NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Oakley, KS
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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Oakley, Kansas since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 91 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 91
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Oakley
The highest rating among the 91 tornadoes within 25 miles is EF3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 18, 2025, came within 10 miles. Of the 91, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 55 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 38. The most recent tornado was on May 18, 2025. Of the 171 Kansas cities on this site, 89% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Oakley. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 230 times since 1965, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Oakley has more hail reports within 10 miles than 67% of the 171 Kansas cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Oakley
By decade
- 2020s12(2 EF3+)
- 2010s25
- 2000s18
- 1990s8
- 1980s8
- 1970s4
- 1960s6
- 1950s10
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 2025 | EF3 | 18 mi | 4.24 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF3 | 10 mi | 13.33 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF2 | 19 mi | 0.34 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 2025 | EF2 | 21 mi | 11.04 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 2, 2017 | EF2 | 22 mi | 18.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 22, 2008 | EF2 | 24 mi | 9.37 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1995 | F2 | 19 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 29, 1956 | F2 | 14 mi | 7.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 29, 1956 | F2 | 12 mi | 7.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 1950 | F2 | 11 mi | 8.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 2022 | EF1 | 16 mi | 7.76 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 16, 2015 | EF1 | 20 mi | 18.47 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 91, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Oakley
The Storm Prediction Center has 230 hail reports within 10 miles of Oakley since 1965, made on 132 separate days. Of these, 155 were 1 inch across or larger, and 22 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 4 inches (softball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 7, 2016. The most recent report is from August 3, 2025. May has the most reports, 62.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Oakley
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Oakley 4W, KS, 6 miles west of Oakley at 3,102 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 16°F. July is the wettest at 3.8 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 20.8 inches over 40 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 60 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 162 nights a year. Snowfall averages 25.7 inches a year, most of it in February. That 20.8 inches is more than at 10 of the 103 Kansas stations used on this site (10%). Colby, 22 miles northwest, has its own station (Colby 1SW, KS): 20.3 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and a July average high of 91°F against 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | 16 | 0.4 | 1 | 4.5 |
| Feb | 45 | 18 | 0.5 | 2 | 6.6 |
| Mar | 56 | 25 | 1.0 | 3 | 4.2 |
| Apr | 65 | 34 | 1.8 | 4 | 1.8 |
| May | 74 | 45 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Jun | 86 | 57 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 92 | 62 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 60 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 51 | 1.8 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 68 | 37 | 1.6 | 3 | 1.2 |
| Nov | 54 | 25 | 0.8 | 2 | 2.5 |
| Dec | 44 | 17 | 0.5 | 1 | 4.5 |
| Year | 66 | 37 | 20.8 | 40 | 25.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Oakley 4W, KS (3,102 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 Oakley
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 172 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Oakley: 157 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 floods and 7 flash floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on May 25, 2017. May has had the most flash floods, 2 of 7. Of the 169 Kansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 36 have had fewer than Oakley.
October 12, 2021: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Oakley — $285,000 damage.
NWS: “Emergency Manager relayed that 1/2 mile of power poles were blown down due to straight line winds that resulted in no power for the city of Oakley.”
October 12, 2021: thunderstorm wind in Oakley — $285,000 damage.
NWS: “Emergency Manager reported that 1/2 mile of power poles were blown down due to straight line winds near the city of Oakley. The downed poles resulted in no power for the city.”
September 7, 2009: flood 3 miles from the centre of Oakley — $145,000 damage.
NWS: “Road 30 between Road B and C in southern Thomas County was washed out, including a bridge over the Saline River. The local utility company stated that $30,000 worth of damage occurred to power poles in the vicinity.”
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
Logan County, which includes Oakley, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 2005, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane, 1 snowstorm). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on September 1, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Logan County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and hail; Very Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $3.3 million a year, the 99th highest of 105 Kansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $765,000 (23%), 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 Oakley
- Colby, KS22 mi
- Scott City, KS44 mi
- Wakeeney, KS51 mi
- Goodland, KS51 mi
- Leoti, KS52 mi
- Oberlin, KS52 mi
- Ellis, KS68 mi
- Norton, KS69 mi
- Holcomb, KS71 mi
- Burlington, CO77 mi
- Mc Cook, NE78 mi
- Garden City, KS79 mi
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