NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit West Des Moines, IA
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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of West Des Moines, Iowa since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 187 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 10 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 187
- EF3 or stronger
- 10
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
8 deaths in all
What the records show for West Des Moines
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed West Des Moines; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 43 mph winds when its centre passed 42 miles away. West Des Moines is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 241 Iowa cities on this site. The highest rating among the 187 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 5 times; the most recent, on March 5, 2022, came within 9 miles. Of the 187, 16 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 97 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 68. The most recent tornado was on July 15, 2024. West Des Moines has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 92% of the 241 Iowa cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 551 times since 1956, with stones up to 3.25 inches. West Des Moines has more hail reports within 10 miles than 98% of the 241 Iowa cities.
Compare West Des Moines's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near West Des Moines
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in West Des Moines: 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 West Des Moines
By decade
- 2020s26(1 EF3+)
- 2010s30
- 2000s41(1 EF3+)
- 1990s22(4 EF3+)
- 1980s34(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16(3 EF3+)
- 1960s12
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 5, 2022 | EF4 | 9 mi | 70.57 mi | 6 / 5 |
| Jun 18, 1974 | F4 | 10 mi | 15.3 mi | 2 / 50 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F4 | 11 mi | 56 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 27, 1995 | F4 | 23 mi | 57 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 28, 1986 | F4 | 15 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 11, 2001 | F3 | 15 mi | 76.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F3 | 23 mi | 39 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Mar 22, 1991 | F3 | 23 mi | 43 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 29, 1979 | F3 | 16 mi | 57 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jun 13, 1976 | F3 | 20 mi | 17.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 21, 2024 | EF2 | 7 mi | 40.84 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | EF2 | 10 mi | 7.61 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 187, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in West Des Moines
The Storm Prediction Center has 551 hail reports within 10 miles of West Des Moines since 1956, made on 178 separate days. Of these, 350 were 1 inch across or larger, and 31 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.25 inches, fell on July 9, 2021. The most recent report is from May 19, 2025. June has the most reports, 133.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in West Des Moines
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Des Moines International Airport, IA, 6 miles southeast of West Des Moines at 957 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 31°F and 14°F. June is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.1 inches; the year adds up to 36.6 inches over 66 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 22 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 128 nights a year. Snowfall averages 36.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 36.6 inches is more than at 61 of the 124 Iowa stations used on this site (49%). Urbandale, 4 miles north, has its own station (Des Moines Wsfo-Johnston, IA): 36.4 inches a year, 0.2 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 14 | 1.1 | 3 | 9.4 |
| Feb | 36 | 18 | 1.3 | 4 | 10.2 |
| Mar | 49 | 30 | 2.2 | 5 | 4.4 |
| Apr | 62 | 41 | 4.0 | 8 | 1.2 |
| May | 72 | 52 | 5.2 | 9 | 0.2 |
| Jun | 82 | 62 | 5.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 66 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 64 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 63 | 43 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.5 |
| Nov | 48 | 30 | 1.9 | 4 | 2.7 |
| Dec | 36 | 20 | 1.6 | 4 | 7.9 |
| Year | 60 | 41 | 36.6 | 66 | 36.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Des Moines International Airport, IA (957 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 West Des Moines
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 1,048 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of West Des Moines: 512 thunderstorm wind reports, 296 heavy rain events, 125 floods, 92 flash floods and 23 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 48, and the NWS estimated $129.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 120 mph, on June 29, 1998. June has had the most flash floods, 52 of 92. Of the 240 Iowa cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 237 have had fewer than West Des Moines.
June 17, 2014: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of West Des Moines — 1 killed, $1,000 damage.
June 29, 1998: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of West Des Moines — 40 injured, $40.0 million damage.
October 5, 2018: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of West Des Moines — 3 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
Flood insurance policyholders in West Des Moines's 2 ZIP codes have filed 416 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $4.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Midwest Flooding in 1993: 192 claims (46% of all) and $2.3 million, then Flooding in 1990 with 79. 67% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 91 Iowa cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 84 have fewer than West Des Moines.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 192 | $2.3 million |
| Flooding1990 | 79 | $490,000 |
Polk County, which includes West Des Moines, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 floods, 8 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on September 1, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Polk County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively High for tornadoes, hail and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $137.6 million a year, the highest of 99 Iowa counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $60.6 million (44%), 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.