NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Smithville, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Smithville, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 86 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 86
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Smithville
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Smithville; the strongest was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm with 46 mph winds when its centre crossed the city. The record near Smithville begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Opal in 1995. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 53% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Smithville. The strongest of the 86 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on July 12, 1992; its path came within 25 miles. Of the 86, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 41 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on July 28, 2025. Smithville has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 66% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 101 times since 1968, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Smithville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 605 Ohio cities.
Compare Smithville's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Smithville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 6 | overhead | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 22 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Smithville: 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 Smithville
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s12
- 2000s16
- 1990s18(1 EF3+)
- 1980s9
- 1970s11
- 1960s5
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 12, 1992 | F3 | 25 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Sep 16, 2010 | EF2 | 6 mi | 11.47 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 22, 2006 | F2 | 17 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 12, 2003 | F2 | 6 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 11 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 18 mi | 9.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F2 | 18 mi | 7.2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 21, 2001 | F2 | 18 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 30, 1977 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 31, 1976 | F2 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 13, 1975 | F2 | 23 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 1973 | F2 | 22 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 86, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Smithville
The Storm Prediction Center has 101 hail reports within 10 miles of Smithville since 1968, made on 63 separate days. Of these, 52 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on August 10, 1980. The most recent report is from May 5, 2025. May has the most reports, 30.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Smithville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wooster Wayne Co Airport, OH, 2 miles west of Smithville at 1,137 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 18°F. June is the wettest at 4.0 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 36.8 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 7 days a year, almost all from June to July. Lows fall below freezing on about 129 nights a year. That 36.8 inches is more than at 13 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (10%). Wooster, 7 miles southwest, has its own station (Wooster Exp Station, OH): 42.0 inches a year, 5.2 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 18 | 2.4 | 5 |
| Feb | 37 | 20 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Mar | 47 | 28 | 2.8 | 7 |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 3.6 | 8 |
| May | 71 | 48 | 3.8 | 9 |
| Jun | 79 | 57 | 4.0 | 8 |
| Jul | 82 | 61 | 3.7 | 7 |
| Aug | 80 | 58 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Sep | 74 | 50 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Oct | 63 | 41 | 2.9 | 7 |
| Nov | 49 | 32 | 2.6 | 6 |
| Dec | 38 | 24 | 2.4 | 6 |
| Year | 60 | 40 | 36.8 | 80 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Wooster Wayne Co Airport, OH (1,137 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 Smithville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 170 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Smithville: 158 thunderstorm wind reports, 10 flash floods and 2 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $16.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 94 mph, on June 13, 2022. August has had the most flash floods, 7 of 10. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 231 have had fewer than Smithville.
August 6, 2000: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Smithville — 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
June 17, 2019: flood 7 miles from the centre of Smithville — $12.0 million damage.
July 10, 2013: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Smithville — $850,000 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
Wayne County, which includes Smithville, has been named in 10 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 5 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Wayne County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $22.2 million a year, the 35th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $12.9 million (58%), 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.