NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Orleans, VT
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
15 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Orleans, Vermont since 1851, 2 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isaias in 2020. Since 1950, 7 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 2
- Tropical storms
- 13
- Tornadoes
- 7
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Orleans
The strongest storm to pass near Orleans was an unnamed storm in 1900, a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph winds when its centre passed 58 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Carol in 1954, whose centre came within 50 miles. The record near Orleans begins with an unnamed storm in 1866; the most recent system was Isaias in 2020, a tropical storm 26 miles away. Of the 15 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Orleans has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 64% of the 75 Vermont cities on this site. The highest rating among the 7 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1 or EF1, reached 5 times; the most recent, on June 5, 2010, came within 18 miles. Of the 7, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 2 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on May 29, 2012. Of the 75 Vermont cities, 76% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Orleans. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 28 times since 1964, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 75 Vermont cities, 57% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Orleans.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Orleans
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 5 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2011 | IreneAug 29 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | CarolAug 31 | 50 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1938 | Unnamed 1938 stormSep 22 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 3 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 12 | 58 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 24 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1866 | Unnamed 1866 stormOct 30 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Orleans: 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 Orleans
By decade
- 2010s2
- 1990s1
- 1980s2
- 1960s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 2010 | EF1 | 18 mi | 2.09 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 3, 1993 | F1 | 6 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 1989 | F1 | 12 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1962 | F1 | 6 mi | 9.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 20, 1962 | F1 | 13 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 29, 2012 | EF0 | 10 mi | 0.27 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 1988 | F0 | 25 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 7 of 7, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Orleans
The Storm Prediction Center has 28 hail reports within 10 miles of Orleans since 1964, made on 18 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 21, 2022. The most recent report is from July 10, 2025. July has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Orleans
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Newport, VT, 9 miles north of Orleans at 790 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 78°F and low of 57°F; January is the coolest, at 23°F and 4°F. June and July are the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.4 inches; the year adds up to 43.6 inches over 102 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 57% of the year's precipitation (25.0 of 43.6 inches); the other six months are drier. August has brought the most of the 15 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (6); a normal August there has highs of 76°F and 4.4 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from June to July. Lows fall below freezing on about 171 nights a year. Snowfall averages 98.6 inches a year, most of it in December. That 43.6 inches is more than at 21 of the 33 Vermont stations used on this site (64%). Lyndonville, 20 miles south, has its own station (Sutton, VT): 47.7 inches a year, 4.1 more than here, and a July average high of 76°F against 78°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 23 | 4 | 2.8 | 8 | 21.5 |
| Feb | 27 | 5 | 2.4 | 7 | 20.2 |
| Mar | 37 | 15 | 2.8 | 8 | 19.4 |
| Apr | 51 | 29 | 3.3 | 8 | 4.5 |
| May | 65 | 42 | 3.9 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 73 | 52 | 4.5 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 78 | 57 | 4.5 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 76 | 55 | 4.4 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 69 | 47 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 55 | 36 | 4.3 | 9 | 0.8 |
| Nov | 41 | 25 | 3.4 | 8 | 7.0 |
| Dec | 29 | 14 | 3.4 | 9 | 25.2 |
| Year | 52 | 32 | 43.6 | 102 | 98.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Newport, VT (790 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 Orleans
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 93 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Orleans: 69 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 7 floods, 2 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $3.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on September 3, 2018. July has had the most flash floods, 7 of 14. Of the 74 Vermont cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 42 have had fewer than Orleans.
July 5, 1999: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Orleans — 1 killed, $60,000 damage.
July 30, 2024: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Orleans — $1.0 million damage.
July 10, 2023: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Orleans — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Training showers and thunderstorms with heavy to torrential rainfall affected the area during the early to mid morning hours on July 10, 2023. 5 to 4 inches of rain fell in the area with scattered reports of flash flooding, most notably in the towns of Barton and Orleans.”
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 Orleans's ZIP code 05860 have filed 11 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2002, and were paid $1.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 55% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 43 Vermont cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 3 have fewer than Orleans.
Orleans County, which includes Orleans, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 27 of them major disasters (by incident: 16 severe storms, 9 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on September 26, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Orleans County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hurricanes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for tornadoes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.9 million a year, the 8th highest of 14 Vermont counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $9.4 million (79%), 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 Orleans
- Newport, VT9 mi
- Jay, VT16 mi
- Lyndonville, VT20 mi
- Hardwick, VT24 mi
- Wolcott, VT24 mi
- Hyde Park, VT26 mi
- Danville, VT27 mi
- Richford, VT27 mi
- Johnson, VT28 mi
- Morrisville, VT29 mi
- St Johnsbury, VT29 mi
- Enosburg Falls, VT31 mi
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