NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Moscow, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Moscow, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 80 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 80
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
19 deaths in all
What the records show for Moscow
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Moscow; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 37 miles away. The record near Moscow begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 45 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 53% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Moscow. The highest rating among the 80 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on March 2, 2012, came within 14 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 23, 1968, killed 6 people. Of the 80, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on September 22, 2025. Moscow has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 57% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 57 times since 1989, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 65% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Moscow.
Compare Moscow's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Moscow
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Moscow: 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 Moscow
By decade
- 2020s17
- 2010s17(2 EF3+)
- 2000s8
- 1990s8(1 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s10(1 EF3+)
- 1960s9(3 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 1968 | F4 | 12 mi | 78.7 mi | 6 / 364 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF4 | 14 mi | 9.85 mi | 4 / 8 |
| Apr 23, 1968 | F4 | 16 mi | 24.1 mi | 1 / 33 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F3 | 18 mi | 22.2 mi | 4 / 247 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | in town | 20.41 mi | 3 / 13 |
| Jul 2, 1997 | F3 | 2 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 19.3 mi | 0 / 27 |
| Jul 6, 2022 | EF2 | 23 mi | 4.81 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 8, 1996 | F2 | 11 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F2 | 1 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 10, 1986 | F2 | 22 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 1968 | F2 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 80, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Moscow
The Storm Prediction Center has 57 hail reports within 10 miles of Moscow since 1989, made on 40 separate days. Of these, 30 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on July 10, 1993. The most recent report is from April 14, 2025. May has the most reports, 11.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Moscow
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chilo Meldahl Locks & Dam, OH, 5 miles south of Moscow at 480 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 23°F. May is the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 42.2 inches over 75 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 24 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 104 nights a year. That 42.2 inches is more than at 71 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (55%). Amelia, 11 miles north, has its own station (Cincinnati Lunken Airport, OH): 43.5 inches a year, 1.3 more than here, and the same July average high, 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 41 | 23 | 3.0 | 6 |
| Feb | 46 | 25 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Mar | 55 | 32 | 4.3 | 8 |
| Apr | 66 | 41 | 4.1 | 7 |
| May | 75 | 52 | 4.6 | 9 |
| Jun | 83 | 61 | 4.0 | 7 |
| Jul | 87 | 65 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Aug | 86 | 64 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Sep | 81 | 57 | 2.8 | 4 |
| Oct | 69 | 45 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Nov | 56 | 35 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Dec | 45 | 28 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Year | 66 | 44 | 42.2 | 75 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chilo Meldahl Locks & Dam, OH (480 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 Moscow
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 191 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Moscow: 149 thunderstorm wind reports, 23 flash floods, 17 floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 2 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $2.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on February 6, 2008. July has had the most flash floods, 8 of 23. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 454 have had fewer than Moscow.
June 9, 2010: flood 9 miles from the centre of Moscow — 2 killed, $3,000 damage.
June 10, 1999: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Moscow — $500,000 damage.
August 5, 2012: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Moscow — $200,000 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Moscow's ZIP code 45153 have filed 75 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $1.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 44 claims (59% of all) and $1.1 million, then Not a named storm in 1979 with 13. 79% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 244 have fewer than Moscow.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 44 | $1.1 million |
| Not a named storm1979 | 13 | $14,000 |
Clermont County, which includes Moscow, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Landslides, on October 2, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Clermont County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $46.5 million a year, the 13th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $25.6 million (55%), 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.