NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Sacaton, AZ
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 Sacaton, Arizona since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 35 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 35
- 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 Sacaton
The highest rating among the 35 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 30, 1971, came within 23 miles. Of the 35, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 9 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 7. The most recent tornado was on March 7, 2024. Sacaton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 84% of the 134 Arizona cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 3 times since 1979, with stones up to 1.25 inches (half dollar size). Of the 134 Arizona cities, 75% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Sacaton.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Sacaton
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s6
- 1990s7
- 1980s6
- 1970s8
- 1960s4
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30, 1971 | F2 | 23 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 41 |
| Jul 4, 1968 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Feb 13, 1995 | F1 | 19 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 18, 1993 | F1 | 6 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1988 | F1 | 23 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 1985 | F1 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 22, 1984 | F1 | 6 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 10, 1972 | F1 | 23 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 21, 1972 | F1 | 16 mi | 6.4 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Sep 1, 1971 | F1 | 5 mi | 32.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 5, 1970 | F1 | 24 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 19, 1967 | F1 | 21 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 35, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Sacaton
The Storm Prediction Center has 3 hail reports within 10 miles of Sacaton since 1979. Of these, 2 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.25 inches (half dollar size), fell on September 19, 1999, the most recent report.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Sacaton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Casa Grande Nm, AZ, 13 miles southeast of Sacaton at 1,419 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 107°F and low of 77°F; December is the coolest, at 67°F and 36°F. August is the wettest at 1.2 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.1 inches; the year adds up to 8.3 inches over 21 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 180 days a year, almost all from March to November. Lows fall below freezing on about 29 nights a year. That 8.3 inches is more than at 21 of the 76 Arizona stations used on this site (28%). Casa Grande, 12 miles south, has its own station (Casa Grande, AZ): 7.9 inches a year, 0.4 less than here, and the same July average high, 107°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 68 | 37 | 1.0 | 2 |
| Feb | 71 | 40 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Mar | 78 | 45 | 0.9 | 2 |
| Apr | 86 | 51 | 0.3 | 1 |
| May | 95 | 59 | 0.2 | 1 |
| Jun | 105 | 68 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Jul | 107 | 77 | 1.1 | 3 |
| Aug | 105 | 77 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Sep | 101 | 70 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Oct | 91 | 56 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Nov | 78 | 44 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Dec | 67 | 36 | 0.8 | 3 |
| Year | 88 | 55 | 8.3 | 21 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Casa Grande Nm, AZ (1,419 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 Sacaton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 57 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Sacaton: 38 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods, 5 heavy rain events and 2 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on August 15, 2004. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 12. Of the 130 Arizona cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 45 have had fewer than Sacaton.
July 29, 2012: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Sacaton — 1 killed.
July 23, 2005: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Sacaton — 1 injured, $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Several homes destroyed or damaged due to winds. One mobile home was flipped over several times with the resident suffering multiple injuries.”
July 9, 2002: thunderstorm wind in Sacaton — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Damage from strong winds extended over a large area of north central and northwest Pinal County. Trees were uprooted in Coolidge and homes were damaged in Florence.”
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
Pinal County, which includes Sacaton, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 fires, 6 floods, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pinal County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $137.5 million a year, the 3rd highest of 15 Arizona counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $92.4 million (67%), 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 Sacaton
- Queen Creek, AZ10 mi
- San Tan Valley, AZ12 mi
- Casa Grande, AZ12 mi
- Gilbert, AZ16 mi
- Coolidge, AZ16 mi
- Maricopa, AZ16 mi
- Mesa, AZ23 mi
- Chandler, AZ23 mi
- Arizona City, AZ24 mi
- Tempe, AZ24 mi
- Apache Junction, AZ24 mi
- Gold Canyon, AZ26 mi
All Arizona cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Sacaton with another place →