NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Pitcairn, PA
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
9 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Pitcairn, Pennsylvania since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 73 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 73
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
12 deaths in all
What the records show for Pitcairn
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Pitcairn; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 64 mph winds when its centre passed 57 miles away. The record near Pitcairn begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 18 miles away. Of the 9 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 79% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Pitcairn. The strongest of the 73 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on June 3, 1980; its path came within 17 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on May 31, 1985, killed 9 people. Of the 73, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 33 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 24. The most recent tornado was on May 21, 2025. Pitcairn has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 72% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 182 times since 1973, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Pitcairn has more hail reports within 10 miles than 97% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Pitcairn
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Pitcairn: 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 Pitcairn
By decade
- 2020s18
- 2010s10
- 2000s5
- 1990s13
- 1980s9(2 EF3+)
- 1970s11(1 EF3+)
- 1960s3(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 3, 1980 | F4 | 17 mi | 11.8 mi | 0 / 140 |
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 22 mi | 39 mi | 9 / 120 |
| Aug 3, 1963 | F3 | 8 mi | 0.1 mi | 2 / 70 |
| Jul 11, 1976 | F3 | 15 mi | 11.8 mi | 1 / 17 |
| Jun 26, 2024 | EF2 | 6 mi | 10.84 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 11, 2024 | EF2 | 14 mi | 5.84 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 23, 2011 | EF2 | 9 mi | 8.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 15, 1997 | F2 | 25 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 22, 1983 | F2 | 6 mi | 38 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Apr 28, 1981 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1980 | F2 | 18 mi | 4.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1980 | F2 | 21 mi | 2.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 73, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Pitcairn
The Storm Prediction Center has 182 hail reports within 10 miles of Pitcairn since 1973, made on 86 separate days. Of these, 93 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on April 14, 1984. The most recent report is from April 2, 2025. July has the most reports, 55.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Pitcairn
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Mckeesport, PA, 6 miles southwest of Pitcairn at 740 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 39°F and 21°F. June is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.5 inches; the year adds up to 42.4 inches over 91 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 14 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 124 nights a year. That 42.4 inches is more than at 43 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (29%). Murrysville, 6 miles northeast, has its own station (Salina 3 W, PA): 45.8 inches a year, 3.4 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | 21 | 3.0 | 8 |
| Feb | 42 | 22 | 2.5 | 6 |
| Mar | 51 | 29 | 3.2 | 7 |
| Apr | 64 | 38 | 3.8 | 9 |
| May | 74 | 47 | 4.0 | 9 |
| Jun | 81 | 57 | 5.0 | 9 |
| Jul | 85 | 61 | 4.1 | 8 |
| Aug | 83 | 60 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Sep | 77 | 53 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Oct | 65 | 42 | 3.2 | 7 |
| Nov | 53 | 32 | 3.0 | 7 |
| Dec | 43 | 25 | 3.6 | 8 |
| Year | 63 | 40 | 42.4 | 91 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Mckeesport, PA (740 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 Pitcairn
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 737 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Pitcairn: 487 thunderstorm wind reports, 198 flash floods, 39 floods, 12 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 6 people and injured 64, and the NWS estimated $27.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on May 31, 2002. July has had the most flash floods, 83 of 198. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 754 have had fewer than Pitcairn.
August 19, 2011: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Pitcairn — 4 killed, 1 injured, $500,000 damage.
May 31, 2002: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Pitcairn — 1 killed, 54 injured, $10.0 million damage.
March 28, 2020: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Pitcairn — 1 killed.
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 Pitcairn's ZIP code 15140 have filed 70 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $644,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2009, with 25. 4% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 553 Pennsylvania cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 323 have fewer than Pitcairn.
Allegheny County, which includes Pitcairn, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Allegheny County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for inland flooding; Relatively High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes; Very Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $354.2 million a year, the 2nd highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $295.0 million (83%), 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 Pitcairn
- Wilmerding, PA2 mi
- Monroeville, PA2 mi
- Trafford, PA2 mi
- East Mc Keesport, PA2 mi
- Turtle Creek, PA2 mi
- North Versailles, PA3 mi
- East Pittsburgh, PA3 mi
- Braddock, PA5 mi
- Duquesne, PA5 mi
- White Oak, PA5 mi
- Murrysville, PA6 mi
- Mckeesport, PA6 mi
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