NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Riva, 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
39 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Riva, Maryland since 1851, 2 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Elsa in 2021. Since 1950, 94 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 2
- Tropical storms
- 37
- Tornadoes
- 94
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Riva
The strongest storm to pass near Riva was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 91 mph winds when its centre passed 31 miles away. The record near Riva begins with an unnamed storm in 1861; the most recent system was Elsa in 2021, a tropical storm 69 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1870s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 39 systems, 6 have come since 2000. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site, 85% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Riva. The highest rating among the 94 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on September 24, 2001, came within 19 miles. The deadliest, an EF1 on November 2, 2018, killed 2 people. Of the 94, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. June and July have had the most tornadoes, 22 each. The most recent tornado was on July 31, 2025. Riva has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 52% of the 239 Maryland cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 49 times since 1968, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 239 Maryland cities, 59% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Riva.
Compare Riva's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Riva
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2008 | HannaSep 6 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 13 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1992 | DanielleSep 26 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1963 | Unnamed 1963 stormJun 3 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | DianeAug 18 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 50 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 3 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 12 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 12 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 11 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 31 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 26 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 19 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 27 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Riva: 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 Riva
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s21
- 2000s15(1 EF3+)
- 1990s24
- 1970s11
- 1960s5(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 24, 2001 | F3 | 19 mi | 17.5 mi | 2 / 55 |
| Jun 9, 1961 | F3 | 17 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 1, 2021 | EF2 | 2 mi | 11.43 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 23, 2017 | EF2 | 13 mi | 2.37 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 5, 1995 | F2 | 22 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 27, 1994 | F2 | 9 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 1978 | F2 | 18 mi | 6.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 12, 1971 | F2 | 13 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 2, 2018 | EF1 | 22 mi | 2.72 mi | 2 / 1 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF1 | 22 mi | 4.34 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2024 | EF1 | 21 mi | 3.34 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 5, 2022 | EF1 | 8 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 94, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Riva
The Storm Prediction Center has 49 hail reports within 10 miles of Riva since 1968, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 30 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 2 days, most recently June 2, 1998. The most recent report is from June 18, 2025. June has the most reports, 16.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Riva
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Upper Marlboro 3 NNW, MD, 12 miles southwest of Riva at 130 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 44°F and 25°F. September is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 45.1 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 54% of the year's precipitation (24.4 of 45.1 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 39 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (12); a normal September there has highs of 80°F and 4.5 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 103 nights a year. Snowfall averages 15.9 inches a year, most of it in February. That 45.1 inches is more than at 16 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (39%). Annapolis, 6 miles east, has its own station (Baltimore Wash International Airport, MD): 45.0 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 88°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Annapolis, MD, 6 miles east, averaged 85°F in July and 42°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Annapolis tide gauge, 6 miles from Riva, has risen 1.52 ± 0.04 inches per decade from 1928 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 15.2 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 92 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 | 44 | 25 | 3.0 | 6 | 5.7 | 42 |
| Feb | 47 | 26 | 2.7 | 5 | 6.3 | 42 |
| Mar | 55 | 33 | 3.9 | 7 | 1.7 | 50 |
| Apr | 67 | 44 | 3.4 | 7 | 0.0 | 59 |
| May | 75 | 54 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 | 68 |
| Jun | 84 | 63 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 | 78 |
| Jul | 88 | 67 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 | 85 |
| Aug | 86 | 65 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.0 | 84 |
| Sep | 80 | 58 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.0 | 78 |
| Oct | 69 | 46 | 4.1 | 5 | 0.0 | 69 |
| Nov | 58 | 36 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 | 58 |
| Dec | 48 | 29 | 3.6 | 7 | 2.2 | 47 |
| Year | 67 | 45 | 45.1 | 74 | 15.9 | 63 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Upper Marlboro 3 NNW, MD (130 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Annapolis, 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 Riva
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 392 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Riva: 319 thunderstorm wind reports, 44 floods, 28 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $3.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on November 17, 2010. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 92 have had fewer than Riva.
July 25, 2010: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Riva — 1 killed.
July 29, 2023: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Riva — $1.0 million damage.
July 4, 2006: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Riva — $250,000 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
Anne Arundel County, which includes Riva, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1971, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 snowstorms, 6 hurricanes, 4 floods, 3 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Anne Arundel County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $74.7 million a year, the 5th highest of 24 Maryland counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $33.3 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.