NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Westby, WI
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 Westby, Wisconsin since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 56 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 56
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Westby
The highest rating among the 56 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on June 5, 1980, came within 9 miles. Of the 56, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 25 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 17. The most recent tornado was on September 22, 2025. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site, 75% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Westby. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 54 times since 1961, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 50% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Westby.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Westby
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s7
- 2000s7
- 1990s5
- 1980s5(1 EF3+)
- 1970s7
- 1960s12
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 1980 | F3 | 9 mi | 26.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 19, 1957 | F3 | 22 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 15, 2022 | EF2 | 24 mi | 22.86 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 22, 2011 | EF2 | 20 mi | 13.79 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 18, 2005 | F2 | 10 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 8, 1988 | F2 | 8 mi | 27 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1986 | F2 | 19 mi | 5.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 5, 1980 | F2 | 11 mi | 70.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1979 | F2 | 24 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1964 | F2 | 16 mi | 20.3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 4, 1964 | F2 | 17 mi | 12.6 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 14, 1961 | F2 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 56, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Westby
The Storm Prediction Center has 54 hail reports within 10 miles of Westby since 1961, made on 36 separate days. Of these, 31 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on August 4, 1989. The most recent report is from June 24, 2024. April has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Westby
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Viroqua, WI, 7 miles south of Westby at 1,255 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 79°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 23°F and 6°F. June is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.1 inches; the year adds up to 38.1 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 165 nights a year. Snowfall averages 47.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 38.1 inches is more than at 145 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (88%). Cashton, 7 miles northeast, has its own station (Cashton, WI): 35.0 inches a year, 3.1 less than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 79°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 23 | 6 | 1.2 | 3 | 11.3 |
| Feb | 28 | 10 | 1.1 | 3 | 10.4 |
| Mar | 40 | 21 | 2.0 | 5 | 7.1 |
| Apr | 54 | 33 | 4.0 | 7 | 3.8 |
| May | 66 | 45 | 4.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 75 | 55 | 5.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 79 | 59 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 77 | 57 | 4.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 70 | 48 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 57 | 36 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.4 |
| Nov | 41 | 24 | 2.0 | 4 | 4.0 |
| Dec | 28 | 13 | 1.6 | 4 | 10.2 |
| Year | 53 | 34 | 38.1 | 68 | 47.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Viroqua, WI (1,255 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 Westby
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 114 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Westby: 73 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 13 heavy rain events, 10 floods and 4 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $19.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 15, 1997. September has had the most flash floods, 7 of 14. Of the 374 Wisconsin cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 334 have had fewer than Westby.
September 22, 2016: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Westby — 1 killed, $8.9 million damage.
September 22, 2016: flood 7 miles from the centre of Westby — 1 killed, $986,000 damage.
June 15, 1997: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Westby — 2 injured, $35,000 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 Westby's ZIP code 54667 have filed 16 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1984, and were paid $262,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 25% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 128 Wisconsin cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 34 have fewer than Westby.
Vernon County, which includes Westby, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 20 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 8 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Vernon County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $25.3 million a year, the 31st highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $9.8 million (39%), 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 Westby
- Cashton, WI7 mi
- Viroqua, WI8 mi
- La Farge, WI12 mi
- Stoddard, WI17 mi
- Bangor, WI18 mi
- West Salem, WI21 mi
- La Crosse, WI21 mi
- Sparta, WI22 mi
- Wilton, WI22 mi
- Hillsboro, WI23 mi
- Onalaska, WI25 mi
- La Crescent, MN27 mi
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