NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Tularosa, NM
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 Tularosa, New Mexico since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 12 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 12
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Tularosa
The strongest of the 12 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on May 27, 1982; its path came within 14 miles. Of the 12, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 4 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 5. The most recent tornado was on March 13, 2020. Tularosa has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 62% of the 94 New Mexico cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 15 times since 1960, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 94 New Mexico cities, 54% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Tularosa.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Tularosa
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s2
- 2000s1
- 1990s1
- 1980s3
- 1970s2
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1982 | F2 | 14 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 4, 2019 | EF1 | 11 mi | 0.31 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 4, 1991 | F1 | 2 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 22, 1989 | F1 | 14 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1959 | F1 | 14 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1959 | F1 | 8 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EF0 | 19 mi | 0.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 26, 2015 | EF0 | 23 mi | 0.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 2007 | EF0 | 21 mi | 0.19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1987 | F0 | 18 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 2, 1979 | F0 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 24, 1970 | F0 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 12, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Tularosa
The Storm Prediction Center has 15 hail reports within 10 miles of Tularosa since 1960, made on 13 separate days. Of these, 12 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on May 24, 1999. The most recent report is from September 29, 2025. May has the most reports, 6.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Tularosa
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Tularosa, NM, 2 miles southwest of Tularosa at 4,422 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 56°F and 29°F. July and August are the wettest at 1.8 inches of precipitation on average and March and April the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 11.1 inches over 29 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 91 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 73 nights a year. That 11.1 inches is more than at 22 of the 58 New Mexico stations used on this site (38%). Mescalero, 17 miles east, has its own station (Cloudcroft, NM): 28.5 inches a year, 17.4 more than here, and a July average high of 72°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56 | 29 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Feb | 61 | 33 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Mar | 69 | 39 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Apr | 77 | 45 | 0.4 | 1 |
| May | 85 | 53 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Jun | 94 | 62 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Jul | 93 | 66 | 1.8 | 4 |
| Aug | 91 | 65 | 1.8 | 5 |
| Sep | 86 | 59 | 1.7 | 3 |
| Oct | 76 | 48 | 1.1 | 3 |
| Nov | 64 | 37 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Dec | 55 | 30 | 0.9 | 2 |
| Year | 75 | 47 | 11.1 | 29 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Tularosa, NM (4,422 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 Tularosa
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 23 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Tularosa: 11 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 flash floods and 3 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $376,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 28, 2008. July has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 92 New Mexico cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 38 have had fewer than Tularosa.
May 28, 2008: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Tularosa — $370,000 damage.
NWS: “A wet microburst estimated at 80 mph destroyed a double wide mobile home, flipped several others, unroofed a few homes, and blew down several trees, power poles and power lines.”
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
Otero County, which includes Tularosa, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1984, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 fires, 5 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides, on July 22, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Otero County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail and inland flooding; Relatively Low for strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $43.3 million a year, the 9th highest of 33 New Mexico counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $26.8 million (62%), 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 Tularosa
- Mescalero, NM17 mi
- Alamogordo, NM18 mi
- Holloman Afb, NM18 mi
- Cloudcroft, NM22 mi
- Ruidoso, NM27 mi
- Ruidoso Downs, NM31 mi
- Alto, NM31 mi
- Capitan, NM56 mi
- Las Cruces, NM67 mi
- Truth Or Consequences, NM68 mi
- Hatch, NM75 mi
- Mesquite, NM75 mi
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