NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit West Lafayette, IN
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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of West Lafayette, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 118 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 10 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 118
- EF3 or stronger
- 10
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
24 deaths in all
What the records show for West Lafayette
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed West Lafayette; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 1 mile away. The record near West Lafayette begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 356 Indiana cities on this site, 37% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than West Lafayette. The highest rating among the 118 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 26, 1994, came within 2 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 18 people. Of the 118, 19 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 53 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on June 18, 2025. West Lafayette has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 68% of the 356 Indiana cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 99 times since 1965, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). West Lafayette has more hail reports within 10 miles than 81% of the 356 Indiana cities.
Compare West Lafayette's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near West Lafayette
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 25 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 West Lafayette: 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 Lafayette
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s28(1 EF3+)
- 2000s16
- 1990s10(1 EF3+)
- 1980s6
- 1970s22(4 EF3+)
- 1960s20(3 EF3+)
- 1950s7(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 9 mi | 108.7 mi | 18 / 285 |
| Apr 26, 1994 | F4 | 2 mi | 14 mi | 3 / 70 |
| Mar 20, 1976 | F4 | 2 mi | 16.7 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 11 mi | 21.8 mi | 0 / 44 |
| Apr 9, 1953 | F3 | 15 mi | 156.7 mi | 3 / 22 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF3 | 10 mi | 37.91 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1978 | F3 | 3 mi | 27.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 12 mi | 25.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 29, 1963 | F3 | 16 mi | 23.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 21, 1961 | F3 | 11 mi | 23.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 24 mi | 10.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 12 mi | 15.16 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 118, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in West Lafayette
The Storm Prediction Center has 99 hail reports within 10 miles of West Lafayette since 1965, made on 64 separate days. Of these, 56 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on May 27, 2019. The most recent report is from March 31, 2023. April and June have the most reports, 22 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in West Lafayette
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is W Lafayette 6 NW, IN, 3 miles west of West Lafayette at 708 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 16°F. June is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 39.7 inches over 75 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 129 nights a year. Snowfall averages 18.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 39.7 inches is more than at 17 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (15%). Lafayette, 6 miles southeast, has its own station (Lafayette Purdue Univ Airport, IN): 37.0 inches a year, 2.7 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 16 | 2.2 | 5 | 5.9 |
| Feb | 37 | 20 | 1.9 | 5 | 5.2 |
| Mar | 48 | 29 | 2.6 | 5 | 2.3 |
| Apr | 61 | 39 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.4 |
| May | 72 | 51 | 4.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 60 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 52 | 3.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 41 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 50 | 32 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.9 |
| Dec | 37 | 22 | 2.4 | 6 | 4.2 |
| Year | 60 | 40 | 39.7 | 75 | 18.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at W Lafayette 6 NW, IN (708 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 Lafayette
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 244 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of West Lafayette: 194 thunderstorm wind reports, 42 floods, 6 flash floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 7, and the NWS estimated $3.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 104 mph, on September 28, 1999. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 103 have had fewer than West Lafayette.
June 21, 2011: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of West Lafayette — 1 killed, 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm wind gusts downed a 12 to 18 diameter tree fell on a vehicle traveling southbound on State Route 43, just north of West Lafayette. Two individuals were in the vehicle, with one fatality and one injury.”
June 11, 2026: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of West Lafayette — 4 injured, $100,000 damage.
July 8, 2001: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of West Lafayette — 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
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 Lafayette's ZIP code 47906 have filed 63 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $664,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 6% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 94 have fewer than West Lafayette.
Tippecanoe County, which includes West Lafayette, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 flood). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Tippecanoe County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $49.5 million a year, the 11th highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $20.6 million (42%), 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.