NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Queenstown, MD
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
48 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Queenstown, Maryland since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ida in 2021. Since 1950, 44 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 45
- Tornadoes
- 44
- 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 Queenstown
The strongest storm to pass near Queenstown was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 91 mph winds when its centre passed 51 miles away. The record near Queenstown begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Ida in 2021, a tropical storm 45 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1870s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 48 systems, 8 have come since 2000. Queenstown has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 14% of the 239 Maryland cities on this site. The highest rating among the 44 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2 or EF2, reached 7 times; the most recent, on September 1, 2021, came within 20 miles. Of the 44, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 16 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 14. The most recent tornado was on July 31, 2025. Of the 239 Maryland cities, 87% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Queenstown. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 12 times since 1984, with stones up to 1.8 inches. Of the 239 Maryland cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Queenstown.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Queenstown
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | IdaSep 1 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | overhead | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 8 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2008 | HannaSep 6 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1999 | FloydSep 16 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 13 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1992 | DanielleSep 26 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1963 | Unnamed 1963 stormJun 3 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1961 | Unnamed 1961 stormSep 15 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | DianeAug 18 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 73 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 21 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 3 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 12 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 58 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 12 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 11 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJul 2 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 23 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 51 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 26 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 19 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 27 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Queenstown: 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 Queenstown
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s4
- 2000s4
- 1990s17
- 1970s7
- 1960s2
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2021 | EF2 | 20 mi | 11.43 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 23, 2017 | EF2 | 9 mi | 2.37 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 18, 1995 | F2 | 10 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1994 | F2 | 22 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1994 | F2 | 21 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 21, 1976 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 30, 1971 | F2 | 9 mi | 8.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 4, 2020 | EF1 | 23 mi | 2.98 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 2009 | EF1 | 23 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 28, 2006 | F1 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 26, 1996 | F1 | 4 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 14, 1995 | F1 | 20 mi | 3.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 44, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Queenstown
The Storm Prediction Center has 12 hail reports within 10 miles of Queenstown since 1984, made on 9 separate days. Of these, 3 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.8 inches, fell on June 9, 2011. The most recent report is from July 17, 2017. July has the most reports, 5.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Queenstown
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Royal Oak 2 SSW, MD, 17 miles south of Queenstown at 10 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 29°F. August is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 47.7 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 47.7 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 48 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (18); a normal September there has highs of 80°F and 4.2 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 32 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 69 nights a year. Snowfall averages 14.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 47.7 inches is more than at 31 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (76%). Centreville, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Chestertown, MD): 46.1 inches a year, 1.6 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 88°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Tolchester Beach, MD, 18 miles north, averaged 83°F in July and 39°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Tolchester Beach tide gauge, 18 miles from Queenstown, has risen 1.70 ± 0.17 inches per decade from 1971 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 17.0 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 107 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 29 | 3.5 | 7 | 5.1 | 39 |
| Feb | 47 | 31 | 3.1 | 6 | 4.8 | 40 |
| Mar | 56 | 37 | 4.4 | 7 | 2.3 | 47 |
| Apr | 67 | 47 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.1 | 56 |
| May | 75 | 56 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 | 66 |
| Jun | 84 | 66 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 | 76 |
| Jul | 88 | 70 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 | 83 |
| Aug | 86 | 68 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 | 82 |
| Sep | 80 | 62 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 | 76 |
| Oct | 69 | 51 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 | 66 |
| Nov | 58 | 41 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 | 53 |
| Dec | 49 | 33 | 3.9 | 7 | 1.8 | 43 |
| Year | 67 | 49 | 47.7 | 79 | 14.1 | 60 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Royal Oak 2 SSW, MD (10 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Tolchester Beach, MD, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Queenstown
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 192 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Queenstown: 134 thunderstorm wind reports, 29 heavy rain events, 19 flash floods, 6 lightning strikes and 4 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on June 22, 2026. August has had the most flash floods, 12 of 19. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 67 have had fewer than Queenstown.
September 7, 1998: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Queenstown — 1 injured.
October 29, 2012: flood 10 miles from the centre of Queenstown — $1.0 million damage.
August 12, 2014: flash flood 1 mile from the centre of Queenstown — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorms with very heavy rain caused flash flooding in western Queen Anne's County from Centreville westward through Queenstown and Grasonville. The hardest hit locations were Grasonville and Queenstown where nearly 10 inches of rain fell.”
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 Queenstown's ZIP code 21658 have filed 26 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $393,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Isabel in 2003: 15 claims (58% of all) and $324,000. 58% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 150 Maryland cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 45 have fewer than Queenstown.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Isabel2003 | 15 | $324,000 |
Queen Anne's County, which includes Queenstown, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 6 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Queen Anne's County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for coastal flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hail and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $12.7 million a year, the 21st highest of 24 Maryland counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.5 million (35%), 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 Queenstown
- Grasonville, MD4 mi
- Centreville, MD8 mi
- Chester, MD8 mi
- Stevensville, MD11 mi
- Rock Hall, MD13 mi
- St Michaels, MD13 mi
- Easton, MD13 mi
- Ridgely, MD14 mi
- Church Hill, MD14 mi
- Chestertown, MD18 mi
- Denton, MD18 mi
- Greensboro, MD18 mi
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