NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Vernon, FL
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
69 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Vernon, Florida since 1851, 25 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Mindy in 2021. Since 1950, 115 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 25
- Tropical storms
- 44
- Tornadoes
- 115
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Vernon
The strongest storm to pass near Vernon was Michael in 2018, a Category 4 hurricane with 150 mph winds when its centre passed 35 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1903, whose centre came within 3 miles. The record near Vernon begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Mindy in 2021, a tropical storm 73 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 9 systems, 3 of them at hurricane strength. Of the 69 systems, 9 have come since 2000. Vernon has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 48% of the 407 Florida cities on this site. The highest rating among the 115 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 31, 2022, came within 19 miles. Of the 115, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 64 have come since 2000. March has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on May 10, 2025. Of the 407 Florida cities, 55% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Vernon. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 7 times since 1996, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 407 Florida cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Vernon.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Vernon
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | MindySep 9 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2021 | FredAug 16 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2019 | NestorOct 19 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 10 | 35 mi | Category 4 (150 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2018 | AlbertoMay 28 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2009 | ClaudetteAug 17 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | FayAug 23 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2001 | BarryAug 6 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2000 | HeleneSep 22 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1998 | EarlSep 3 | 29 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 4 | 65 mi | Category 2 (96 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1995 | ErinAug 3 | 69 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1994 | BerylAug 16 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1994 | AlbertoJul 3 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1985 | KateNov 21 | 46 mi | Category 2 (97 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 26 mi | Category 3 (121 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 19 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1970 | BeckyJul 22 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1969 | Unnamed 1969 stormOct 1 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 15 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1964 | HildaOct 5 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1964 | DoraSep 11 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | DebbieSep 8 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1956 | FlossySep 25 | 4 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1953 | FlorenceSep 26 | 17 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1953 | AliceJun 6 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1948 | Unnamed 1948 stormJul 9 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormOct 7 | 75 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1939 | Unnamed 1939 stormAug 13 | 31 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1937 | Unnamed 1937 stormSep 20 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1937 | Unnamed 1937 stormAug 31 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormJul 31 | 48 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 1 | 24 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 14 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormSep 20 | 63 mi | Category 3 (123 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 15 | 67 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1919 | Unnamed 1919 stormJul 4 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1917 | Unnamed 1917 stormSep 29 | 24 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 4 | 27 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1914 | Unnamed 1914 stormSep 18 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 28 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormJun 29 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 12 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormNov 3 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 14 | 3 mi | Category 1 (83 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 17 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormAug 2 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormAug 3 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormJul 7 | 23 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 9 | 32 mi | Category 3 (121 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 23 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormOct 19 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 27 | 36 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 30 | 68 mi | Category 1 (93 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormSep 28 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormSep 21 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormAug 30 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 10 | 37 mi | Category 2 (101 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1880 | Unnamed 1880 stormAug 31 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormOct 16 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 10 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 3 | 43 mi | Category 3 (113 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormSep 20 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1875 | Unnamed 1875 stormSep 27 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1868 | Unnamed 1868 stormOct 4 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormAug 12 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1856 | Unnamed 1856 stormAug 31 | 15 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormAug 23 | 26 mi | Category 3 (110 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Vernon: 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 Vernon
By decade
- 2020s35(1 EF3+)
- 2010s10
- 2000s19
- 1990s18
- 1980s15
- 1970s10
- 1960s6(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 31, 2022 | EF3 | 19 mi | 12.14 mi | 2 / 1 |
| Dec 10, 1967 | F3 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2001 | F2 | 16 mi | 10 mi | 1 / 21 |
| May 10, 2025 | EF2 | 20 mi | 15.48 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jan 9, 2024 | EF2 | 22 mi | 12.89 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 10, 2021 | EF2 | 23 mi | 0.45 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 23, 2020 | EF2 | 18 mi | 17.24 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2001 | F2 | 24 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 16, 2000 | F2 | 17 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 10, 1967 | F2 | 15 mi | 9.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 28, 1963 | F2 | 16 mi | 5.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 30, 1963 | F2 | 8 mi | 61 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 115, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Vernon
The Storm Prediction Center has 7 hail reports within 10 miles of Vernon since 1996. Of these, 4 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on June 26, 2016. The most recent report is from March 18, 2022.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Vernon
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is De Funiak Springs 1 E, FL, 20 miles northwest of Vernon at 245 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 62°F and 40°F. July is the wettest at 7.5 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.6 inches; the year adds up to 64.7 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 55% of the year's precipitation (35.6 of 64.7 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 69 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (23); a normal September there has highs of 88°F and 6.0 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 85 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 26 nights a year. That 64.7 inches is more than at 111 of the 125 Florida stations used on this site (89%). Chipley, 15 miles east, has its own station (Chipley, FL): 61.0 inches a year, 3.7 less than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 92°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Panama City Beach, FL, 24 miles south, averaged 87°F in August and 60°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from June to September. Sea level at the Panama City Beach tide gauge, 24 miles from Vernon, has risen 1.91 ± 0.15 inches per decade from 1989 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 19.1 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 116 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 62 | 40 | 5.0 | 6 | 60 |
| Feb | 66 | 43 | 5.1 | 6 | 62 |
| Mar | 73 | 48 | 5.2 | 6 | 67 |
| Apr | 79 | 54 | 4.3 | 5 | 71 |
| May | 86 | 63 | 4.0 | 5 | 78 |
| Jun | 90 | 70 | 7.1 | 9 | 83 |
| Jul | 92 | 72 | 7.5 | 10 | 85 |
| Aug | 91 | 72 | 7.0 | 11 | 87 |
| Sep | 88 | 67 | 6.0 | 7 | 84 |
| Oct | 81 | 57 | 3.6 | 4 | 78 |
| Nov | 71 | 47 | 4.4 | 5 | 71 |
| Dec | 64 | 42 | 5.5 | 6 | 64 |
| Year | 79 | 56 | 64.7 | 80 | 74 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at De Funiak Springs 1 E, FL (245 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Panama City Beach, FL, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Vernon
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 103 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Vernon: 72 thunderstorm wind reports, 18 flash floods, 9 floods, 3 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $23.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on November 15, 2006. August has had the most flash floods, 5 of 18. Of the 277 Florida cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 217 have had fewer than Vernon.
September 16, 2020: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Vernon — $18.5 million damage.
NWS: “Extensive flash flooding occurred throughout Washington county with record flooding recorded along Holmes Creek at Vernon. Damage cost was estimated.”
August 18, 2013: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Vernon — $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “Heavy rainfall caused widespread flash flooding with impacts mainly to roads across Washington county. Numerous dirt roads were damaged and some homes may have been affected by water.”
April 1, 2009: flood 9 miles from the centre of Vernon — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Major flooding along the Choctawhatchee River closed roads along the Walton-Washington County line between Ebro and Bruce to the Choctawhatchee Bay, including the Steelfield and Bunker communities. Several homes were flooded.”
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 Vernon's ZIP code 32462 have filed 67 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1990, and were paid $826,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Tropical Storm Alberto in 1994: 11 claims (16% of all) and $267,000. The year with the most claims was 1998, with 24. 36% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 340 Florida cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 87 have fewer than Vernon.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm Alberto1994 | 11 | $267,000 |
Washington County, which includes Vernon, has been named in 41 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1975, 24 of them major disasters (by incident: 20 hurricanes, 7 severe storms, 4 fires, 4 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Washington County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, tornadoes and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Very Low for hail and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.5 million a year, the 50th highest of 67 Florida counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.1 million (60%), is from hurricanes.
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 Vernon
- Ponce De Leon, FL10 mi
- Chipley, FL15 mi
- Bonifay, FL21 mi
- Freeport, FL21 mi
- Defuniak Springs, FL21 mi
- Youngstown, FL22 mi
- Inlet Beach, FL23 mi
- Westville, FL24 mi
- Fountain, FL25 mi
- Lynn Haven, FL25 mi
- Panama City Beach, FL25 mi
- Santa Rosa Beach, FL26 mi
All Florida cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Vernon with another place →