NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Monroe, OH
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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Monroe, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 104 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 104
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
53 deaths in all
What the records show for Monroe
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Monroe; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1892, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 9 miles away. The record near Monroe begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 69 miles away. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 82% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Monroe. The highest rating among the 104 tornadoes within 25 miles is F5, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 3, 1974, came within 21 miles. Of the 104, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 29. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Monroe has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 87% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 127 times since 1968, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Monroe has more hail reports within 10 miles than 81% of the 605 Ohio cities.
Compare Monroe's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Monroe
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Monroe: 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 Monroe
By decade
- 2020s27
- 2010s16(1 EF3+)
- 2000s9
- 1990s11(2 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s19(4 EF3+)
- 1960s9(4 EF3+)
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 21 mi | 31.3 mi | 36 / 1150 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 21 mi | 20.8 mi | 3 / 210 |
| Apr 9, 1999 | F4 | 12 mi | 10 mi | 4 / 65 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 4 mi | 19.8 mi | 2 / 39 |
| Apr 23, 1968 | F4 | 23 mi | 24.1 mi | 1 / 33 |
| May 27, 2019 | EF4 | 25 mi | 18.17 mi | 0 / 166 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 7 mi | 33 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F3 | 17 mi | 22.2 mi | 4 / 247 |
| Oct 1, 1977 | F3 | 21 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 17 |
| May 10, 1969 | F3 | in town | 54.5 mi | 0 / 25 |
| May 8, 1969 | F3 | 20 mi | 1.9 mi | 0 / 25 |
| Apr 25, 1961 | F2 | 22 mi | 25 mi | 2 / 4 |
The strongest 12 of 104, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Monroe
The Storm Prediction Center has 127 hail reports within 10 miles of Monroe since 1968, made on 69 separate days. Of these, 59 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on June 30, 1990. The most recent report is from June 28, 2025. April has the most reports, 32.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Monroe
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Franklin, OH, 8 miles north of Monroe at 679 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 20°F. April is the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.5 inches; the year adds up to 42.4 inches over 78 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 22 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 120 nights a year. That 42.4 inches is more than at 76 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (59%). Trenton, 6 miles northwest, has its own station (Hamilton Butler Co Regional Airport, OH): 41.5 inches a year, 0.9 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 20 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Feb | 42 | 22 | 2.5 | 5 |
| Mar | 52 | 30 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Apr | 65 | 39 | 4.6 | 8 |
| May | 74 | 51 | 4.4 | 9 |
| Jun | 82 | 60 | 4.5 | 8 |
| Jul | 86 | 64 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Aug | 85 | 61 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Sep | 79 | 53 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Oct | 67 | 41 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Nov | 53 | 32 | 3.0 | 6 |
| Dec | 43 | 26 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Year | 64 | 42 | 42.4 | 78 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Franklin, OH (679 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 Monroe
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 317 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Monroe: 232 thunderstorm wind reports, 39 floods, 37 flash floods, 7 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $6.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on September 27, 2003. June has had the most flash floods, 9 of 37. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 552 have had fewer than Monroe.
September 4, 2011: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Monroe — 1 killed, 1 injured.
May 6, 1999: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Monroe — 1 injured, $13,000 damage.
October 31, 2013: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Monroe — 1 injured, $10,000 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
Butler County, which includes Monroe, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Butler County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $119.7 million a year, the 4th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $62.3 million (52%), 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.