NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Thornville, OH
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 Thornville, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 72 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 72
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Thornville
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Thornville; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 63 miles away. The record near Thornville begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 12 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 53% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Thornville. The highest rating among the 72 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 31, 1985, came within 20 miles. Of the 72, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 38 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 15. The most recent tornado was on June 5, 2024. Of the 605 Ohio cities, 55% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Thornville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 67 times since 1981, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 54% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Thornville.
Compare Thornville's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Thornville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Thornville: 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 Thornville
By decade
- 2020s12
- 2010s19
- 2000s7
- 1990s5
- 1980s9(1 EF3+)
- 1970s10(2 EF3+)
- 1960s8
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 1985 | F3 | 20 mi | 29 mi | 1 / 20 |
| May 10, 1973 | F3 | 2 mi | 89.6 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Feb 22, 1971 | F3 | 24 mi | 6.8 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jun 5, 2024 | EF2 | 20 mi | 1.25 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Feb 28, 2024 | EF2 | 13 mi | 14.04 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 20, 2011 | EF2 | 8 mi | 3.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 16, 2010 | EF2 | 10 mi | 6.99 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 11, 2006 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 20, 2000 | F2 | 24 mi | 21 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Aug 25, 1998 | F2 | 19 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 13, 1981 | F2 | 5 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 24 mi | 5.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 72, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Thornville
The Storm Prediction Center has 67 hail reports within 10 miles of Thornville since 1981, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 32 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on April 7, 2006. The most recent report is from May 5, 2025. April has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Thornville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Newark Heath Airport, OH, 8 miles north of Thornville at 884 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 39°F and 21°F. May and June are the wettest at 4.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.2 inches; the year adds up to 38.8 inches over 81 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 15 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 122 nights a year. That 38.8 inches is more than at 30 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (23%). Heath, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Newark Wtr Wks, OH): 43.4 inches a year, 4.6 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39 | 21 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Feb | 42 | 23 | 2.2 | 6 |
| Mar | 52 | 31 | 3.4 | 7 |
| Apr | 65 | 41 | 3.8 | 8 |
| May | 75 | 51 | 4.1 | 9 |
| Jun | 83 | 60 | 4.1 | 8 |
| Jul | 86 | 63 | 4.0 | 7 |
| Aug | 84 | 61 | 3.4 | 7 |
| Sep | 79 | 53 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Oct | 67 | 42 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Nov | 54 | 33 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Dec | 43 | 27 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Year | 64 | 42 | 38.8 | 81 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Newark Heath Airport, OH (884 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 Thornville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 201 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Thornville: 150 thunderstorm wind reports, 33 floods, 17 flash floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $3.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 102 mph, on April 20, 2011. July has had the most flash floods, 9 of 17. Of the 597 Ohio cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 374 have had fewer than Thornville.
June 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind in Thornville — 1 killed, $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Numerous large branches and trees fell across Perry County. Over 10,000 customers lost electricity.”
March 20, 2020: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Thornville — $900,000 damage.
April 20, 2011: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Thornville — $175,000 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 Thornville's ZIP code 43076 have filed 15 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $54,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 61 have fewer than Thornville.
Perry County, which includes Thornville, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Landslides, on October 2, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Perry County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.1 million a year, the 82nd highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.6 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.