NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Waynesville, MO
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 Waynesville, Missouri since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 68 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 68
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
9 deaths in all
What the records show for Waynesville
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Waynesville; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 45 mph winds when its centre passed 56 miles away. The record near Waynesville begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Waynesville has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 56% of the 334 Missouri cities on this site. The highest rating among the 68 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 7 times; the most recent, on December 31, 2010, came within 7 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on May 4, 2003, killed 4 people. Of the 68, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities, 82% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Waynesville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 131 times since 1959, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Waynesville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 60% of the 334 Missouri cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Waynesville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 17 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Waynesville: 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 Waynesville
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s15(2 EF3+)
- 2000s20(5 EF3+)
- 1990s7
- 1980s4
- 1970s2
- 1960s9
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 2003 | F3 | 23 mi | 14 mi | 4 / 27 |
| Jan 7, 2008 | EF3 | 15 mi | 50.39 mi | 3 / 18 |
| Dec 31, 2010 | EF3 | 23 mi | 11 mi | 2 / 6 |
| Dec 31, 2010 | EF3 | 7 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jan 7, 2008 | EF3 | 11 mi | 4.67 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 7, 2008 | EF3 | 9 mi | 1.77 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Mar 12, 2006 | F3 | 24 mi | 32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF2 | 20 mi | 10.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 1, 1999 | F2 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 15, 1988 | F2 | 1 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 16, 1982 | F2 | 22 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 68, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Waynesville
The Storm Prediction Center has 131 hail reports within 10 miles of Waynesville since 1959, made on 82 separate days. Of these, 85 were 1 inch across or larger, and 12 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on June 21, 1977. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. April has the most reports, 40.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Waynesville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Waynesville 2 W, MO, 2 miles west of Waynesville at 890 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 44°F and 22°F. May is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 2.7 inches; the year adds up to 47.6 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 38 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 110 nights a year. Snowfall averages 10.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 47.6 inches is more than at 114 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (85%). Newburg, 14 miles east, has its own station (Rolla Missouri S&T, MO): 47.3 inches a year, 0.3 less than here, and the same July average high, 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 44 | 22 | 2.7 | 4 | 4.8 |
| Feb | 49 | 26 | 2.7 | 5 | 2.9 |
| Mar | 59 | 34 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.9 |
| Apr | 69 | 44 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 77 | 54 | 5.2 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 89 | 67 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 65 | 4.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 56 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 71 | 45 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 58 | 35 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 48 | 27 | 2.9 | 5 | 1.0 |
| Year | 68 | 45 | 47.6 | 72 | 10.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Waynesville 2 W, MO (890 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 Waynesville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 166 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Waynesville: 96 thunderstorm wind reports, 33 flash floods, 18 floods, 18 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 6 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $16.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 91 mph, on May 5, 1996. August has had the most flash floods, 15 of 33. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 233 have had fewer than Waynesville.
August 6, 2013: flash flood in Waynesville — 2 killed, $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “This storm report will be a summary of the total damage for the Waynesville area and Pulaski County for this flooding event. Approximately 90 percent of the roads in the county were damaged with 65 percent of the roads had major damage.”
November 8, 2024: flood 7 miles from the centre of Waynesville — 2 killed, $25,000 damage.
December 26, 2015: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Waynesville — 2 killed.
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 Waynesville's ZIP code 65583 have filed 136 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $2.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Late spring severe storms in 2017: 12 claims (9% of all) and $371,000. The year with the most claims was 2013, with 44. 27% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 115 have fewer than Waynesville.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Late spring severe storms2017 | 12 | $371,000 |
Pulaski County, which includes Waynesville, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 13 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding, on January 1, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pulaski County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $29.0 million a year, the 28th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $13.2 million (45%), 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 Waynesville
- Saint Robert, MO3 mi
- Fort Leonard Wood, MO7 mi
- Crocker, MO10 mi
- Richland, MO12 mi
- Dixon, MO13 mi
- Newburg, MO14 mi
- Plato, MO19 mi
- Iberia, MO20 mi
- Rolla, MO24 mi
- Lebanon, MO27 mi
- Vienna, MO28 mi
- Licking, MO29 mi
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