NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Spicewood, 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
8 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Spicewood, Texas since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Hermine in 2010. Since 1950, 91 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 91
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Spicewood
The strongest storm to pass near Spicewood was an unnamed storm in 1886, a Category 1 hurricane with 74 mph winds when its centre passed 61 miles away. The record near Spicewood begins with an unnamed storm in 1886; the most recent system was Hermine in 2010, a tropical storm 53 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1960s, with 2 systems. Of the 8 systems, one has come since 2000. Spicewood has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 56% of the 753 Texas cities on this site. The strongest of the 91 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 27, 1997; its path came within 5 miles, and it killed 1 person. Of the 91, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 31 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 32. The most recent tornado was on March 21, 2022. Of the 753 Texas cities, 60% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Spicewood. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 58 times since 1968, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 753 Texas cities, 63% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Spicewood.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Spicewood
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | HermineSep 7 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1973 | DeliaSep 6 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1968 | CandyJun 24 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1961 | CarlaSep 12 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormAug 14 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 27 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 13 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormAug 20 | 61 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Spicewood: 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 Spicewood
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s11
- 2000s18
- 1990s14(3 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s18(1 EF3+)
- 1960s11(1 EF3+)
- 1950s7(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1997 | F4 | 5 mi | 5.6 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Apr 7, 1980 | F3 | 24 mi | 31.7 mi | 1 / 5 |
| May 27, 1997 | F3 | 12 mi | 9.2 mi | 0 / 15 |
| May 13, 1994 | F3 | 15 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 10, 1973 | F3 | 23 mi | 7.8 mi | 0 / 40 |
| May 6, 1969 | F3 | 17 mi | 38.9 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 10, 1959 | F3 | 24 mi | 11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 1970 | F2 | 10 mi | 1.5 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Mar 21, 2022 | EF2 | 24 mi | 34.62 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 16, 2000 | F2 | 18 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 10, 1980 | F2 | 23 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 14, 1977 | F2 | 8 mi | 41 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 91, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Spicewood
The Storm Prediction Center has 58 hail reports within 10 miles of Spicewood since 1968, made on 40 separate days. Of these, 40 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on March 25, 2005. The most recent report is from April 1, 2024. April has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Spicewood
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Austin 33 NW, TX, 13 miles north of Spicewood at 1,361 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 95°F and low of 73°F; January is the coolest, at 60°F and 40°F. May is the wettest at 4.0 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 33.2 inches over 46 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 102 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 20 nights a year. That 33.2 inches is more than at 141 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (45%). Lago Vista, 7 miles east, has its own station (Austin Great Hills, TX): 37.1 inches a year, 3.9 more than here, and an August average high of 96°F against 95°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 60 | 40 | 1.9 | 3 |
| Feb | 63 | 43 | 2.1 | 2 |
| Mar | 71 | 50 | 2.7 | 4 |
| Apr | 78 | 57 | 2.9 | 4 |
| May | 84 | 64 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Jun | 91 | 71 | 2.8 | 3 |
| Jul | 94 | 73 | 2.0 | 3 |
| Aug | 95 | 73 | 2.9 | 3 |
| Sep | 88 | 68 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Oct | 79 | 60 | 3.5 | 4 |
| Nov | 68 | 49 | 2.9 | 4 |
| Dec | 61 | 41 | 2.3 | 3 |
| Year | 78 | 57 | 33.2 | 46 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Austin 33 NW, TX (1,361 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 Spicewood
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 36 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Spicewood: 23 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 flash floods, 2 floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $19.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on June 12, 2014. May has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 176 have had fewer than Spicewood.
July 5, 2025: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Spicewood — 1 killed, $5.0 million damage.
October 16, 2018: flood 6 miles from the centre of Spicewood — $10.0 million damage.
April 2, 2017: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Spicewood — $1.0 million 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Spicewood's ZIP code 78669 have filed 129 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1987, and were paid $2.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 41 claims (32% of all) and $908,000, then Fall 2018 Texas Flooding in 2018 with 24 and Thunderstorms in 2007 with 16. 74% 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, 252 have fewer than Spicewood.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 41 | $908,000 |
| Fall 2018 Texas Flooding2018 | 24 | $852,000 |
| Thunderstorms2007 | 16 | $473,000 |
Travis County, which includes Spicewood, has been named in 37 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1991, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 fires, 8 hurricanes, 7 floods, 5 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding, on July 6, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Travis County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes and hail; Relatively High for inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $376.3 million a year, the 6th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $214.2 million (57%), 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 Spicewood
- Lago Vista, TX7 mi
- Lakeway, TX8 mi
- Round Rock, TX10 mi
- Dripping Springs, TX13 mi
- Leander, TX15 mi
- Cedar Park, TX16 mi
- Marble Falls, TX17 mi
- Horseshoe Bay, TX19 mi
- Austin, TX21 mi
- Liberty Hill, TX21 mi
- Johnson City, TX21 mi
- Driftwood, TX23 mi
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