NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Tipton, 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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Tipton, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 125 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 15 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 125
- EF3 or stronger
- 15
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
58 deaths in all
What the records show for Tipton
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Tipton; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 35 miles away. The record near Tipton begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 5 systems, one has come since 2000. Tipton has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 63% of the 356 Indiana cities on this site. The highest rating among the 125 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on April 11, 1965, came within 21 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 28 people. Of the 125, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 34. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Tipton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 76% of the 356 Indiana cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 46 times since 1966, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 356 Indiana cities, 74% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Tipton.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Tipton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Tipton: 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 Tipton
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s23(3 EF3+)
- 2000s18(1 EF3+)
- 1990s17(2 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s22(1 EF3+)
- 1960s16(7 EF3+)
- 1950s11(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 8 mi | 45.7 mi | 28 / 123 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 11 mi | 48 mi | 25 / 835 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 21 mi | 21.8 mi | 0 / 44 |
| Apr 9, 1953 | F3 | in town | 156.7 mi | 3 / 22 |
| Mar 6, 1961 | F3 | 14 mi | 2 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Aug 24, 2016 | EF3 | 14 mi | 8.63 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF3 | 25 mi | 37.91 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 2010 | EF3 | 24 mi | 7.45 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Sep 20, 2002 | F3 | 22 mi | 112 mi | 0 / 127 |
| Jun 11, 1998 | F3 | 8 mi | 18.5 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 24 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 7, 1977 | F3 | 5 mi | 11.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 125, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Tipton
The Storm Prediction Center has 46 hail reports within 10 miles of Tipton since 1966, made on 34 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on April 3, 1974. The most recent report is from March 14, 2024. May has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Tipton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Tipton 5 SW, IN, 5 miles southwest of Tipton at 890 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.2 inches; the year adds up to 42.4 inches over 78 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 132 nights a year. That 42.4 inches is more than at 51 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (44%). Sharpsville, 7 miles north, has its own station (Kokomo 3 WSW, IN): 44.5 inches a year, 2.1 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35 | 17 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Feb | 39 | 20 | 2.2 | 5 |
| Mar | 50 | 29 | 3.1 | 7 |
| Apr | 63 | 39 | 4.4 | 8 |
| May | 73 | 50 | 4.5 | 8 |
| Jun | 82 | 60 | 5.4 | 8 |
| Jul | 85 | 62 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Aug | 84 | 60 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Sep | 79 | 53 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Oct | 66 | 41 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Nov | 51 | 31 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Dec | 40 | 23 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Year | 62 | 40 | 42.4 | 78 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Tipton 5 SW, IN (890 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 Tipton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 101 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Tipton: 88 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 floods and 4 flash floods. They killed 2 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $896,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on June 6, 2008.
April 19, 2013: flood 8 miles from the centre of Tipton — 2 killed, $26,000 damage.
June 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Tipton — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
March 26, 2026: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Tipton — $150,000 damage.
NWS: “A pole barn and trees were damaged by thunderstorm wind gusts. Nearby a garage roof was blown off and a fence was blown down.”
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 Tipton's ZIP code 46072 have filed 89 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1989, and were paid $1.5 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from 2026-08-Indiana-Flooding in 2026: 17 claims (19% of all) and $161,000. The year with the most claims was 2013, with 39. 19% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 106 have fewer than Tipton.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-Indiana-Flooding2026 | 17 | $161,000 |
Tipton County, which includes Tipton, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on August 25, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Tipton County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.9 million a year, the 79th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.5 million (51%), 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 Tipton
- Atlanta, IN5 mi
- Sharpsville, IN7 mi
- Arcadia, IN8 mi
- Cicero, IN11 mi
- Elwood, IN11 mi
- Sheridan, IN14 mi
- Kokomo, IN14 mi
- Greentown, IN15 mi
- Frankton, IN15 mi
- Russiaville, IN15 mi
- Noblesville, IN16 mi
- Kirklin, IN18 mi
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