NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Palmyra, MO
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 Palmyra, Missouri since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 75 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 75
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Palmyra
The strongest of the 75 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on March 12, 2006; its path came within 14 miles. Of the 75, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 17. The most recent tornado was on April 20, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 72% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Palmyra. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 63 times since 1959, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 334 Missouri cities, 77% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Palmyra.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Palmyra
By decade
- 2020s5
- 2010s9
- 2000s28(2 EF3+)
- 1990s16
- 1980s1
- 1970s8
- 1960s5(2 EF3+)
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 12, 2006 | F4 | 14 mi | 29 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 2003 | F3 | 4 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 14, 1961 | F3 | 14 mi | 127.1 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Apr 24, 1961 | F3 | 22 mi | 64.2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Oct 2, 2007 | EF2 | 23 mi | 15.14 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 2, 2006 | F2 | 16 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 2003 | F2 | 23 mi | 69.2 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 10, 2003 | F2 | 17 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 30, 1993 | F2 | 8 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 23, 1977 | F2 | in town | 19.5 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 23, 1975 | F2 | 12 mi | 7.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 30, 1974 | F2 | 21 mi | 15.8 mi | 0 / 12 |
The strongest 12 of 75, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Palmyra
The Storm Prediction Center has 63 hail reports within 10 miles of Palmyra since 1959, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 35 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on April 14, 2002. The most recent report is from July 16, 2024. May has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Palmyra
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Quincy Dam 21, IL, 10 miles northeast of Palmyra at 483 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 19°F. May is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and January and December the driest at 1.7 inches; the year adds up to 36.5 inches over 64 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 31 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 112 nights a year. That 36.5 inches is more than at 1 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (1%). Hannibal, 10 miles southeast, has its own station (Hannibal Wtr Wks, MO): 41.3 inches a year, 4.8 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35 | 19 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Feb | 40 | 23 | 1.9 | 4 |
| Mar | 52 | 32 | 2.5 | 5 |
| Apr | 64 | 43 | 4.2 | 7 |
| May | 74 | 54 | 4.8 | 8 |
| Jun | 83 | 64 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Jul | 87 | 68 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Aug | 86 | 66 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Sep | 79 | 57 | 3.4 | 4 |
| Oct | 67 | 45 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Nov | 53 | 34 | 2.6 | 5 |
| Dec | 40 | 25 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Year | 63 | 44 | 36.5 | 64 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Quincy Dam 21, IL (483 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 Palmyra
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 81 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Palmyra: 67 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods, 5 floods and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on May 20, 2013. July has had the most flash floods, 3 of 8. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 46 have had fewer than Palmyra.
July 9, 2021: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Palmyra — $1.3 million damage.
February 27, 2011: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Palmyra — $100,000 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 Palmyra's ZIP code 63461 have filed 82 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $1.5 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Midwest Flooding in 1993: 22 claims (27% of all) and $608,000. 33% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 98 have fewer than Palmyra.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 22 | $608,000 |
Marion County, which includes Palmyra, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 3 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 3, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Marion County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $16.8 million a year, the 52nd highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $9.8 million (58%), 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 Palmyra
- Hannibal, MO10 mi
- Monroe City, MO14 mi
- Quincy, IL15 mi
- New London, MO17 mi
- Liberty, IL24 mi
- Mendon, IL26 mi
- Shelbina, MO26 mi
- Canton, MO27 mi
- Camp Point, IL30 mi
- Paris, MO33 mi
- Vandalia, MO34 mi
- Louisiana, MO35 mi
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