NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Tahoka, 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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Tahoka, Texas since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 114 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 114
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
26 deaths in all
What the records show for Tahoka
The strongest of the 114 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 11, 1970; its path came within 25 miles, and it killed 26 people. Of the 114, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 24 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 36. The most recent tornado was on May 23, 2020. Tahoka has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 56% of the 753 Texas cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 99 times since 1962, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Tahoka has more hail reports within 10 miles than 61% of the 753 Texas cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Tahoka
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s9
- 2000s14
- 1990s15
- 1980s23
- 1970s21(1 EF3+)
- 1960s21
- 1950s10(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 11, 1970 | F5 | 25 mi | 8.4 mi | 26 / 500 |
| Apr 21, 1957 | F4 | 19 mi | 15.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| May 24, 1957 | F3 | 3 mi | 37.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 5, 2019 | EF2 | in town | 17.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 29, 1987 | F2 | 24 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Aug 12, 1971 | F2 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 12, 1971 | F2 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 12, 1971 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1971 | F2 | 14 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1970 | F2 | 9 mi | 6.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1969 | F2 | 12 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 8, 1965 | F2 | 21 mi | 19.4 mi | 0 / 8 |
The strongest 12 of 114, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Tahoka
The Storm Prediction Center has 99 hail reports within 10 miles of Tahoka since 1962, made on 82 separate days. Of these, 75 were 1 inch across or larger, and 19 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on May 22, 1973. The most recent report is from June 6, 2025. May and June have the most reports, 30 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Tahoka
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Tahoka, TX, 2 miles southeast of Tahoka at 3,120 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 56°F and 28°F. May and September are the wettest at 2.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 0.7 inches; the year adds up to 20.6 inches over 36 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 88 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 80 nights a year. Snowfall averages 4.6 inches a year, most of it in February. That 20.6 inches is more than at 43 of the 312 Texas stations used on this site (14%). Slaton, 19 miles northeast, has its own station (Lubbock, TX): 18.5 inches a year, 2.1 less than here, and the same July average high, 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56 | 28 | 0.8 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Feb | 60 | 31 | 0.7 | 2 | 1.4 |
| Mar | 68 | 38 | 1.1 | 2 | 0.1 |
| Apr | 77 | 46 | 1.3 | 3 | 0.1 |
| May | 84 | 57 | 2.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 92 | 66 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 93 | 69 | 2.3 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 92 | 68 | 2.2 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 85 | 60 | 2.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 76 | 49 | 1.7 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 37 | 1.1 | 2 | 0.7 |
| Dec | 57 | 30 | 0.8 | 2 | 1.3 |
| Year | 75 | 48 | 20.6 | 36 | 4.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Tahoka, TX (3,120 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 Tahoka
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 59 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Tahoka: 43 thunderstorm wind reports, 7 floods, 5 flash floods, 3 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $261.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on May 29, 2024. May has had the most flash floods, 2 of 5. Of the 745 Texas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 68 have had fewer than Tahoka.
May 4, 2015: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Tahoka — 1 injured, $250.3 million damage.
June 11, 1999: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Tahoka — $3.4 million damage.
NWS: “Strong wind blew down or snapped over 350 power poles across the southern half of the county. The Southwestern Public Service, an electric company, reported 28 power transmission structures destroyed by the strong wind.”
June 11, 1999: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Tahoka — $3.0 million damage.
NWS: “Strong wind destroyed a barn, and combined with hail to destroy crops.”
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
Lynn County, which includes Tahoka, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1992, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 fires, 4 hurricanes, 3 ice storms, 3 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 17, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lynn County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail; Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.1 million a year, the 185th highest of 254 Texas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.1 million (34%), is from hail.
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 Tahoka
- Slaton, TX19 mi
- Wolfforth, TX23 mi
- Lubbock, TX25 mi
- Post, TX26 mi
- Brownfield, TX28 mi
- Lamesa, TX34 mi
- Idalou, TX35 mi
- Shallowater, TX36 mi
- Levelland, TX44 mi
- Abernathy, TX46 mi
- Seagraves, TX47 mi
- Littlefield, TX56 mi
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