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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit West Salem, OH

Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.

5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of West Salem, Ohio since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 101 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
5

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
101

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
3

24 deaths in all

Tropical storms and hurricanes near West Salem

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of West Salem, Ohio, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
1995OpalOct 614 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 4
1989HugoSep 2269 miTropical storm (43 mph)Category 5
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 2248 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 4
1902Unnamed 1902 stormJun 2933 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1892Unnamed 1892 stormSep 1369 miTropical storm (56 mph)Tropical storm

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in West Salem: 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 Salem

By decade

  • 2020s9
  • 2010s14
  • 2000s14
  • 1990s28(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s7
  • 1970s19(1 EF3+)
  • 1960s7(1 EF3+)
  • 1950s3
Strongest tornadoes near West Salem, Ohio
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Apr 11, 1965F420 mi22 mi18 / 200
May 10, 1973F320 mi50.1 mi6 / 100
Jul 12, 1992F320 mi7 mi0 / 4
Apr 14, 2019EF216 mi17 mi0 / 5
Sep 4, 2017EF225 mi16.67 mi0 / 2
Sep 16, 2010EF215 mi11.47 mi0 / 0
Nov 12, 2003F215 mi12 mi0 / 3
Nov 10, 2002F21 mi5 mi0 / 0
Nov 10, 2002F24 mi9.5 mi0 / 0
May 21, 2001F211 mi7.5 mi0 / 0
Jul 12, 1992F219 mi2 mi0 / 3
Jul 12, 1992F219 mi0.5 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 101, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

How to read this page

A storm is listed when the centre of its track passed within 75 miles of West Salem while it was at least a tropical storm, which is the reach of damaging wind and rain for a typical hurricane. Being on the list does not mean the city took a direct hit; the "closest" column says how near the centre came. Tornadoes are counted when any part of the path came within 25 miles.

Tornado records before the 1990s are thinner, because weak tornadoes in open country often went unreported before Doppler radar and mobile phones. A rise in the decade counts is mostly better reporting, not a change in the weather.

Tracks come from the National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database, tornadoes from the Storm Prediction Center's database. Both are the official federal records and both are revised as old storms are re-analysed.

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