NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rock Rapids, 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 Rock Rapids, Iowa since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 123 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 123
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Rock Rapids
The strongest of the 123 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF4 on June 25, 2010; its path came within 11 miles. The deadliest, an F2 on April 26, 1986, killed 1 person. Of the 123, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 59 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 38. The most recent tornado was on July 28, 2025. Of the 241 Iowa cities on this site, 53% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rock Rapids. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 85 times since 1968, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 241 Iowa cities, 55% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Rock Rapids.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Rock Rapids
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s19(1 EF3+)
- 2000s29
- 1990s28(1 EF3+)
- 1980s11
- 1970s10(2 EF3+)
- 1960s7
- 1950s8
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 25, 2010 | EF4 | 11 mi | 13.65 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Aug 7, 1994 | F3 | 16 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 5, 1978 | F3 | 23 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1971 | F3 | 18 mi | 46.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 1986 | F2 | 7 mi | 18.5 mi | 1 / 4 |
| May 1, 2008 | EF2 | 16 mi | 12.95 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 25, 2000 | F2 | 15 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 7, 1993 | F2 | 14 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 7, 1993 | F2 | 16 mi | 11.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 26, 1986 | F2 | 8 mi | 9.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1982 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 13, 1981 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 123, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rock Rapids
The Storm Prediction Center has 85 hail reports within 10 miles of Rock Rapids since 1968, made on 59 separate days. Of these, 51 were 1 inch across or larger, and 5 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 10, 1993. The most recent report is from June 2, 2025. June has the most reports, 23.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rock Rapids
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rock Rapids, IA, in Rock Rapids at 1,350 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 25°F and 6°F. June is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.6 inches; the year adds up to 29.1 inches over 57 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 168 nights a year. Snowfall averages 34.9 inches a year, most of it in December. That 29.1 inches is more than at 2 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (2%). Larchwood, 14 miles west, has its own station (Canton, SD): 28.1 inches a year, 1.0 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 6 | 0.6 | 2 | 6.0 |
| Feb | 30 | 10 | 0.7 | 3 | 7.3 |
| Mar | 43 | 22 | 1.5 | 4 | 5.6 |
| Apr | 58 | 34 | 3.0 | 6 | 3.5 |
| May | 70 | 47 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 81 | 58 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 62 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 59 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 50 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 36 | 2.2 | 4 | 0.4 |
| Nov | 44 | 23 | 1.4 | 3 | 3.6 |
| Dec | 30 | 12 | 0.8 | 3 | 8.4 |
| Year | 57 | 35 | 29.1 | 57 | 34.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rock Rapids, IA (1,350 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 Rock Rapids
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 89 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rock Rapids: 43 thunderstorm wind reports, 36 floods, 8 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $26.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on May 30, 2022. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 58 have had fewer than Rock Rapids.
June 1, 2019: flood 8 miles from the centre of Rock Rapids — $18.5 million damage.
NWS: “During crop planting season, prolonged flooding led to the loss of or inability to plant crops across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture.”
June 21, 2024: flood 8 miles from the centre of Rock Rapids — $3.6 million damage.
NWS: “Rainfall amounts across Nobles County from June 20-22 ranged from 4 to 10 inches. This rainfall resulted in widespread overland flooding across the county.”
June 15, 2014: flood 5 miles from the centre of Rock Rapids — $3.0 million damage.
NWS: “Repeated heavy rains caused record flooding of the Rock River. Numerous homes, businesses, roads, farmland, and other low areas were flooded, forcing many people to evacuate their homes and rely on Red Cross and other volunteer assistance for several days.”
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 Rock Rapids's ZIP code 51246 have filed 63 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1993, and were paid $1.6 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2014, with 38. 27% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 91 Iowa cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 56 have fewer than Rock Rapids.
Lyon County, which includes Rock Rapids, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on June 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lyon County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.9 million a year, the 69th highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.7 million (34%), 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 Rock Rapids
- Larchwood, IA14 mi
- Luverne, MN16 mi
- Hull, IA16 mi
- Rock Valley, IA18 mi
- Sibley, IA22 mi
- Sheldon, IA23 mi
- Brandon, SD24 mi
- Canton, SD24 mi
- Sioux Center, IA25 mi
- Harrisburg, SD26 mi
- Garretson, SD28 mi
- Orange City, IA29 mi
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