NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Osceola, IA
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 Osceola, Iowa since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 95 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 95
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
8 deaths in all
What the records show for Osceola
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Osceola; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 11 miles away. Osceola is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 241 Iowa cities on this site. The strongest of the 95 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF4 on March 5, 2022; its path came within 23 miles, and it killed 6 people. Of the 95, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 24. The most recent tornado was on May 21, 2024. Of the 241 Iowa cities, 89% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Osceola. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 95 times since 1960, with stones up to 3.5 inches. Osceola has more hail reports within 10 miles than 54% of the 241 Iowa cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Osceola
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Osceola: 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 Osceola
By decade
- 2020s19(2 EF3+)
- 2010s17(1 EF3+)
- 2000s16(1 EF3+)
- 1990s10(2 EF3+)
- 1980s14
- 1970s9(1 EF3+)
- 1960s8
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 5, 2022 | EF4 | 23 mi | 70.57 mi | 6 / 5 |
| Mar 5, 2022 | EF3 | 21 mi | 11.28 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Aug 20, 2019 | EF3 | 20 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 11, 2001 | F3 | 14 mi | 76.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F3 | 13 mi | 39 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 27, 1995 | F3 | 8 mi | 30.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 29, 1979 | F3 | 11 mi | 57 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jun 7, 1984 | F2 | 25 mi | 14 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | EF2 | in town | 5.84 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | EF2 | 22 mi | 10.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | EF2 | 22 mi | 6.65 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | EF2 | 20 mi | 13.86 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 95, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Osceola
The Storm Prediction Center has 95 hail reports within 10 miles of Osceola since 1960, made on 58 separate days. Of these, 68 were 1 inch across or larger, and 11 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.5 inches, fell on April 4, 2023. The most recent report is from May 19, 2025. April has the most reports, 31.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Osceola
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Osceola, IA, 1 mile southeast of Osceola at 1,028 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 11°F. May is the wettest at 5.5 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.0 inches; the year adds up to 38.8 inches over 66 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 25 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 149 nights a year. Snowfall averages 28.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 38.8 inches is more than at 104 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (84%). Saint Charles, 19 miles north, has its own station (Indianola 2W, IA): 37.8 inches a year, 1.0 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 11 | 1.0 | 3 | 8.2 |
| Feb | 37 | 15 | 1.3 | 4 | 7.2 |
| Mar | 50 | 26 | 2.1 | 5 | 3.1 |
| Apr | 62 | 37 | 4.1 | 7 | 1.1 |
| May | 72 | 49 | 5.5 | 9 | 0.2 |
| Jun | 82 | 60 | 5.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 64 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 61 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 51 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 39 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.5 |
| Nov | 50 | 27 | 2.1 | 4 | 2.1 |
| Dec | 37 | 17 | 1.5 | 4 | 5.7 |
| Year | 61 | 38 | 38.8 | 66 | 28.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Osceola, IA (1,028 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 Osceola
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 151 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Osceola: 66 thunderstorm wind reports, 61 heavy rain events, 16 flash floods, 6 floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $3.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on May 17, 2015. August has had the most flash floods, 6 of 16. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 145 have had fewer than Osceola.
March 8, 2002: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Osceola — 1 injured, $30,000 damage.
NWS: “Driver of semi-tractortrailer rig received minor injuries as rig was blown off the highway.”
August 23, 2014: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Osceola — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “A trained spotter reported water over the roads with sewers backing up all over Murray Water 12 to 18 inces deep and running across Highway R15.”
August 23, 2014: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Osceola — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “The Clarke County dispatch said several roads and Highways were impassable. S.”
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
Clarke County, which includes Osceola, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Tornadoes, on May 14, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Clarke County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.9 million a year, the 76th highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.8 million (19%), 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 Osceola
- Saint Charles, IA19 mi
- Leon, IA20 mi
- Indianola, IA24 mi
- Chariton, IA25 mi
- Winterset, IA25 mi
- Milo, IA25 mi
- Lamoni, IA29 mi
- Corydon, IA30 mi
- Norwalk, IA31 mi
- Cumming, IA32 mi
- Creston, IA32 mi
- Van Meter, IA33 mi
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