NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Sidney, NE
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 Sidney, Nebraska since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 101 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 101
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Sidney
The highest rating among the 101 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 27, 1985, came within 5 miles. Of the 101, 13 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 52. The most recent tornado was on July 6, 2025. Of the 91 Nebraska cities on this site, 78% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Sidney. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 242 times since 1955, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Sidney has more hail reports within 10 miles than 83% of the 91 Nebraska cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Sidney
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s13
- 2000s13
- 1990s19
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s8
- 1960s15(2 EF3+)
- 1950s18
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1985 | F3 | 5 mi | 48 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 1960 | F3 | 14 mi | 15.2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 20, 1960 | F3 | in town | 26.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 19, 2024 | EF2 | 23 mi | 1.57 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 13, 1996 | F2 | 14 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 13, 1988 | F2 | 21 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 1977 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1960 | F2 | 14 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1960 | F2 | 18 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 1, 1958 | F2 | 20 mi | 15.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1954 | F2 | 22 mi | 19.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1951 | F2 | 2 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 101, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Sidney
The Storm Prediction Center has 242 hail reports within 10 miles of Sidney since 1955, made on 139 separate days. Of these, 194 were 1 inch across or larger, and 23 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on June 25, 2011. The most recent report is from July 7, 2025. June has the most reports, 99.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Sidney
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Sidney Municipal Airport, NE, 5 miles southeast of Sidney at 4,309 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 57°F; January and December are the coolest, at 42°F and 14°F. June is the wettest at 3.2 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.1 inches; the year adds up to 15.9 inches over 34 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 47 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 180 nights a year. That 15.9 inches is more than at 3 of the 68 Nebraska stations used on this site (4%). Kimball, 34 miles west, has its own station (Kimball 2NE, NE): 16.0 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | 14 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Feb | 44 | 15 | 0.2 | 1 |
| Mar | 54 | 23 | 0.6 | 1 |
| Apr | 61 | 30 | 1.7 | 4 |
| May | 70 | 40 | 2.9 | 6 |
| Jun | 82 | 51 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Jul | 90 | 57 | 2.2 | 5 |
| Aug | 88 | 55 | 2.0 | 4 |
| Sep | 79 | 46 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Oct | 64 | 32 | 1.0 | 2 |
| Nov | 51 | 21 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Dec | 42 | 14 | 0.2 | 1 |
| Year | 64 | 33 | 15.9 | 34 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Sidney Municipal Airport, NE (4,309 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 Sidney
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 114 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Sidney: 94 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods and 6 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $46,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 94 mph, on July 8, 2020. August has had the most flash floods, 6 of 14. Of the 89 Nebraska cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 69 have had fewer than Sidney.
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
Cheyenne County, which includes Sidney, has been named in 10 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1997, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, on May 24, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cheyenne County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.8 million a year, the 32nd highest of 93 Nebraska counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.1 million (35%), 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 Sidney
- Kimball, NE34 mi
- Sterling, CO38 mi
- Bayard, NE45 mi
- Minatare, NE54 mi
- Holyoke, CO55 mi
- Gering, NE55 mi
- Scottsbluff, NE60 mi
- Mitchell, NE67 mi
- Alliance, NE68 mi
- Ogallala, NE69 mi
- Yuma, CO71 mi
- Brush, CO71 mi
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