NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Wasco, CA
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 Wasco, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 5 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 5
- 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 Wasco
The strongest of the 5 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F1 on November 1, 1964; its path came within 21 miles. Of the 5, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 2 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on May 6, 2013. Of the 705 California cities on this site, 79% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Wasco.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Wasco
By decade
- 2010s2
- 1990s2
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 1, 1964 | F1 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 2013 | EF0 | 24 mi | 0.44 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 27, 2010 | EF0 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 22, 1997 | F0 | 5 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 23, 1993 | F0 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 5 of 5, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Wasco
The Storm Prediction Center has no hail reports within 10 miles of Wasco since 1955.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Wasco
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wasco, CA, 2 miles southeast of Wasco at 291 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 100°F and low of 69°F; December is the coolest, at 59°F and 38°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 126 days a year, almost all from April to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 25 nights a year. That 7.1 inches is more than at 26 of the 226 California stations used on this site (12%). Shafter, 10 miles southeast, has its own station (Shafter 6E, CA): 7.8 inches a year, 0.7 more than here, and a July average high of 96°F against 100°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 59 | 39 | 1.3 | 4 |
| Feb | 65 | 42 | 1.2 | 4 |
| Mar | 71 | 46 | 1.4 | 3 |
| Apr | 77 | 50 | 0.6 | 2 |
| May | 86 | 57 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Jun | 94 | 63 | 0.1 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 69 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Aug | 99 | 66 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Sep | 94 | 62 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Oct | 82 | 53 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Nov | 69 | 44 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Dec | 59 | 38 | 1.1 | 3 |
| Year | 79 | 52 | 7.1 | 19 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Wasco, CA (291 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 Wasco
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 8 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Wasco: 6 floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 thunderstorm wind report. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $5,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 49 mph, on August 19, 2023.
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
Kern County, which includes Wasco, has been named in 40 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 17 fires, 7 floods, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Hilary, on November 21, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kern County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $417.0 million a year, the 16th highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $147.2 million (35%), 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 Wasco
- Shafter, CA10 mi
- Mc Farland, CA10 mi
- Delano, CA14 mi
- Earlimart, CA20 mi
- Richgrove, CA20 mi
- Pixley, CA25 mi
- Bakersfield, CA26 mi
- Terra Bella, CA30 mi
- Taft, CA31 mi
- Lost Hills, CA31 mi
- Tipton, CA32 mi
- Corcoran, CA35 mi
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