NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Sunman, IN
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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Sunman, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1915. Since 1950, 84 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 10 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 84
- EF3 or stronger
- 10
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
23 deaths in all
What the records show for Sunman
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Sunman; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1892, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Sunman begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1915, a tropical storm 44 miles away. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 88% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Sunman. The strongest of the 84 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 20 miles, and it killed 3 people. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 11 people. Of the 84, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 41 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 25. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Of the 356 Indiana cities, 83% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Sunman. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 38 times since 1977, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 356 Indiana cities, 83% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Sunman.
Compare Sunman's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Sunman
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Sunman: 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 Sunman
By decade
- 2020s24
- 2010s10(1 EF3+)
- 2000s7
- 1990s17(2 EF3+)
- 1980s2(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16(5 EF3+)
- 1960s5(1 EF3+)
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 20 mi | 20.8 mi | 3 / 210 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 23 mi | 35.6 mi | 11 / 190 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 16 mi | 35.6 mi | 4 / 17 |
| Jul 9, 1980 | F4 | 25 mi | 11 mi | 2 / 25 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 9 mi | 33 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 17 mi | 27.1 mi | 0 / 104 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 13 mi | 8.69 mi | 3 / 5 |
| Apr 9, 1999 | F3 | 19 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 1, 1977 | F3 | 22 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 17 |
| May 10, 1969 | F3 | 18 mi | 54.5 mi | 0 / 25 |
| Jul 30, 2004 | F2 | 20 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F2 | 3 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 84, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Sunman
The Storm Prediction Center has 38 hail reports within 10 miles of Sunman since 1977, made on 29 separate days. Of these, 21 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on August 25, 2018. The most recent report is from May 7, 2024. May has the most reports, 9.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Sunman
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Brookville, IN, 13 miles north of Sunman at 630 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 21°F. June is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 44.0 inches over 82 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 32 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 119 nights a year. Snowfall averages 17.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 44.0 inches is more than at 61 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (53%). Guilford, 8 miles east, has its own station (Cincinnati-Fernbank, OH): 47.6 inches a year, 3.6 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 21 | 3.4 | 7 | 6.1 |
| Feb | 42 | 23 | 2.7 | 6 | 5.0 |
| Mar | 53 | 31 | 3.6 | 7 | 2.1 |
| Apr | 66 | 41 | 4.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 51 | 4.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 60 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 64 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 62 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 55 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 68 | 42 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Dec | 43 | 26 | 3.4 | 8 | 4.0 |
| Year | 65 | 42 | 44.0 | 82 | 17.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Brookville, IN (630 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 Sunman
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 164 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Sunman: 115 thunderstorm wind reports, 23 flash floods, 23 floods and 3 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on June 15, 2010. June has had the most flash floods, 8 of 23. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 271 have had fewer than Sunman.
June 19, 2021: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Sunman — $500,000 damage.
March 28, 1997: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Sunman — $100,000 damage.
March 28, 1997: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Sunman — $100,000 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
Ripley County, which includes Sunman, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Ripley County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.1 million a year, the 44th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.0 million (50%), 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.