NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit San Saba, TX
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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of San Saba, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Delia in 1973. Since 1950, 24 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 24
- 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 San Saba
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed San Saba; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1886, a tropical storm with 59 mph winds when its centre passed 51 miles away. The record near San Saba begins with an unnamed storm in 1886; the most recent system was Delia in 1973, a tropical storm 72 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 67% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than San Saba. The highest rating among the 24 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 3 times; the most recent, on March 12, 1999, came within 11 miles. Of the 24, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 3 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 7. The most recent tornado was on June 12, 2009. Of the 753 Texas cities, 95% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than San Saba. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 57 times since 1969, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 753 Texas cities, 63% have more hail reports within 10 miles than San Saba.
Compare San Saba's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near San Saba
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | DeliaSep 6 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1961 | CarlaSep 12 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 13 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormAug 21 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in San Saba: 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 San Saba
By decade
- 2000s3
- 1990s9
- 1980s3
- 1970s6
- 1960s1
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 12, 1999 | F2 | 11 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 15, 1981 | F2 | 5 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1973 | F2 | 23 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 12, 2009 | EF1 | 11 mi | 0.63 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 28, 1992 | F1 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1978 | F1 | 19 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1978 | F1 | 4 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 31, 1974 | F1 | 21 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 20, 1973 | F1 | 2 mi | 4.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 18, 1968 | F1 | 22 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 1957 | F1 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1956 | F1 | in town | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 24, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in San Saba
The Storm Prediction Center has 57 hail reports within 10 miles of San Saba since 1969, made on 47 separate days. Of these, 42 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently May 28, 2025. The most recent report is from May 28, 2025. May has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in San Saba
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is San Saba 7NW, TX, 7 miles north of San Saba at 1,330 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 96°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 59°F and 33°F. May is the wettest at 3.9 inches of precipitation on average and December the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 28.6 inches over 45 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 107 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 51 nights a year. That 28.6 inches is more than at 102 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (33%). Goldthwaite, 23 miles northeast, has its own station (Goldthwaite 1 WSW, TX): 30.4 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and an August average high of 93°F against 96°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 59 | 33 | 1.7 | 3 |
| Feb | 64 | 37 | 2.0 | 3 |
| Mar | 70 | 44 | 2.6 | 5 |
| Apr | 78 | 52 | 1.9 | 3 |
| May | 85 | 62 | 3.9 | 5 |
| Jun | 92 | 68 | 3.5 | 4 |
| Jul | 95 | 71 | 2.0 | 4 |
| Aug | 96 | 71 | 2.0 | 3 |
| Sep | 88 | 64 | 2.5 | 4 |
| Oct | 80 | 54 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Nov | 69 | 43 | 1.8 | 3 |
| Dec | 61 | 35 | 1.6 | 3 |
| Year | 78 | 53 | 28.6 | 45 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at San Saba 7NW, TX (1,330 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 San Saba
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 29 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of San Saba: 21 thunderstorm wind reports, 3 flash floods, 3 floods and 2 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $931,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 5, 2003.
June 1, 2004: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of San Saba — $900,000 damage.
NWS: “Severe thunderstorms brought strong winds to San Saba county resulting in widespread wind damage across much of the county. Tree and power lines were reported down across the county with the worst damage reported in the northern portions of the county.”
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 San Saba's ZIP code 76877 have filed 28 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1992, and were paid $1.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from 2025 July Central TX Flooding in 2025: 10 claims (36% of all) and $1.1 million. 54% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 433 Texas cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 112 have fewer than San Saba.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 July Central TX Flooding2025 | 10 | $1.1 million |
San Saba County, which includes San Saba, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1993, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 fires, 5 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding, on July 6, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives San Saba County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $3.3 million a year, the 221st highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.5 million (47%), 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 San Saba
- Goldthwaite, TX23 mi
- Llano, TX33 mi
- Lampasas, TX34 mi
- Brady, TX36 mi
- Burnet, TX39 mi
- Early, TX40 mi
- Brownwood, TX40 mi
- Kingsland, TX40 mi
- Mason, TX42 mi
- Bangs, TX43 mi
- Kempner, TX46 mi
- Copperas Cove, TX49 mi
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