NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rio Grande City, TX
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
26 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Rio Grande City, Texas since 1851, 5 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Harold in 2023. Since 1950, 12 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 5
- Tropical storms
- 21
- Tornadoes
- 12
- 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 Rio Grande City
The strongest storm to pass near Rio Grande City was an unnamed storm in 1916, a Category 2 hurricane with 98 mph winds when its centre passed 74 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1880, whose centre came within 10 miles. The record near Rio Grande City begins with an unnamed storm in 1854; the most recent system was Harold in 2023, a tropical storm 63 miles away. The 1930s and the 1970s were the busiest decades, with 3 systems each. Of the 26 systems, 4 have come since 2000. Rio Grande City has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 75% of the 753 Texas cities on this site. The highest rating among the 12 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 5, 1991, came within 14 miles. Of the 12, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 2 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 3. The most recent tornado was on June 3, 2009. Of the 753 Texas cities, 97% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rio Grande City. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 28 times since 1968, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 753 Texas cities, 86% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Rio Grande City.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rio Grande City
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | HaroldAug 22 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2020 | HannaJul 26 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2010 | HermineSep 7 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | DollyJul 24 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1999 | BretAug 23 | 61 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1983 | BarryAug 29 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1980 | AllenAug 10 | 36 mi | Category 1 (93 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1978 | AmeliaJul 31 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1975 | CarolineSep 1 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1971 | FernSep 12 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1967 | BeulahSep 20 | 49 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1958 | AlmaJun 15 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1954 | AliceJun 25 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormAug 2 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormSep 13 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormSep 5 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1931 | Unnamed 1931 stormJun 28 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1925 | Unnamed 1925 stormSep 7 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormAug 19 | 74 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1910 | Unnamed 1910 stormSep 15 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormJun 30 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormSep 22 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1880 | Unnamed 1880 stormAug 13 | 10 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 5 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1857 | Unnamed 1857 stormSep 30 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormJun 26 | overhead | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Rio Grande City: 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 Rio Grande City
By decade
- 2000s2
- 1990s4
- 1980s3
- 1960s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 1991 | F2 | 14 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 1967 | F2 | 22 mi | 40.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 2003 | F1 | 21 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Jun 14, 1994 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 7, 1983 | F1 | 14 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 10, 1980 | F1 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 18, 1965 | F1 | 22 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 15, 1962 | F1 | 23 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 2009 | EF0 | 7 mi | 1.43 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 27, 1999 | F0 | 22 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1991 | F0 | 25 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 29, 1981 | F0 | 19 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 12, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rio Grande City
The Storm Prediction Center has 28 hail reports within 10 miles of Rio Grande City since 1968, made on 22 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 20, 1986. The most recent report is from May 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rio Grande City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rio Grande City, TX, 9 miles southwest of Rio Grande City at 172 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 99°F and low of 75°F; January is the coolest, at 71°F and 45°F. September is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and January and December the driest at 0.8 inches; the year adds up to 22.6 inches over 33 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 65% of the year's precipitation (14.8 of 22.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 26 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (11); a normal September there has highs of 94°F and 5.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 187 days a year, almost all from February to November. Lows fall below freezing on about 6 nights a year. That 22.6 inches is more than at 62 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (20%). Sullivan City, 15 miles southeast, has its own station (La Joya, TX): 20.3 inches a year, 2.3 less than here, and an August average high of 97°F against 99°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 71 | 45 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Feb | 76 | 50 | 1.0 | 2 |
| Mar | 82 | 56 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Apr | 89 | 63 | 1.0 | 2 |
| May | 94 | 70 | 2.9 | 3 |
| Jun | 98 | 74 | 2.8 | 3 |
| Jul | 99 | 75 | 2.0 | 3 |
| Aug | 99 | 75 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Sep | 94 | 71 | 5.1 | 5 |
| Oct | 88 | 63 | 2.5 | 3 |
| Nov | 79 | 54 | 1.1 | 2 |
| Dec | 72 | 47 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Year | 87 | 62 | 22.6 | 33 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rio Grande City, TX (172 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 Rio Grande City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 36 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rio Grande City: 18 thunderstorm wind reports, 15 flash floods, 2 heavy rain events and 1 flood. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $445,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on March 7, 2026. May has had the most flash floods, 8 of 15. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 332 have had fewer than Rio Grande City.
March 8, 2026: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Rio Grande City — 3 injured, $30,000 damage.
NWS: “The storm survey investigated an incident at a fuel service station on the east side of Rio Grande City. The gull canopy tipped over with bent columns at foundation.”
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 Rio Grande City's ZIP code 78582 have filed 49 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $1.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2020, with 12. 31% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 433 Texas cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 160 have fewer than Rio Grande City.
Starr County, which includes Rio Grande City, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 hurricanes, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 fires). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Starr County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Very Low for strong wind and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $29.5 million a year, the 64th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.7 million (26%), 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 Rio Grande City
- Sullivan City, TX15 mi
- La Joya, TX19 mi
- Roma, TX20 mi
- Penitas, TX20 mi
- Mission, TX27 mi
- Alton, TX29 mi
- Mcallen, TX32 mi
- Edinburg, TX35 mi
- Pharr, TX36 mi
- Hidalgo, TX36 mi
- San Juan, TX38 mi
- Weslaco, TX39 mi
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