NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Wahpeton, ND
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 Wahpeton, North Dakota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 87 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 87
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Wahpeton
The highest rating among the 87 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 7, 2010, came within 12 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on July 2, 1955, killed 2 people. Of the 87, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 50 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 30. The most recent tornado was on September 18, 2025. Wahpeton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 78% of the 37 North Dakota cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 78 times since 1958, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Wahpeton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 59% of the 37 North Dakota cities.
Compare Wahpeton's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Wahpeton
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s21(1 EF3+)
- 2000s22
- 1990s5
- 1980s8(1 EF3+)
- 1970s8
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s9(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2, 1955 | F4 | 16 mi | 9.1 mi | 2 / 19 |
| Aug 7, 2010 | EF4 | 12 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 1982 | F3 | 21 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1964 | F3 | 12 mi | 5.2 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Jul 2, 1955 | F3 | 6 mi | 18.7 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jul 1, 1952 | F3 | 19 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 2022 | EF2 | 18 mi | 9.77 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 4, 2014 | EF2 | 23 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 26, 1977 | F2 | 23 mi | 110.4 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Jun 8, 1964 | F2 | 21 mi | 26.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 25, 1960 | F2 | 15 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 29, 1953 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 87, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Wahpeton
The Storm Prediction Center has 78 hail reports within 10 miles of Wahpeton since 1958, made on 52 separate days. Of these, 48 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 14, 1998. The most recent report is from June 28, 2025. July has the most reports, 29.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Wahpeton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rothsay, MN, 23 miles northeast of Wahpeton at 1,204 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 80°F and low of 60°F; January is the coolest, at 18°F and -1°F. June is the wettest at 3.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 0.6 inches; the year adds up to 24.8 inches over 53 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 171 nights a year. Snowfall averages 49.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 24.8 inches is more than at 29 of the 31 North Dakota stations used on this site (94%). Fergus Falls, MN, 29 miles east, has its own station (Fergus Falls, MN): 27.0 inches a year, 2.2 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | -1 | 0.8 | 2 | 11.4 |
| Feb | 23 | 3 | 0.6 | 2 | 7.7 |
| Mar | 36 | 17 | 1.1 | 3 | 7.2 |
| Apr | 53 | 31 | 2.1 | 4 | 4.1 |
| May | 67 | 45 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 76 | 56 | 3.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 80 | 60 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 78 | 58 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 70 | 49 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 55 | 35 | 2.3 | 5 | 1.6 |
| Nov | 38 | 21 | 0.9 | 2 | 6.9 |
| Dec | 24 | 7 | 0.9 | 3 | 10.7 |
| Year | 52 | 32 | 24.8 | 53 | 49.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rothsay, MN (1,204 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 Wahpeton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 93 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Wahpeton: 74 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 4 floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 83 mph, on May 2, 2012. June has had the most flash floods, 5 of 13. Of the 31 North Dakota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 25 have had fewer than Wahpeton.
June 5, 1999: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Wahpeton — 1 injured, $75,000 damage.
NWS: “A 5 year-old boy was injured when parts of a neighbors roof came through a window in his house. He received 10 to 12 stitches on his neck and head from glass cuts.”
June 29, 2005: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Wahpeton — $225,000 damage.
NWS: “A mule barn under construction was blown down at the Bagg bonanza farm.”
July 10, 2011: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Wahpeton — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous large tree limbs were broken down and some shingles were torn off homes in Mooreton. Widespread wind damage was evident throughout Barney and Mooreton townships.”
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 Wahpeton's ZIP code 58075 have filed 159 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $1.7 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 107 claims (67% of all) and $1.3 million, then Winter storm in 2009 with 10. 79% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 20 North Dakota cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 9 have fewer than Wahpeton.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 107 | $1.3 million |
| Winter storm2009 | 10 | $109,000 |
Richland County, which includes Wahpeton, has been named in 37 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 31 of them major disasters (by incident: 22 floods, 10 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, on February 15, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Richland County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail; Relatively Low for tornadoes and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $12.5 million a year, the 11th highest of 53 North Dakota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.8 million (31%), 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 Wahpeton
- Breckenridge, MN7 mi
- Barnesville, MN28 mi
- Fergus Falls, MN29 mi
- Horace, ND32 mi
- Pelican Rapids, MN37 mi
- Fargo, ND40 mi
- Moorhead, MN40 mi
- Dilworth, MN41 mi
- Glyndon, MN42 mi
- West Fargo, ND42 mi
- Hawley, MN44 mi
- Sisseton, SD46 mi
All North Dakota cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Wahpeton with another place →