NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Spotswood, NJ
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
46 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Spotswood, New Jersey since 1851, 9 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ida in 2021. Since 1950, 77 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 9
- Tropical storms
- 37
- Tornadoes
- 77
- 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 Spotswood
The strongest storm to pass near Spotswood was an unnamed storm in 1944, a Category 2 hurricane with 104 mph winds when its centre passed 71 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1893, whose centre came within 26 miles. The record near Spotswood begins with an unnamed storm in 1861; the most recent system was Ida in 2021, a tropical storm 16 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 5 systems, 2 of them at hurricane strength. Of the 46 systems, 8 have come since 2000. Spotswood has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 69% of the 455 New Jersey cities on this site. The highest rating among the 77 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on October 18, 1990, came within 21 miles. Of the 77, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 32 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 15. The most recent tornado was on June 14, 2024. Spotswood has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 90% of the 455 New Jersey cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 63 times since 1983, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 455 New Jersey cities, 49% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Spotswood.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Spotswood
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | IdaSep 2 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 9 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2020 | FayJul 11 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 8 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 60 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2011 | IreneAug 28 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2008 | HannaSep 7 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1999 | FloydSep 16 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1996 | BerthaJul 13 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1985 | GloriaSep 27 | 48 mi | Category 1 (89 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1985 | HenriSep 24 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1976 | BelleAug 10 | 53 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 22 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1971 | DoriaAug 28 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1968 | Unnamed 1968 stormSep 11 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1961 | Unnamed 1961 stormSep 15 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1960 | DonnaSep 12 | 61 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | DianeAug 19 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormSep 15 | 71 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 3 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormSep 8 | 63 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 17 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 15 | 49 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 16 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormOct 14 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1897 | Unnamed 1897 stormSep 24 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 10 | 54 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 24 | 26 mi | Category 1 (87 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 11 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 22 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 24 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 5 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormOct 26 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1866 | Unnamed 1866 stormOct 30 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormSep 19 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1861 | Unnamed 1861 stormSep 28 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Spotswood: 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 Spotswood
By decade
- 2020s14
- 2010s10
- 2000s8
- 1990s19(1 EF3+)
- 1980s12
- 1970s3(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 18, 1990 | F3 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Sep 26, 1977 | F3 | 5 mi | 5.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 24, 1960 | F3 | 12 mi | 12.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 1, 2023 | EF2 | 18 mi | 1.59 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 1, 2023 | EF2 | 16 mi | 2.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 21, 2023 | EF2 | 13 mi | 5.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 29, 2021 | EF2 | 25 mi | 6.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 8, 2007 | EF2 | 25 mi | 3.92 mi | 0 / 9 |
| May 27, 2001 | F2 | 4 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 17, 1988 | F2 | 22 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1962 | F2 | 14 mi | 16.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 13, 1958 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 77, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Spotswood
The Storm Prediction Center has 63 hail reports within 10 miles of Spotswood since 1983, made on 43 separate days. Of these, 20 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently September 9, 2023. The most recent report is from September 9, 2023. June and July have the most reports, 17 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Spotswood
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is New Brunswick 3 SE, NJ, 6 miles north of Spotswood at 111 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 23°F. June and July are the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 49.5 inches over 82 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (26.0 of 49.5 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 46 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (20); a normal September there has highs of 78°F and 4.2 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 24 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 111 nights a year. Snowfall averages 29.0 inches a year, most of it in February. That 49.5 inches is more than at 33 of the 51 New Jersey stations used on this site (65%). Old Bridge, 3 miles east, has its own station (Freehold-Marlboro, NJ): 48.5 inches a year, 1.0 less than here, and the same July average high, 87°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Sandy Hook, NJ, 21 miles east, averaged 77°F in July and 38°F in January over 2021–2025. No month averaged 80°F. Sea level at the Sandy Hook tide gauge, 21 miles from Spotswood, has risen 1.68 ± 0.04 inches per decade from 1932 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 16.8 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 105 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 23 | 3.7 | 7 | 8.3 | 38 |
| Feb | 43 | 24 | 3.0 | 6 | 9.3 | 39 |
| Mar | 51 | 31 | 4.4 | 7 | 5.2 | 44 |
| Apr | 63 | 41 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.6 | 51 |
| May | 72 | 51 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.0 | 60 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 | 70 |
| Jul | 87 | 66 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 | 77 |
| Aug | 85 | 64 | 4.7 | 6 | 0.0 | 76 |
| Sep | 78 | 57 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 | 72 |
| Oct | 67 | 44 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.2 | 63 |
| Nov | 56 | 35 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.5 | 52 |
| Dec | 45 | 28 | 4.5 | 8 | 4.9 | 42 |
| Year | 64 | 44 | 49.5 | 82 | 29.0 | 57 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at New Brunswick 3 SE, NJ (111 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Sandy Hook, NJ, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Spotswood
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 315 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Spotswood: 176 thunderstorm wind reports, 76 flash floods, 26 heavy rain events, 19 lightning strikes and 18 floods. They killed 1 person and injured 42, and the NWS estimated $28.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on August 7, 2000. August has had the most flash floods, 33 of 76. Of the 455 New Jersey cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 225 have had fewer than Spotswood.
September 7, 1998: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Spotswood — 1 killed, 30 injured.
September 6, 2025: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Spotswood — 4 injured.
July 18, 2012: lightning strike 5 miles from the centre of Spotswood — 3 injured, $5,000 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Spotswood's ZIP code 08884 have filed 59 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $355,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Irene in 2011: 18 claims (31% of all) and $111,000. 44% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 395 New Jersey cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 165 have fewer than Spotswood.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Irene2011 | 18 | $111,000 |
Middlesex County, which includes Spotswood, has been named in 30 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 hurricanes, 5 floods, 5 severe storms, 4 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Remnants of Hurricane Ida, on September 5, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Middlesex County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively High for tornadoes, inland flooding and coastal flooding; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $282.4 million a year, the 2nd highest of 21 New Jersey counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $196.8 million (70%), 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 Spotswood
- Helmetta, NJ2 mi
- East Brunswick, NJ3 mi
- Old Bridge, NJ3 mi
- South River, NJ4 mi
- Monroe Township, NJ4 mi
- Milltown, NJ5 mi
- Sayreville, NJ5 mi
- North Brunswick, NJ6 mi
- Dayton, NJ6 mi
- Parlin, NJ7 mi
- Morganville, NJ7 mi
- Manalapan, NJ7 mi
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