NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Pima, AZ
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 Pima, Arizona since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Lester in 1992. Since 1950, 1 tornado has touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 1
- 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 Pima
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Pima; the strongest was Lester in 1992, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 73 miles away. Pima has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 79% of the 134 Arizona cities on this site. The only tornado within 25 miles was an EF0 on July 31, 2015; its path came within 8 miles. Of the 134 Arizona cities, 88% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Pima. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 8 times since 1982, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 134 Arizona cities, 57% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Pima.
Compare Pima's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Pima
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | LesterAug 24 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Pima: 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 Pima
By decade
- 2010s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 31, 2015 | EF0 | 8 mi | 0.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 1 of 1, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Pima
The Storm Prediction Center has 8 hail reports within 10 miles of Pima since 1982. Of these, 5 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on October 9, 2016. The most recent report is from September 5, 2021.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Pima
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Fort Thomas 2 SW, AZ, 11 miles northwest of Pima at 2,835 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 100°F and low of 71°F; December is the coolest, at 60°F and 28°F. August is the wettest at 1.9 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.2 inches; the year adds up to 10.3 inches over 25 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 136 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 82 nights a year. That 10.3 inches is more than at 32 of the 76 Arizona stations used on this site (42%). Thatcher, 8 miles southeast, has its own station (Safford Ag Ctr, AZ): 9.0 inches a year, 1.3 less than here, and a July average high of 99°F against 100°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 61 | 28 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Feb | 66 | 32 | 1.0 | 2 |
| Mar | 74 | 37 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Apr | 82 | 44 | 0.3 | 1 |
| May | 91 | 53 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Jun | 100 | 62 | 0.2 | 1 |
| Jul | 100 | 71 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Aug | 98 | 69 | 1.9 | 4 |
| Sep | 93 | 62 | 1.1 | 2 |
| Oct | 84 | 48 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Nov | 71 | 35 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Dec | 60 | 28 | 0.9 | 3 |
| Year | 82 | 47 | 10.3 | 25 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Fort Thomas 2 SW, AZ (2,835 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 Pima
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 47 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Pima: 30 thunderstorm wind reports, 15 flash floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on June 29, 1996. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 15. Of the 130 Arizona cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 51 have had fewer than Pima.
July 22, 2021: flash flood 4 miles from the centre of Pima — 1 killed, $5,000 damage.
NWS: “5 fell in less than 2 hours between the Pinaleno Mountains and Highway 70 west of Safford. This caused flash flooding of roads in the Pima area and significant rises in Cottonwood Wash.”
July 29, 2019: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Pima — 1 injured.
June 29, 1996: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Pima — $330,000 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
Graham County, which includes Pima, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Graham County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.2 million a year, the 14th highest of 15 Arizona counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $9.0 million (50%), 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 Pima
- Thatcher, AZ8 mi
- Safford, AZ12 mi
- Bylas, AZ24 mi
- Willcox, AZ38 mi
- Peridot, AZ46 mi
- San Manuel, AZ49 mi
- Oracle, AZ57 mi
- Kearny, AZ66 mi
- Benson, AZ68 mi
- Globe, AZ68 mi
- Miami, AZ69 mi
- Oro Valley, AZ73 mi
All Arizona cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Pima with another place →