NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Waikoloa, HI
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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Waikoloa, Hawaii since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Linda in 2021. Since 1950, 1 tornado has touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 1
- 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 Waikoloa
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Waikoloa; the strongest was Iselle in 2014, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 49 miles away. The record near Waikoloa begins with Iselle in 2014; the most recent system was Linda in 2021, a tropical storm 75 miles away. Of the 57 Hawaii cities on this site, 72% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Waikoloa. The only tornado within 25 miles was an F2 on January 28, 1971; its path came within 24 miles. Of the 57 Hawaii cities, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Waikoloa.
Compare Waikoloa's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Waikoloa
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Waikoloa: 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 Waikoloa
By decade
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 28, 1971 | F2 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 4 |
The strongest 1 of 1, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Waikoloa
The Storm Prediction Center has no hail reports within 10 miles of Waikoloa since 1955.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Waikoloa
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Puukohola Heiau 98.1, HI, 6 miles northwest of Waikoloa at 133 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 75°F; January is the coolest, at 82°F and 68°F. January is the wettest at 1.5 inches of precipitation on average and July the driest at 0.2 inches; the year adds up to 8.9 inches over 16 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 12 days a year, almost all from July to October. A night below freezing comes less than once a year on average. That 8.9 inches is more than at 0 of the 33 Hawaii stations used on this site (0%). Honokaa, 20 miles northeast, has its own station (Paauilo 221, HI): 90.3 inches a year, 81.4 more than here, and an August average high of 83°F against 89°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Kawaihae, HI, 7 miles northwest, averaged 82°F in September and 78°F in February over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from June to November. Sea level at the Kawaihae tide gauge, 7 miles from Waikoloa, has risen 1.50 ± 0.19 inches per decade from 1988 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 15.0 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 90 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 82 | 68 | 1.5 | 2 | 78 |
| Feb | 83 | 68 | 0.7 | 2 | 78 |
| Mar | 84 | 70 | 0.9 | 2 | 78 |
| Apr | 85 | 71 | 0.4 | 1 | 79 |
| May | 86 | 72 | 0.5 | 1 | 80 |
| Jun | 87 | 74 | 0.6 | 1 | 81 |
| Jul | 88 | 75 | 0.2 | 1 | 81 |
| Aug | 89 | 75 | 0.8 | 1 | 82 |
| Sep | 88 | 75 | 0.6 | 1 | 82 |
| Oct | 87 | 74 | 0.8 | 1 | 81 |
| Nov | 86 | 73 | 0.7 | 1 | 80 |
| Dec | 84 | 70 | 1.2 | 2 | 79 |
| Year | 86 | 72 | 8.9 | 16 | 80 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Puukohola Heiau 98.1, HI (133 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Kawaihae, HI, 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 Waikoloa
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 101 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Waikoloa: 88 heavy rain events, 12 flash floods and 1 flood. They killed 0 people and injured 2. December has had the most flash floods, 3 of 12. Of the 51 Hawaii cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 9 have had fewer than Waikoloa.
November 3, 2018: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Waikoloa — 2 injured.
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
Hawaii County, which includes Waikoloa, has been named in 35 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 fires, 6 hurricanes, 4 earthquakes, 3 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Lala, on October 7, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hawaii County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes and coastal flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $365.0 million a year, the 2nd highest of 5 Hawaii counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $185.3 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 Waikoloa
- Kamuela, HI8 mi
- Kapaau, HI19 mi
- Honokaa, HI20 mi
- Kailua Kona, HI22 mi
- Kealakekua, HI30 mi
- Holualoa, HI37 mi
- Captain Cook, HI45 mi
- Hilo, HI48 mi
- Volcano, HI51 mi
- Mountain View, HI53 mi
- Kurtistown, HI54 mi
- Keaau, HI55 mi
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