NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Scottsdale, 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 Scottsdale, Arizona since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 52 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 52
- 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 Scottsdale
The highest rating among the 52 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 5 times; the most recent, on January 17, 1993, came within 3 miles. Of the 52, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 10 have come since 2000. September has had the most tornadoes, 9. The most recent tornado was on July 24, 2020. Scottsdale has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 97% of the 134 Arizona cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 29 times since 1995, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Scottsdale has more hail reports within 10 miles than 86% of the 134 Arizona cities.
Compare Scottsdale's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Scottsdale
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s8
- 2000s1
- 1990s11
- 1980s7
- 1970s16
- 1960s5
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 17, 1993 | F2 | 3 mi | 2.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 21, 1972 | F2 | 2 mi | 13.5 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Sep 14, 1971 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 30, 1971 | F2 | 11 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 41 |
| Jul 4, 1968 | F2 | 16 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Feb 13, 1995 | F1 | 20 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 23, 1992 | F1 | 11 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 6, 1992 | F1 | 11 mi | 1.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 18, 1986 | F1 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1984 | F1 | 11 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1983 | F1 | 12 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 8, 1983 | F1 | 19 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 52, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Scottsdale
The Storm Prediction Center has 29 hail reports within 10 miles of Scottsdale since 1995, made on 15 separate days. Of these, 17 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on October 5, 2010. The most recent report is from October 13, 2025. September has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Scottsdale
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Scottsdale Municipal Airport, AZ, 3 miles north of Scottsdale at 1,473 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 104°F and low of 83°F; December is the coolest, at 65°F and 43°F. February is the wettest at 1.2 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 0.1 inches; the year adds up to 8.7 inches over 17 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 161 days a year, almost all from March to November. Lows fall below freezing on about 3 nights a year. That 8.7 inches is more than at 23 of the 76 Arizona stations used on this site (30%). Fountain Hills, 11 miles east, has its own station (Fountain Hills, AZ): 10.0 inches a year, 1.3 more than here, and a July average high of 103°F against 104°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 67 | 43 | 1.1 | 2 |
| Feb | 69 | 46 | 1.2 | 2 |
| Mar | 76 | 52 | 1.1 | 1 |
| Apr | 83 | 58 | 0.3 | 1 |
| May | 92 | 67 | 0.2 | 0 |
| Jun | 102 | 76 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Jul | 104 | 83 | 0.9 | 2 |
| Aug | 103 | 82 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Sep | 98 | 75 | 0.6 | 1 |
| Oct | 87 | 63 | 0.6 | 1 |
| Nov | 75 | 51 | 0.8 | 1 |
| Dec | 65 | 43 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Year | 85 | 61 | 8.7 | 17 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Scottsdale Municipal Airport, AZ (1,473 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 Scottsdale
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 304 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Scottsdale: 198 thunderstorm wind reports, 66 flash floods, 24 heavy rain events, 9 floods and 7 lightning strikes. They killed 3 people and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $21.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on July 17, 2022. August has had the most flash floods, 34 of 66. Of the 130 Arizona cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 119 have had fewer than Scottsdale.
July 14, 2001: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Scottsdale — 1 killed, $5.0 million damage.
September 26, 2025: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Scottsdale — 1 killed, $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Multiple Maricopa County Flood Control District streamflow gauges along Indian Bend Wash through Scottsdale rose above action stages and flood stages, with all low-water crossings impassable. The streamflow gauge at Indian School Rd reached 3000 cfs.”
March 8, 2013: flood 5 miles from the centre of Scottsdale — 1 killed.
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 Scottsdale's 10 ZIP codes have filed 359 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $2.7 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1978: 26 claims (7% of all) and $126,000. The year with the most claims was 1987, with 40. 7% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 50 Arizona cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 47 have fewer than Scottsdale.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1978 | 26 | $126,000 |
Maricopa County, which includes Scottsdale, has been named in 26 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 fires, 9 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 Maricopa County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $2.20 billion a year, the highest of 15 Arizona counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.12 billion (51%), 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.