NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Oxford, OH
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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Oxford, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1915. Since 1950, 81 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 81
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
14 deaths in all
What the records show for Oxford
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Oxford; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1892, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 29 miles away. The record near Oxford begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1915, a tropical storm 41 miles away. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 98% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Oxford. The strongest of the 81 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 20 miles, and it killed 3 people. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 4 people. Of the 81, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 29 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 17. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Oxford has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 59% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 47 times since 1980, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 77% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Oxford.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Oxford
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Oxford: 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 Oxford
By decade
- 2020s14
- 2010s10
- 2000s5
- 1990s12(2 EF3+)
- 1980s5
- 1970s17(4 EF3+)
- 1960s10(3 EF3+)
- 1950s8
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 20 mi | 20.8 mi | 3 / 210 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 24 mi | 35.6 mi | 4 / 17 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 23 mi | 19.8 mi | 2 / 39 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 16 mi | 33 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Apr 25, 1961 | F4 | 16 mi | 63.1 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F3 | 23 mi | 22.2 mi | 4 / 247 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 19 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 21 |
| Oct 1, 1977 | F3 | 18 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 17 |
| May 10, 1969 | F3 | 11 mi | 54.5 mi | 0 / 25 |
| May 4, 1990 | F2 | 19 mi | 0.2 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F2 | 14 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F2 | 23 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 81, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Oxford
The Storm Prediction Center has 47 hail reports within 10 miles of Oxford since 1980, made on 32 separate days. Of these, 31 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 2 days, most recently February 27, 2023. The most recent report is from February 27, 2023. June has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Oxford
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Fairfield, OH, 13 miles southeast of Oxford at 575 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 21°F. April and May are the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 45.2 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 36 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 114 nights a year. That 45.2 inches is more than at 110 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (85%). Somerville, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Eaton, OH): 43.1 inches a year, 2.1 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 21 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Feb | 42 | 23 | 3.0 | 6 |
| Mar | 53 | 31 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Apr | 66 | 41 | 4.9 | 9 |
| May | 75 | 52 | 4.9 | 9 |
| Jun | 84 | 61 | 4.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 87 | 65 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Aug | 87 | 63 | 3.5 | 5 |
| Sep | 80 | 55 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Oct | 67 | 43 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Dec | 43 | 26 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Year | 65 | 43 | 45.2 | 80 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Fairfield, OH (575 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 Oxford
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 127 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Oxford: 86 thunderstorm wind reports, 22 floods, 17 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $2.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 98 mph, on January 5, 1997. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 374 have had fewer than Oxford.
March 28, 1997: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Oxford — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
January 5, 1997: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Oxford — $1.0 million damage.
January 1, 2005: flood 9 miles from the centre of Oxford — $925,000 damage.
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 Oxford's ZIP code 45056 have filed 19 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1983, and were paid $350,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 11% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 96 have fewer than Oxford.
Butler County, which includes Oxford, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Butler County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $119.7 million a year, the 4th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $62.3 million (52%), 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 Oxford
- Somerville, OH8 mi
- Camden, OH10 mi
- Okeana, OH10 mi
- Hamilton, OH12 mi
- Liberty, IN13 mi
- Brookville, IN14 mi
- Trenton, OH15 mi
- Fairfield, OH15 mi
- West Harrison, IN16 mi
- Harrison, OH17 mi
- Eaton, OH17 mi
- West Alexandria, OH20 mi
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