NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Richmond, MO
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 Richmond, Missouri since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 93 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 93
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Richmond
The highest rating among the 93 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 4, 1977, came within 18 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on January 24, 1967, killed 2 people. Of the 93, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 39 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 36. The most recent tornado was on June 3, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site, 51% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Richmond. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 64 times since 1955, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 334 Missouri cities, 77% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Richmond.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Richmond
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s19(1 EF3+)
- 2000s13
- 1990s5
- 1980s4
- 1970s13(3 EF3+)
- 1960s21(3 EF3+)
- 1950s11(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 1977 | F4 | in town | 48.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 4, 1977 | F4 | 18 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 7, 1961 | F4 | 24 mi | 26.2 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Jan 24, 1967 | F3 | 6 mi | 14.5 mi | 2 / 18 |
| May 4, 1977 | F3 | 20 mi | 26.2 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Mar 6, 2017 | EF3 | 22 mi | 17.74 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F3 | 15 mi | 14.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 1955 | F3 | 25 mi | 9.8 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 8, 2022 | EF2 | 16 mi | 9.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 28, 2019 | EF2 | 15 mi | 5.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 6, 2017 | EF2 | 24 mi | 19.57 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 16, 2015 | EF2 | 11 mi | 10.03 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 93, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Richmond
The Storm Prediction Center has 64 hail reports within 10 miles of Richmond since 1955, made on 50 separate days. Of these, 42 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently May 4, 2003. The most recent report is from May 21, 2024. May has the most reports, 19.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Richmond
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Richmond 3S, MO, 5 miles south of Richmond at 700 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 15°F. May is the wettest at 6.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 42.0 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 34 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 130 nights a year. That 42.0 inches is more than at 42 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (31%). Lexington, 11 miles southeast, has its own station (Lexington 3E, MO): 43.3 inches a year, 1.3 more than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 15 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Feb | 42 | 20 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Mar | 54 | 30 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Apr | 65 | 40 | 4.1 | 7 |
| May | 74 | 51 | 6.3 | 9 |
| Jun | 83 | 61 | 5.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 87 | 66 | 4.9 | 6 |
| Aug | 86 | 63 | 4.2 | 6 |
| Sep | 79 | 54 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Oct | 67 | 41 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Nov | 53 | 30 | 2.4 | 4 |
| Dec | 42 | 21 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Year | 64 | 41 | 42.0 | 69 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Richmond 3S, MO (700 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 Richmond
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 62 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Richmond: 49 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods, 3 floods and 2 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $266,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on March 6, 2017. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 46 have had fewer than Richmond.
September 11, 2000: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Richmond — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds tore off a 60-by-100 foot section of the roof at Richmond High School.”
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
Ray County, which includes Richmond, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 26 of them major disasters (by incident: 17 severe storms, 8 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on September 1, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Ray County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $13.4 million a year, the 64th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.0 million (45%), 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 Richmond
- Lexington, MO11 mi
- Excelsior Springs, MO14 mi
- Lawson, MO14 mi
- Buckner, MO18 mi
- Kearney, MO21 mi
- Higginsville, MO22 mi
- Odessa, MO22 mi
- Holt, MO22 mi
- Bates City, MO24 mi
- Lathrop, MO24 mi
- Oak Grove, MO24 mi
- Liberty, MO24 mi
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