NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Ripley, NY
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
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Ripley, New York since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 29 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 29
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Ripley
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Ripley; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 40 miles away. The record near Ripley begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 13 miles away. None of the 7 systems has come since 2000. Of the 809 New York cities on this site, 84% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Ripley. The strongest of the 29 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 31, 1985; its path came within 18 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on May 2, 1983, killed 2 people. Of the 29, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 7 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 10. The most recent tornado was on June 9, 2025. Ripley has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 50% of the 809 New York cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 33 times since 1987, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 809 New York cities, 62% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Ripley.
Compare Ripley's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Ripley
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 23 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 14 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Ripley: 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 Ripley
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s5
- 1990s3
- 1980s5(2 EF3+)
- 1970s2(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s5
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F4 | 18 mi | 28 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 2, 1983 | F3 | 8 mi | 28 mi | 2 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1971 | F3 | 23 mi | 29.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1969 | F3 | 17 mi | 84.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 9, 2025 | EF2 | 15 mi | 1.04 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 14, 2011 | EF2 | 6 mi | 2.92 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 14, 2011 | EF2 | 19 mi | 4.13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 24, 2010 | EF2 | 6 mi | 7.61 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1992 | F2 | 22 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 2, 1983 | F2 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 17, 1969 | F2 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 16, 1965 | F2 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 29, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Ripley
The Storm Prediction Center has 33 hail reports within 10 miles of Ripley since 1987, made on 27 separate days. Of these, 15 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 14, 2019. The most recent report is from June 20, 2021. April and July have the most reports, 7 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Ripley
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Westfield 2 SSE, NY, 6 miles northeast of Ripley at 707 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 21°F. October is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.4 inches; the year adds up to 43.6 inches over 96 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 117 nights a year. That 43.6 inches is more than at 68 of the 137 New York stations used on this site (50%). Harborcreek, PA, 14 miles southwest, has its own station (Erie International Airport, PA): 43.1 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 21 | 2.7 | 9 |
| Feb | 36 | 21 | 2.4 | 6 |
| Mar | 44 | 28 | 2.9 | 8 |
| Apr | 57 | 38 | 3.5 | 9 |
| May | 69 | 50 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Jun | 78 | 60 | 3.6 | 8 |
| Jul | 83 | 64 | 4.4 | 7 |
| Aug | 80 | 63 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Sep | 73 | 57 | 4.6 | 9 |
| Oct | 61 | 47 | 4.9 | 9 |
| Nov | 49 | 36 | 3.8 | 9 |
| Dec | 39 | 28 | 3.2 | 8 |
| Year | 59 | 43 | 43.6 | 96 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Westfield 2 SSE, NY (707 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 Ripley
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 84 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Ripley: 73 thunderstorm wind reports, 7 flash floods, 3 floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $7.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on June 8, 2007. Of the 798 New York cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 95 have had fewer than Ripley.
July 26, 2005: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Ripley — 1 injured, $60,000 damage.
March 1, 2020: flood 4 miles from the centre of Ripley — $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “98 feet. This level was a new record high monthly mean water level for March, surpassing its previous record set in 1986 by 3 inches.”
July 13, 2015: flash flood 4 miles from the centre of Ripley — $750,000 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
Chautauqua County, which includes Ripley, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 snowstorms, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 20, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Chautauqua County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes; Very Low for hail, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $43.6 million a year, the 22nd highest of 62 New York counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $36.0 million (83%), 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 Ripley
- Westfield, NY8 mi
- North East, PA8 mi
- Mayville, NY11 mi
- Clymer, NY13 mi
- Harborcreek, PA14 mi
- Brocton, NY16 mi
- Wattsburg, PA17 mi
- Bemus Point, NY17 mi
- Panama, NY17 mi
- Ashville, NY18 mi
- Fredonia, NY22 mi
- Lakewood, NY22 mi
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