NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Whitewater, 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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Whitewater, Wisconsin since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 131 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 131
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Whitewater
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Whitewater; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 17 miles away. Whitewater is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site. The strongest of the 131 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 27, 1984; its path came within 22 miles, and it killed 1 person. The deadliest, an F2 on April 11, 1965, killed 3 people. Of the 131, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 74 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 33. The most recent tornado was on June 22, 2024. Whitewater has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 94% of the 416 Wisconsin cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 73 times since 1978, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Whitewater has more hail reports within 10 miles than 65% of the 416 Wisconsin cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Whitewater
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Whitewater: 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 Whitewater
By decade
- 2020s38
- 2010s17
- 2000s19(1 EF3+)
- 1990s11
- 1980s10(2 EF3+)
- 1970s16
- 1960s14(1 EF3+)
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 1984 | F4 | 22 mi | 6.5 mi | 1 / 14 |
| Aug 18, 2005 | F3 | 15 mi | 18.6 mi | 1 / 23 |
| Jun 5, 1980 | F3 | 19 mi | 10.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 24, 1967 | F3 | 11 mi | 24.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F2 | 16 mi | 14.5 mi | 3 / 28 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F2 | 13 mi | 32 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jun 22, 2024 | EF2 | 17 mi | 6.03 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 8, 2024 | EF2 | 11 mi | 25.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 21, 2010 | EF2 | 12 mi | 5.22 mi | 0 / 15 |
| Jun 25, 1998 | F2 | 21 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1988 | F2 | 18 mi | 27 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 28, 1986 | F2 | 4 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 131, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Whitewater
The Storm Prediction Center has 73 hail reports within 10 miles of Whitewater since 1978, made on 51 separate days. Of these, 39 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 18, 2025. The most recent report is from May 15, 2025. May has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Whitewater
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Whitewater, WI, 2 miles north of Whitewater at 875 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 61°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 12°F. June is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.5 inches; the year adds up to 36.3 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 152 nights a year. Snowfall averages 33.9 inches a year, most of it in February. That 36.3 inches is more than at 118 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (72%). Palmyra, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Sullivan 3SE, WI): 37.8 inches a year, 1.5 more than here, and the same July average high, 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 12 | 1.6 | 4 | 8.5 |
| Feb | 31 | 15 | 1.5 | 4 | 9.9 |
| Mar | 43 | 25 | 1.9 | 5 | 4.4 |
| Apr | 57 | 35 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.7 |
| May | 69 | 47 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 78 | 57 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 61 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 80 | 59 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 74 | 51 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 40 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 46 | 29 | 2.2 | 5 | 1.2 |
| Dec | 33 | 18 | 1.8 | 5 | 9.0 |
| Year | 57 | 37 | 36.3 | 69 | 33.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Whitewater, WI (875 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 Whitewater
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 148 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Whitewater: 125 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 floods, 6 flash floods, 4 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $12.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 8, 2011. June has had the most flash floods, 4 of 6. Of the 374 Wisconsin cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 197 have had fewer than Whitewater.
September 13, 2005: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Whitewater — 1 injured.
NWS: “Powerful thunderstorm winds toppled a tree, which fell onto a car, injuring one person.”
July 12, 2017: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Whitewater — $10.0 million damage.
June 8, 2008: flash flood in Whitewater — $1.1 million damage.
NWS: “Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding across a good part of Walworth County. Water depths on road surfaces reached 3 feet or more and there were gravel washouts.”
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
Walworth County, which includes Whitewater, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 severe storms, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Walworth County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $39.7 million a year, the 18th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $17.6 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.
Cities near Whitewater
- Palmyra, WI8 mi
- Fort Atkinson, WI9 mi
- Milton, WI12 mi
- Elkhorn, WI12 mi
- Jefferson, WI12 mi
- Delavan, WI14 mi
- Eagle, WI14 mi
- Darien, WI15 mi
- Sullivan, WI15 mi
- East Troy, WI17 mi
- Edgerton, WI17 mi
- Dousman, WI18 mi
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