NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Prospect, 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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Prospect, Pennsylvania since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 66 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 66
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
28 deaths in all
What the records show for Prospect
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Prospect; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 62 mph winds when its centre passed 66 miles away. The record near Prospect begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm directly overhead. Of the 10 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 794 Pennsylvania cities on this site, 73% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Prospect. The strongest of the 66 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 31, 1985; its path came within 25 miles, and it killed 18 people. Of the 66, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 26 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on May 21, 2025. Prospect has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 57% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 79 times since 1963, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Prospect has more hail reports within 10 miles than 75% of the 794 Pennsylvania cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Prospect
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 31 | overhead | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Prospect: 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 Prospect
By decade
- 2020s12
- 2010s9
- 2000s5
- 1990s11
- 1980s11(3 EF3+)
- 1970s13
- 1960s2
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F5 | 25 mi | 47 mi | 18 / 310 |
| Jun 3, 1980 | F4 | 24 mi | 11.8 mi | 0 / 140 |
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 9 mi | 39 mi | 9 / 120 |
| Aug 8, 1992 | F2 | 19 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 3, 1986 | F2 | 16 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1981 | F2 | 5 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 28, 1981 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 24, 1977 | F2 | 17 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 1975 | F2 | 24 mi | 45.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 15, 1964 | F2 | 25 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 12, 1956 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 10, 1954 | F2 | 6 mi | 7.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 66, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Prospect
The Storm Prediction Center has 79 hail reports within 10 miles of Prospect since 1963, made on 41 separate days. Of these, 42 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 2 days, most recently April 14, 2024. The most recent report is from April 19, 2025. April has the most reports, 28.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Prospect
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Butler 2 SW, PA, 9 miles southeast of Prospect at 1,000 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 43.3 inches over 90 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 54% of the year's precipitation (23.2 of 43.3 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (6); a normal September there has highs of 74°F and 4.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 7 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 140 nights a year. Snowfall averages 34.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 43.3 inches is more than at 53 of the 148 Pennsylvania stations used on this site (36%). Portersville, 6 miles northwest, has its own station (Slippery Rock 1 SSW, PA): 45.3 inches a year, 2.0 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 17 | 3.4 | 8 | 11.3 |
| Feb | 37 | 18 | 2.7 | 7 | 9.7 |
| Mar | 46 | 25 | 3.3 | 8 | 5.3 |
| Apr | 60 | 35 | 3.5 | 8 | 0.6 |
| May | 70 | 45 | 3.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 78 | 54 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 58 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 57 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 74 | 50 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 62 | 39 | 3.3 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 50 | 30 | 3.3 | 7 | 1.1 |
| Dec | 39 | 23 | 3.4 | 8 | 6.8 |
| Year | 59 | 38 | 43.3 | 90 | 34.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Butler 2 SW, PA (1,000 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 Prospect
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 248 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Prospect: 190 thunderstorm wind reports, 30 floods, 26 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $17.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on October 16, 2021. Of the 788 Pennsylvania cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 394 have had fewer than Prospect.
June 12, 2015: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Prospect — 1 killed, $10,000 damage.
August 22, 2017: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Prospect — 1 injured, $15,000 damage.
May 28, 2019: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Prospect — $5.1 million 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
Butler County, which includes Prospect, has been named in 11 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 30, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Butler County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $47.7 million a year, the 20th highest of 67 Pennsylvania counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $41.3 million (87%), 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 Prospect
- Portersville, PA6 mi
- Harmony, PA6 mi
- Evans City, PA8 mi
- Renfrew, PA8 mi
- Fombell, PA9 mi
- Zelienople, PA9 mi
- Butler, PA9 mi
- Slippery Rock, PA10 mi
- Ellwood City, PA12 mi
- West Sunbury, PA12 mi
- Cranberry Township, PA14 mi
- Mars, PA14 mi
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