NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Panhandle, TX
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 Panhandle, Texas since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 188 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 188
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Panhandle
The highest rating among the 188 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 8, 1995, came within 24 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 17, 1970, killed 1 person. Of the 188, 22 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 58 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 62. The most recent tornado was on June 8, 2025. Panhandle has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 89% of the 753 Texas cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 233 times since 1961, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Panhandle has more hail reports within 10 miles than 89% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Panhandle
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s19(1 EF3+)
- 2000s28(2 EF3+)
- 1990s51(2 EF3+)
- 1980s23(1 EF3+)
- 1970s27(2 EF3+)
- 1960s15
- 1950s14(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 17, 1970 | F4 | 5 mi | 130 mi | 1 / 13 |
| Jun 8, 1995 | F4 | 24 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jun 27, 1992 | F4 | 14 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Nov 16, 2015 | EF3 | 21 mi | 31.86 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 28, 2007 | EF3 | 22 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 29, 2001 | F3 | 5 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 19, 1982 | F3 | 25 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 17, 1971 | F3 | 17 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 6, 1951 | F3 | 14 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Jun 13, 2016 | EF2 | 11 mi | 4.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 16, 2015 | EF2 | 15 mi | 10.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 21, 2007 | EF2 | 11 mi | 12.38 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 188, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Panhandle
The Storm Prediction Center has 233 hail reports within 10 miles of Panhandle since 1961, made on 131 separate days. Of these, 167 were 1 inch across or larger, and 27 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), was reported on 2 days, most recently March 28, 2007. The most recent report is from September 9, 2025. June has the most reports, 76.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Panhandle
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Panhandle, TX, 1 mile north of Panhandle at 3,463 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 50°F and 24°F. June is the wettest at 3.2 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 0.5 inches; the year adds up to 21.0 inches over 38 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 77 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 122 nights a year. Snowfall averages 13.6 inches a year, most of it in December. That 21.0 inches is more than at 48 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (15%). Borger, 23 miles north, has its own station (Borger, TX): 22.4 inches a year, 1.4 more than here, and a July average high of 95°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 24 | 0.5 | 1 | 2.2 |
| Feb | 54 | 27 | 0.5 | 2 | 2.1 |
| Mar | 64 | 34 | 1.2 | 3 | 1.4 |
| Apr | 72 | 42 | 1.6 | 3 | 0.1 |
| May | 80 | 52 | 2.7 | 4 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 89 | 62 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 93 | 66 | 2.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 91 | 65 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 57 | 1.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 45 | 2.0 | 3 | 0.4 |
| Nov | 60 | 33 | 0.8 | 2 | 2.0 |
| Dec | 50 | 25 | 0.9 | 2 | 5.3 |
| Year | 72 | 44 | 21.0 | 38 | 13.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Panhandle, TX (3,463 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 Panhandle
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 90 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Panhandle: 69 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods, 6 floods and 3 heavy rain events. They killed 0 people and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $233,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 98 mph, on June 13, 2016. June has had the most flash floods, 6 of 12. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 250 have had fewer than Panhandle.
July 12, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Panhandle — 4 injured.
NWS: “Four tractor trailer rigs were blown over on Interstate 40. Four people were taken to the hospital for treatment.”
April 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Panhandle — 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “Local law enforcement officials reported that three eighteen wheeler tractor trailer rigs were either rolled over or blown into a ditch along Interstate 40 between Amarillo and Groom. There was one minor injury reported.”
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
Carson County, which includes Panhandle, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1992, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 fires, 3 hurricanes, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, on February 19, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Carson County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.5 million a year, the 138th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.2 million (11%), is from tornadoes.
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 Panhandle
- Borger, TX23 mi
- Fritch, TX23 mi
- Pampa, TX28 mi
- Amarillo, TX28 mi
- Clarendon, TX37 mi
- Canyon, TX39 mi
- Dumas, TX50 mi
- Sunray, TX54 mi
- Tulia, TX58 mi
- Spearman, TX60 mi
- Cactus, TX60 mi
- Shamrock, TX64 mi
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