NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Oconto, WI
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Oconto, Wisconsin since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Cristobal in 2020. Since 1950, 35 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 35
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Oconto
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Oconto; the strongest was Cristobal in 2020, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 64 miles away. Oconto is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site. The strongest of the 35 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on August 19, 1968; its path came within 13 miles, and it killed 2 people. Of the 35, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 13. The most recent tornado was on July 23, 2025. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 90% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Oconto. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 28 times since 1965, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 87% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Oconto.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Oconto
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | CristobalJun 10 | 64 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 Oconto: 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 Oconto
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s3
- 2000s4
- 1990s2
- 1980s3
- 1970s12
- 1960s8(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 19, 1968 | F4 | 13 mi | 21.8 mi | 2 / 3 |
| Jun 26, 1969 | F3 | 21 mi | 15.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 8, 1985 | F2 | 22 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 1979 | F2 | 9 mi | 15.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 22, 1970 | F2 | 24 mi | 11.2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 22, 1970 | F2 | 24 mi | 7.2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 4, 1966 | F2 | 15 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1966 | F2 | 17 mi | 4.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1966 | F2 | 21 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 9, 1964 | F2 | 17 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | EF1 | 18 mi | 2.33 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 14, 2017 | EF1 | 21 mi | 5.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 35, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Oconto
The Storm Prediction Center has 28 hail reports within 10 miles of Oconto since 1965, made on 22 separate days. Of these, 15 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on March 29, 1998. The most recent report is from October 24, 2023. August has the most reports, 6.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Oconto
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Oconto 4 W, WI, 3 miles west of Oconto at 660 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 26°F and 9°F. July is the wettest at 4.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 33.8 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 4 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 169 nights a year. Snowfall averages 51.5 inches a year, most of it in December. That 33.8 inches is more than at 56 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (34%). Peshtigo, 13 miles northeast, has its own station (Peshtigo, WI): 33.4 inches a year, 0.4 less than here, and a July average high of 80°F against 81°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Menominee, MI, 21 miles northeast, averaged 73°F in July and 35°F in February over 2021–2025. No month averaged 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26 | 9 | 1.5 | 5 | 10.5 | 35 |
| Feb | 30 | 10 | 1.3 | 3 | 11.1 | 35 |
| Mar | 40 | 21 | 2.1 | 5 | 7.9 | 36 |
| Apr | 53 | 32 | 3.1 | 7 | 4.9 | 43 |
| May | 66 | 44 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.1 | 57 |
| Jun | 76 | 55 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 | 68 |
| Jul | 81 | 59 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 | 73 |
| Aug | 79 | 57 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 | 72 |
| Sep | 72 | 49 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 | 68 |
| Oct | 58 | 38 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.2 | 59 |
| Nov | 44 | 27 | 2.2 | 5 | 2.3 | 46 |
| Dec | 31 | 16 | 2.0 | 5 | 14.5 | 36 |
| Year | 55 | 35 | 33.8 | 69 | 51.5 | 52 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Oconto 4 W, WI (660 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Menominee, MI, 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 Oconto
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 31 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Oconto: 16 floods, 14 thunderstorm wind reports and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $515,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on June 11, 2017.
December 30, 2019: flood in Oconto — $384,000 damage.
NWS: “An ice jam and high river stages produced flooding in the city of Oconto. The high water mainly affected Pecor, McDonald, Water, Turner, Ontario, Bridge, First and Second streets.”
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 Oconto's ZIP code 54153 have filed 98 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $575,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1986, with 48. Of the 128 Wisconsin cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 113 have fewer than Oconto.
Oconto County, which includes Oconto, has been named in 6 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 3 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 1 drought, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Oconto County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and inland flooding; Very Low for coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $22.4 million a year, the 38th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $12.5 million (56%), 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 Oconto
- Lena, WI9 mi
- Abrams, WI10 mi
- Little Suamico, WI12 mi
- Oconto Falls, WI13 mi
- Peshtigo, WI13 mi
- Coleman, WI14 mi
- Sobieski, WI15 mi
- Brussels, WI15 mi
- Suamico, WI18 mi
- Marinette, WI19 mi
- Pound, WI21 mi
- Menominee, MI23 mi
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