NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Middlebury, IN
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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Middlebury, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 92 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 92
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
106 deaths in all
What the records show for Middlebury
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Middlebury; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 33 miles away. The record near Middlebury begins with an unnamed storm in 1923; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 37% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Middlebury. The highest rating among the 92 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 3, 1974, came within 14 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 36 people. Of the 92, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 37 have come since 2000. June and August have had the most tornadoes, 17 each. The most recent tornado was on March 30, 2025. Of the 356 Indiana cities, 71% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Middlebury. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 40 times since 1956, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 356 Indiana cities, 80% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Middlebury.
Compare Middlebury's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Middlebury
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 1 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 Middlebury: 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 Middlebury
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s17
- 2000s10(2 EF3+)
- 1990s8
- 1980s7
- 1970s12(2 EF3+)
- 1960s19(7 EF3+)
- 1950s9
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 1 mi | 37 mi | 36 / 321 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 2 mi | 21.2 mi | 31 / 252 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 14 mi | 108.7 mi | 18 / 285 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 4 mi | 21.6 mi | 5 / 41 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F3 | 15 mi | 35.6 mi | 10 / 82 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 22 mi | 36.2 mi | 5 / 53 |
| Oct 24, 2001 | F3 | 20 mi | 47 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Oct 18, 2007 | EF3 | 16 mi | 20.33 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1962 | F3 | 9 mi | 36.5 mi | 0 / 49 |
| Jul 23, 1961 | F3 | 25 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 6, 1961 | F3 | 18 mi | 33.4 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Aug 6, 2024 | EF2 | 19 mi | 8.46 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 92, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Middlebury
The Storm Prediction Center has 40 hail reports within 10 miles of Middlebury since 1956, made on 29 separate days. Of these, 24 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on March 6, 1956. The most recent report is from June 16, 2024. March and June have the most reports, 11 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Middlebury
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Goshen Municipal Airport, IN, 12 miles southwest of Middlebury at 827 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 18°F. May is the wettest at 4.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 34.7 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 130 nights a year. That 34.7 inches is more than at 1 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (1%). Shipshewana, 6 miles east, has its own station (Lagrange, IN): 38.5 inches a year, 3.8 more than here, and the same July average high, 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 18 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Feb | 35 | 20 | 1.6 | 5 |
| Mar | 47 | 29 | 2.0 | 6 |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 3.4 | 7 |
| May | 71 | 50 | 4.2 | 8 |
| Jun | 80 | 60 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Jul | 83 | 62 | 3.7 | 6 |
| Aug | 81 | 60 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 75 | 53 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Oct | 62 | 43 | 3.0 | 7 |
| Nov | 48 | 33 | 2.8 | 5 |
| Dec | 37 | 24 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Year | 59 | 41 | 34.7 | 71 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Goshen Municipal Airport, IN (827 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 Middlebury
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 102 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Middlebury: 95 thunderstorm wind reports, 3 floods, 3 lightning strikes and 1 flash flood. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $495,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on March 30, 2025.
August 7, 2018: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of Middlebury — 2 injured.
NWS: “Local media reported lightning struck a barn, causing a fire. The fire killed 2 goats and 3 horses.”
June 11, 2026: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Middlebury — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
May 25, 2006: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Middlebury — $100,000 damage.
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
Elkhart County, which includes Middlebury, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Elkhart County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $49.3 million a year, the 12th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $23.1 million (47%), 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.