NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Riceville, IA
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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Riceville, Iowa since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 110 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 110
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
16 deaths in all
What the records show for Riceville
The strongest of the 110 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 15, 1968; its path came within 4 miles, and it killed 13 people. Of the 110, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 54 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 27. The most recent tornado was on August 5, 2024. Of the 241 Iowa cities on this site, 73% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Riceville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 40 times since 1994, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 241 Iowa cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Riceville.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Riceville
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s16
- 2000s22(1 EF3+)
- 1990s24(1 EF3+)
- 1980s8
- 1970s6(2 EF3+)
- 1960s13(3 EF3+)
- 1950s5(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 15, 1968 | F5 | 4 mi | 62.1 mi | 13 / 462 |
| May 10, 1953 | F4 | 9 mi | 162 mi | 2 / 24 |
| Jul 12, 1971 | F4 | 11 mi | 10.9 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Apr 30, 1967 | F4 | 22 mi | 13.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1965 | F4 | 3 mi | 41.6 mi | 0 / 11 |
| May 20, 1953 | F3 | 7 mi | 116.1 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jun 11, 2004 | F3 | 2 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 19, 1994 | F3 | 16 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1971 | F3 | 13 mi | 15.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 12, 2022 | EF2 | 13 mi | 3.93 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 22, 2011 | EF2 | 4 mi | 28.68 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 27, 1995 | F2 | 16 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 110, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Riceville
The Storm Prediction Center has 40 hail reports within 10 miles of Riceville since 1994, made on 27 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on October 4, 2006. The most recent report is from May 19, 2025. May has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Riceville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Osage, IA, 15 miles southwest of Riceville at 1,170 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 23°F and 6°F. June is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 37.7 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 7 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 156 nights a year. Snowfall averages 39.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 37.7 inches is more than at 80 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (65%). Charles City, 22 miles south, has its own station (Charles City, IA): 37.6 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 81°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 23 | 6 | 1.2 | 3 | 9.9 |
| Feb | 28 | 10 | 1.3 | 3 | 9.2 |
| Mar | 41 | 23 | 1.9 | 5 | 6.2 |
| Apr | 56 | 35 | 4.0 | 8 | 2.2 |
| May | 68 | 47 | 5.2 | 9 | 0.4 |
| Jun | 78 | 58 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 81 | 62 | 5.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 79 | 59 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 73 | 50 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 60 | 38 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 43 | 25 | 1.8 | 4 | 1.9 |
| Dec | 29 | 14 | 1.5 | 4 | 9.6 |
| Year | 55 | 36 | 37.7 | 68 | 39.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Osage, IA (1,170 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 Riceville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 52 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Riceville: 30 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods, 8 heavy rain events, 3 floods and 3 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $9.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 71 mph, on June 16, 2014. June has had the most flash floods, 8 of 8. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 58 have had fewer than Riceville.
August 4, 2012: lightning strike in Riceville — 2 injured.
NWS: “Two young boys were injured when lightning struck a tree they were taking shelter under while fishing at the Lake Hendricks park and campground near Riceville. One boy was listed in critical condition after being transferred to St.”
September 2, 2011: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Riceville — $7.5 million damage.
NWS: “Numerous corn fields were flattened across Howard County. The USDA estimated that almost 3200 acres of corn were destroyed while 16,000 acres suffered a 25 bushel per acre yield loss.”
September 2, 2011: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Riceville — $740,000 damage.
NWS: “A building roof and several grain bins were damaged, a shed destroyed and 70 power poles blown down along Jade Avenue five miles west of Lime Springs.”
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
Howard County, which includes Riceville, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 8 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on June 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Howard County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.2 million a year, the 84th highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.5 million (49%), 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 Riceville
- Osage, IA15 mi
- Saint Ansgar, IA20 mi
- Charles City, IA22 mi
- Cresco, IA22 mi
- Spring Valley, MN23 mi
- New Hampton, IA24 mi
- Nora Springs, IA28 mi
- Preston, MN28 mi
- Nashua, IA29 mi
- Austin, MN30 mi
- Stewartville, MN34 mi
- Northwood, IA35 mi
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