NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Ogallala, NE
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 Ogallala, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 103 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 103
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Ogallala
The strongest of the 103 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on May 2, 1991; its path came within 17 miles. Of the 103, 12 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 38 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 39. The most recent tornado was on May 23, 2024. Of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site, 69% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Ogallala. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 189 times since 1959, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Ogallala has more hail reports within 10 miles than 72% of the 91 Nebraska cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Ogallala
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s6
- 2000s19
- 1990s23(1 EF3+)
- 1980s10
- 1970s12
- 1960s6
- 1950s14
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 1991 | F3 | 17 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2024 | EF2 | 11 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 28, 2007 | EF2 | 14 mi | 15.93 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 21, 1995 | F2 | 19 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 15, 1983 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1970 | F2 | 7 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 24, 1969 | F2 | 18 mi | 9.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2024 | EF1 | 11 mi | 0.29 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2024 | EF1 | 11 mi | 0.07 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2024 | EF1 | 11 mi | 5.15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 2024 | EF1 | 9 mi | 2.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 17, 2018 | EF1 | 24 mi | 2.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 103, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Ogallala
The Storm Prediction Center has 189 hail reports within 10 miles of Ogallala since 1959, made on 122 separate days. Of these, 131 were 1 inch across or larger, and 19 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on July 21, 2003. The most recent report is from September 16, 2025. June has the most reports, 59.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Ogallala
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Ogallala, NE, 1 mile northwest of Ogallala at 3,230 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 15°F. May is the wettest at 3.2 inches of precipitation on average and December the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 19.5 inches over 43 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 46 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 166 nights a year. Snowfall averages 24.6 inches a year, most of it in February. That 19.5 inches is more than at 8 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (12%).
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 15 | 0.5 | 1 | 4.6 |
| Feb | 43 | 18 | 0.6 | 2 | 5.6 |
| Mar | 53 | 26 | 1.1 | 3 | 3.7 |
| Apr | 62 | 35 | 2.2 | 5 | 3.2 |
| May | 72 | 46 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.2 |
| Jun | 83 | 57 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 90 | 63 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 61 | 2.1 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 50 | 1.5 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 36 | 1.3 | 3 | 0.6 |
| Nov | 51 | 25 | 0.6 | 2 | 2.6 |
| Dec | 41 | 16 | 0.4 | 1 | 4.1 |
| Year | 64 | 37 | 19.5 | 43 | 24.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Ogallala, NE (3,230 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 Ogallala
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 113 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Ogallala: 105 thunderstorm wind reports and 8 flash floods. They killed 0 people and injured 9, and the NWS estimated $2.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on July 7, 2003. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 8. Of the 89 Nebraska cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 42 have had fewer than Ogallala.
June 30, 2026: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Ogallala — 8 injured, $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm wind gusts between 80 and 90 MPH occurred near Kingsley Dam. Several campers were overturned at Beach Area 5 Campground.”
April 24, 2012: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Ogallala — 1 injured, $80,000 damage.
NWS: “Strong downburst winds caused a semi-truck to be blown off Interstate 80 and overturned at the Roscoe interchange near mile-marker 134 and produced one injury.”
June 21, 2026: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Ogallala — $750,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm wind gusts, estimated at 80 MPH, destroyed sheds and outbuildings and damaged several roofs. Pivot irrigation systems were also overturned at this location.”
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
Keith County, which includes Ogallala, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 2001, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 fire, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 20, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Keith County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.4 million a year, the 59th highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.1 million (33%), 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 Ogallala
- Imperial, NE40 mi
- North Platte, NE48 mi
- Holyoke, CO49 mi
- Sidney, NE69 mi
- Wray, CO77 mi
- Gothenburg, NE81 mi
- Mc Cook, NE83 mi
- Yuma, CO84 mi
- Sterling, CO86 mi
- Cozad, NE91 mi
- Alliance, NE92 mi
- Bayard, NE95 mi
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