Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Portland, CT

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Hartford Brainard Field, CT, 11 miles north of Portland at 19 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 37°F and 20°F. October is the wettest at 4.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 42.9 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (22.9 of 42.9 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 52 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (22); a normal September there has highs of 76°F and 4.0 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 121 nights a year. That 42.9 inches is more than at 2 of the 27 Connecticut stations used on this site (7%). Middletown, 4 miles southwest, has its own station (Meriden Markham Municipal Airport, CT): 45.0 inches a year, 2.1 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 85°F.

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 147 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Portland: 109 thunderstorm wind reports, 18 flash floods, 11 lightning strikes and 9 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 110 mph, on July 21, 2010. July has had the most flash floods, 7 of 18. Of the 186 Connecticut cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 63 have had fewer than Portland.

Flood insurance policyholders in Portland's ZIP code 06480 have filed 56 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $1.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1984: 17 claims (30% of all) and $222,000. 45% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 128 Connecticut cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 61 have fewer than Portland.