 24 miles. The deadliest, an F2 on March 27, 2003, killed 1 person. Of the 209, 14 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 72 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 35. The most recent tornado was on February 18, 2024. Miami Beach has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 82% of the 407 Florida cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 76 times since 1960, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Miami Beach has more hail reports within 10 miles than 79% of the 407 Florida cities.
Compare Miami Beach's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Miami Beach
Of the 85 tracks on the map, 31 were moving northeast as they passed Miami Beach, 23 northwest and 15 north. Andrew (1992), the strongest pass, was heading west and came ashore 22 miles south of Miami Beach. Within 75 miles of Miami Beach, 48 of the 85 came ashore, 27 of them as hurricanes. In the last 30 seasons (1996–2025), 12 came near Miami Beach: 4.0 a decade, against 5.0 a decade from 1851 to 1995.
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | EtaNov 9 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | SallySep 12 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 2 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2018 | GordonSep 3 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2010 | NicoleSep 30 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2010 | BonnieJul 23 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2006 | ErnestoAug 30 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2005 | WilmaOct 24 | 56 mi | Category 3 (110 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2005 | KatrinaAug 25 | 10 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1999 | IreneOct 15 | 35 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1999 | HarveySep 21 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1998 | MitchNov 5 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1995 | JerryAug 23 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1992 | AndrewAug 24 | 22 mi | Category 5 (167 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1991 | FabianOct 16 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1987 | FloydOct 13 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1985 | BobJul 23 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1984 | IsidoreSep 27 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1981 | DennisAug 17 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 3 | 44 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1976 | DottieAug 19 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1974 | Unnamed 1974 stormOct 6 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1966 | InezOct 4 | 50 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1965 | BetsySep 8 | 54 mi | Category 3 (113 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1964 | IsbellOct 14 | 49 mi | Category 1 (93 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1964 | CleoAug 27 | 2 mi | Category 2 (108 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1960 | FlorenceSep 24 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1956 | Unnamed 1956 stormOct 16 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1953 | Unnamed 1953 stormOct 5 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1952 | Unnamed 1952 stormFeb 3 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1950 | KingOct 18 | 7 mi | Category 4 (132 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 26 | 48 mi | Category 4 (132 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1948 | Unnamed 1948 stormOct 6 | 2 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1948 | Unnamed 1948 stormSep 22 | 61 mi | Category 2 (109 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormOct 12 | 14 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 17 | 19 mi | Category 4 (131 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1946 | Unnamed 1946 stormNov 1 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 15 | 32 mi | Category 3 (129 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormOct 6 | 23 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormJul 29 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormJun 15 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormNov 4 | 5 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormSep 29 | 52 mi | Category 4 (138 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormOct 5 | 72 mi | Category 3 (116 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormSep 4 | 65 mi | Category 3 (127 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormAug 30 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormSep 28 | 61 mi | Category 3 (115 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 16 | 56 mi | Category 4 (145 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 7 | 65 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormOct 21 | 30 mi | Category 3 (127 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormSep 18 | 18 mi | Category 4 (144 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormOct 21 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormNov 16 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormAug 25 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 14 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormOct 11 | 33 mi | Category 2 (108 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormAug 29 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormJun 28 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormOct 18 | 4 mi | Category 3 (116 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 17 | overhead | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormOct 17 | 32 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 11 | 19 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormAug 10 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormJul 30 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 11 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 27 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1895 | Unnamed 1895 stormOct 16 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1895 | Unnamed 1895 stormOct 2 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormJun 11 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormOct 7 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormAug 24 | 29 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormOct 6 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 23 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 7 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 16 | overhead | Category 3 (125 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormAug 23 | 44 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 17 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 21 | 14 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 8 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormOct 20 | 71 mi | Category 2 (101 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 16 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1870 | Unnamed 1870 stormOct 11 | 44 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1865 | Unnamed 1865 stormOct 23 | 31 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 16 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormOct 17 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Miami Beach: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Check hail and hurricane history for any address
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Miami Beach
By decade
- 2020s15
- 2010s24
- 2000s33
- 1990s50
- 1980s42(1 EF3+)
- 1970s11
- 1960s22(1 EF3+)
- 1950s12(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 1980 | F3 | 24 mi | 7.8 mi | 1 / 33 |
| Feb 23, 1965 | F3 | 19 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 17, 1959 | F3 | 4 mi | 12.7 mi | 0 / 77 |
| Apr 10, 1956 | F3 | 14 mi | 7.8 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Mar 27, 2003 | F2 | 5 mi | 6 mi | 1 / 14 |
| Oct 18, 2011 | EF2 | 24 mi | 1.11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 2, 1998 | F2 | 8 mi | 21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1979 | F2 | 19 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 4, 1972 | F2 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 22, 1971 | F2 | 7 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 19, 1968 | F2 | 8 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 21 |
| Oct 14, 1964 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 209, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Miami Beach
The Storm Prediction Center has 76 hail reports within 10 miles of Miami Beach since 1960, made on 51 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on March 29, 1963. The most recent report is from July 25, 2019. May has the most reports, 29.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Miami Beach
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Miami Beach, FL, 1 mile south of Miami Beach at 1 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 78°F; January is the coolest, at 74°F and 61°F. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 69% of the year's precipitation (39.6 of 57.3 inches); the other six months are drier. October has brought the most of the 85 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (29); a normal October there has highs of 84°F and 6.5 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 30 days a year, almost all from May to September. A night below freezing comes less than once a year on average. That 57.3 inches is more than at 87 of the 125 Florida stations used on this site (70%). North Miami, 6 miles northwest, has its own station (N Miami Beach #2, FL): 68.4 inches a year, 11.1 more than here, and an August average high of 90°F against 88°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Virginia Key, FL, 6 miles south, averaged 89°F in August and 73°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from May to October. Sea level at the Virginia Key tide gauge, 6 miles from Miami Beach, has risen 1.26 ± 0.04 inches per decade from 1931 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 12.6 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 76 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 74 | 61 | 2.3 | 5 | 73 |
| Feb | 75 | 63 | 2.3 | 4 | 75 |
| Mar | 77 | 65 | 2.5 | 4 | 77 |
| Apr | 80 | 70 | 3.4 | 5 | 79 |
| May | 83 | 74 | 4.9 | 6 | 84 |
| Jun | 86 | 77 | 7.8 | 10 | 86 |
| Jul | 88 | 78 | 6.0 | 9 | 88 |
| Aug | 88 | 78 | 7.5 | 10 | 89 |
| Sep | 87 | 77 | 8.5 | 11 | 87 |
| Oct | 84 | 74 | 6.5 | 9 | 83 |
| Nov | 79 | 69 | 3.3 | 5 | 79 |
| Dec | 76 | 65 | 2.3 | 4 | 76 |
| Year | 81 | 71 | 57.3 | 81 | 81 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Miami Beach, FL (1 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Virginia Key, FL, 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.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Miami Beach
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 206 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Miami Beach: 75 thunderstorm wind reports, 72 floods, 35 flash floods, 18 lightning strikes and 6 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 17, and the NWS estimated $5.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on January 8, 1998. Of the 277 Florida cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 260 have had fewer than Miami Beach.
March 27, 2015: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Miami Beach — 1 killed.
NWS: “A building maintenance worker was killed after he was struck by a glass tabletop that flew off a 9th floor balcony of Flamingo Apartments in Miami Beach. The tabletop flew off during high winds from thunderstorms which affected the area.”
September 4, 2007: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Miami Beach — 3 injured.
July 22, 2015: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Miami Beach — 3 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 Miami Beach's 3 ZIP codes have filed 3,392 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $53.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Andrew in 1992: 446 claims (13% of all) and $3.3 million, then Hurricane Irma in 2017 with 443 and Hurricane Irene in 1999 with 369. The year with the most claims was 2017, with 528. 58% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 340 Florida cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 309 have fewer than Miami Beach.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Andrew1992 | 446 | $3.3 million |
| Hurricane Irma2017 | 443 | $11.1 million |
| Hurricane Irene1999 | 369 | $1.7 million |
| Flooding1991 | 207 | $560,000 |
| Hurricane Wilma2005 | 197 | $4.2 million |
| June South Florida Flooding2024 | 95 | $4.7 million |
Miami-Dade County, which includes Miami Beach, has been named in 43 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 23 of them major disasters (by incident: 23 hurricanes, 5 severe storms, 4 fires, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Milton, on October 11, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Miami-Dade County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for hurricanes, inland flooding, coastal flooding and lightning; Relatively High for tornadoes, hail and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $824.7 million a year, the highest of 67 Florida counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $355.8 million (43%), 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).
Miami Beach in the notable storm records: Hurricane Andrew (1992)
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Miami Beach
- Miami Shores, FL4 mi
- Bay Harbor Islands, FL4 mi
- North Miami, FL6 mi
- North Miami Beach, FL8 mi
- Sunny Isles Beach, FL8 mi
- Key Biscayne, FL8 mi
- Opa Locka, FL9 mi
- Aventura, FL10 mi
- Coral Gables, FL10 mi
- Hallandale Beach, FL12 mi
- Miami Gardens, FL12 mi
- Hialeah, FL12 mi
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