NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Van Wert, 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 Van Wert, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 114 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 114
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
22 deaths in all
What the records show for Van Wert
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Van Wert; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 46 miles away. The record near Van Wert begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 605 Ohio cities on this site, 53% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Van Wert. The highest rating among the 114 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on November 10, 2002, came within 2 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 13 people. Of the 114, 14 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 60 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Van Wert has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 92% of the 605 Ohio cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 55 times since 1974, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 605 Ohio cities, 69% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Van Wert.
Compare Van Wert's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Van Wert
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Van Wert: 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 Van Wert
By decade
- 2020s16
- 2010s28(1 EF3+)
- 2000s16(3 EF3+)
- 1990s15(1 EF3+)
- 1980s12
- 1970s16(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(2 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 20 mi | 32.5 mi | 13 / 104 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F4 | 2 mi | 52.8 mi | 4 / 17 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 10 mi | 52.5 mi | 4 / 125 |
| Feb 18, 1992 | F4 | 10 mi | 2.8 mi | 0 / 6 |
| May 27, 2019 | EF3 | 20 mi | 10.84 mi | 1 / 8 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F3 | 17 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 24, 2001 | F3 | 14 mi | 32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 14 mi | 8.7 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | EF2 | 16 mi | 4.68 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Nov 5, 2017 | EF2 | 20 mi | 5.41 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Nov 5, 2017 | EF2 | 22 mi | 38.72 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 24, 2016 | EF2 | 25 mi | 4.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 114, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Van Wert
The Storm Prediction Center has 55 hail reports within 10 miles of Van Wert since 1974, made on 36 separate days. Of these, 30 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on June 12, 1999. The most recent report is from April 2, 2025. May and June have the most reports, 15 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Van Wert
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Van Wert 1 S, OH, 2 miles south of Van Wert at 790 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 18°F. May is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.1 inches; the year adds up to 40.6 inches over 78 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 125 nights a year. Snowfall averages 17.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 40.6 inches is more than at 47 of the 129 Ohio stations used on this site (36%). Rockford, 14 miles south, has its own station (Celina 3 NE, OH): 40.1 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 18 | 2.6 | 6 | 6.2 |
| Feb | 36 | 21 | 2.1 | 5 | 4.5 |
| Mar | 47 | 29 | 2.5 | 6 | 2.5 |
| Apr | 60 | 39 | 3.6 | 8 | 0.4 |
| May | 72 | 51 | 4.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 61 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 64 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 62 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 64 | 43 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 50 | 33 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 37 | 24 | 2.6 | 6 | 2.9 |
| Year | 60 | 42 | 40.6 | 78 | 17.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Van Wert 1 S, OH (790 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 Van Wert
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 155 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Van Wert: 150 thunderstorm wind reports, 2 flash floods, 2 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on July 18, 1997.
July 20, 2023: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Van Wert — 1 killed.
July 10, 2017: flash flood in Van Wert — $425,000 damage.
NWS: “Several rounds of thunderstorms dropped anywhere from three to over six inches of rain onto already saturated ground in the southeastern part of the county. This caused extensive flooding, with several creeks, streams and ditches going over their banks.”
August 21, 2007: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Van Wert — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Emergency Management officials reported that all bridges and most roads were closed in Hoaglin and Jackson townships as a result of flowing water over many roads as well as water approaching the bottom of bridges. Property damage is estimated at $250,000.”
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 Van Wert's ZIP code 45891 have filed 16 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $114,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1981: 12 claims (75% of all) and $6,768. 75% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 318 Ohio cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 71 have fewer than Van Wert.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1981 | 12 | $6,768 |
Van Wert County, which includes Van Wert, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Van Wert County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and hail; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.5 million a year, the 78th highest of 88 Ohio counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.6 million (54%), 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 Van Wert
- Ohio City, OH8 mi
- Convoy, OH9 mi
- Delphos, OH13 mi
- Rockford, OH14 mi
- Fort Jennings, OH15 mi
- Payne, OH16 mi
- Spencerville, OH16 mi
- Cloverdale, OH17 mi
- Monroeville, IN17 mi
- Paulding, OH18 mi
- Oakwood, OH19 mi
- Decatur, IN19 mi
All Ohio cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Van Wert with another place →