NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Sunnyvale, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Sunnyvale, Texas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Carla in 1961. Since 1950, 160 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 15 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 160
- EF3 or stronger
- 15
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
27 deaths in all
What the records show for Sunnyvale
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Sunnyvale; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. The record near Sunnyvale begins with an unnamed storm in 1871; the most recent system was Carla in 1961, a tropical storm 48 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 2 systems. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 753 Texas cities on this site, 67% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Sunnyvale. The highest rating among the 160 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on December 26, 2015, passed within a mile of the city centre. Of the 160, 9 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 50 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 39. The most recent tornado was on March 4, 2025. Sunnyvale has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 83% of the 753 Texas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 216 times since 1959, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Sunnyvale has more hail reports within 10 miles than 88% of the 753 Texas cities.
Compare Sunnyvale's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Sunnyvale
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 9 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1871 | Unnamed 1871 stormJun 5 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Sunnyvale: 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 Sunnyvale
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s31(5 EF3+)
- 2000s11(1 EF3+)
- 1990s40(1 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s36(2 EF3+)
- 1960s14(2 EF3+)
- 1950s10(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 26, 2015 | EF4 | in town | 13.04 mi | 10 / 468 |
| Apr 25, 1994 | F4 | 11 mi | 6 mi | 3 / 48 |
| Apr 2, 1957 | F3 | 15 mi | 17.2 mi | 10 / 200 |
| Oct 20, 2019 | EF3 | 13 mi | 15.76 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 26, 2015 | EF3 | 22 mi | 8.52 mi | 0 / 46 |
| Apr 3, 2012 | EF3 | 15 mi | 3.34 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 3, 2012 | EF3 | 7 mi | 7.73 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 28, 2000 | F3 | 24 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 13, 1984 | F3 | 4 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 28 |
| May 5, 1978 | F3 | 21 mi | 29.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 1976 | F3 | 15 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 12, 1969 | F3 | 9 mi | 45.9 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 160, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Sunnyvale
The Storm Prediction Center has 216 hail reports within 10 miles of Sunnyvale since 1959, made on 129 separate days. Of these, 167 were 1 inch across or larger, and 30 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on April 11, 2016. The most recent report is from May 6, 2025. April has the most reports, 69.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Sunnyvale
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Richardson, TX, 17 miles northwest of Sunnyvale at 678 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 94°F and low of 75°F; January is the coolest, at 56°F and 36°F. October is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and July the driest at 2.2 inches; the year adds up to 42.0 inches over 57 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 93 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 35 nights a year. That 42.0 inches is more than at 225 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (72%). Mesquite, 3 miles southwest, has its own station (Dallas Love Field, TX): 38.4 inches a year, 3.6 less than here, and a July average high of 97°F against 94°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56 | 36 | 2.8 | 5 |
| Feb | 60 | 40 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Mar | 69 | 48 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Apr | 75 | 55 | 3.5 | 5 |
| May | 83 | 64 | 5.2 | 7 |
| Jun | 90 | 71 | 3.8 | 5 |
| Jul | 94 | 75 | 2.2 | 4 |
| Aug | 95 | 75 | 2.5 | 4 |
| Sep | 87 | 67 | 3.3 | 4 |
| Oct | 78 | 56 | 5.3 | 6 |
| Nov | 66 | 46 | 3.0 | 4 |
| Dec | 57 | 38 | 3.4 | 4 |
| Year | 76 | 56 | 42.0 | 57 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Richardson, TX (678 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 Sunnyvale
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 165 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Sunnyvale: 100 thunderstorm wind reports, 52 flash floods, 7 floods and 6 lightning strikes. They killed 3 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $506.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on February 10, 2009. May has had the most flash floods, 11 of 52. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 680 have had fewer than Sunnyvale.
May 29, 2015: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Sunnyvale — 1 killed, $90,000 damage.
August 22, 2022: flash flood 4 miles from the centre of Sunnyvale — 1 killed, $20,000 damage.
June 26, 2007: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Sunnyvale — 1 killed.
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
Dallas County, which includes Sunnyvale, has been named in 28 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 6 severe storms, 4 fires, 4 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 17, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Dallas County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes, hail, 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 $973.2 million a year, the 2nd highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $323.7 million (33%), 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.