NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rockbridge, OH
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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Rockbridge, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 56 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 56
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Rockbridge
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Rockbridge; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 44 miles away. The record near Rockbridge begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 14 miles away. None of the 6 systems has come since 2000. Rockbridge has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 64% of the 605 Ohio cities on this site. The highest rating among the 56 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on October 13, 1999, came within 22 miles. Of the 56, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 36 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on September 25, 2024. Of the 605 Ohio cities, 77% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rockbridge. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 30 times since 1971, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 93% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Rockbridge.
Compare Rockbridge's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rockbridge
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Rockbridge: 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 Rockbridge
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s17
- 2000s9
- 1990s3(1 EF3+)
- 1980s4
- 1970s6(1 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 13, 1999 | F3 | 22 mi | 3.6 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Sep 3, 1970 | F3 | 20 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 8, 2022 | EF2 | 13 mi | 9.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 2019 | EF2 | 3 mi | 5.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 16, 2010 | EF2 | 20 mi | 3.3 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Sep 16, 2010 | EF2 | 17 mi | 6.99 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 16, 1971 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 1962 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 22, 1958 | F2 | 13 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jun 8, 2022 | EF1 | 19 mi | 0.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 15, 2021 | EF1 | 18 mi | 2.72 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 2019 | EF1 | 11 mi | 1.64 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 56, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rockbridge
The Storm Prediction Center has 30 hail reports within 10 miles of Rockbridge since 1971, made on 23 separate days. Of these, 17 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 28, 2016. The most recent report is from May 26, 2019. May has the most reports, 8.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rockbridge
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Logan, OH, 10 miles east of Rockbridge at 722 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 39°F and 19°F. June and July are the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 2.8 inches; the year adds up to 43.1 inches over 89 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 135 nights a year. That 43.1 inches is more than at 86 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (67%). Sugar Grove, 7 miles northeast, has its own station (Lancaster, OH): 40.3 inches a year, 2.8 less than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | 19 | 3.2 | 7 |
| Feb | 42 | 21 | 2.9 | 7 |
| Mar | 52 | 28 | 3.7 | 7 |
| Apr | 65 | 37 | 4.1 | 8 |
| May | 74 | 48 | 4.3 | 10 |
| Jun | 81 | 57 | 4.7 | 9 |
| Jul | 85 | 61 | 4.7 | 8 |
| Aug | 84 | 59 | 3.6 | 7 |
| Sep | 78 | 52 | 2.9 | 6 |
| Oct | 67 | 40 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Nov | 54 | 30 | 2.8 | 7 |
| Dec | 43 | 23 | 3.1 | 7 |
| Year | 64 | 40 | 43.1 | 89 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Logan, OH (722 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 Rockbridge
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 180 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rockbridge: 129 thunderstorm wind reports, 35 floods and 16 flash floods. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on June 29, 2012. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 16. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 353 have had fewer than Rockbridge.
July 1, 2025: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Rockbridge — 1 killed.
NWS: “Hocking Hills State Park reported that a tree fell onto a hiker in Conkles Hollow State Nature Preserve. The cause was estimated to be hillside instability due to several days of moderate to heavy rainfall.”
July 7, 2003: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Rockbridge — $1.0 million 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Rockbridge's ZIP code 43149 have filed 28 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $259,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 4% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 141 have fewer than Rockbridge.
Hocking County, which includes Rockbridge, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hocking County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.1 million a year, the 58th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.7 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.