NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Willow Springs, MO
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 Willow Springs, Missouri since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 75 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 75
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
7 deaths in all
What the records show for Willow Springs
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Willow Springs; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 44 mph winds when its centre passed 7 miles away. The record near Willow Springs begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Willow Springs has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 81% of the 334 Missouri cities on this site. The strongest of the 75 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 2, 1982; its path came within 18 miles, and it killed 2 people. The deadliest, an EF3 on March 14, 2025, killed 3 people. Of the 75, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 37 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on May 16, 2025. Of the 334 Missouri cities, 72% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Willow Springs. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 73 times since 1964, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 334 Missouri cities, 70% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Willow Springs.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Willow Springs
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 17 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 43 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 Willow Springs: 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 Willow Springs
By decade
- 2020s8(2 EF3+)
- 2010s12
- 2000s17(2 EF3+)
- 1990s2
- 1980s12(1 EF3+)
- 1970s9(1 EF3+)
- 1960s11
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 1982 | F4 | 18 mi | 20 mi | 2 / 28 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF3 | 21 mi | 35.52 mi | 3 / 4 |
| Mar 1, 2007 | EF3 | 21 mi | 15 mi | 1 / 0 |
| May 26, 2024 | EF3 | 10 mi | 12.42 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF3 | 8 mi | 2.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 11, 1979 | F3 | 9 mi | 35.4 mi | 0 / 9 |
| Mar 12, 1961 | F2 | 17 mi | 21.1 mi | 1 / 11 |
| Apr 2, 2015 | EF2 | 6 mi | 7.61 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 8 mi | 27.89 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 27, 2002 | F2 | 2 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 1990 | F2 | 21 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 24, 1988 | F2 | 23 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 75, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Willow Springs
The Storm Prediction Center has 73 hail reports within 10 miles of Willow Springs since 1964, made on 54 separate days. Of these, 51 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 4 days, most recently April 19, 2011. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. April has the most reports, 28.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Willow Springs
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is West Plains Municipal Airport, MO, 9 miles south of Willow Springs at 1,223 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 44°F and 25°F. May is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 47.2 inches over 70 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 37 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 92 nights a year. That 47.2 inches is more than at 107 of the 134 Missouri stations used on this site (80%). Cabool, 12 miles northwest, has its own station (Mountain Grove 2 N, MO): 45.8 inches a year, 1.4 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 44 | 25 | 2.6 | 4 |
| Feb | 50 | 28 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Mar | 59 | 36 | 4.4 | 7 |
| Apr | 69 | 46 | 5.3 | 6 |
| May | 76 | 55 | 5.6 | 8 |
| Jun | 84 | 63 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Jul | 89 | 67 | 4.2 | 6 |
| Aug | 88 | 66 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Sep | 81 | 57 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Oct | 70 | 46 | 4.1 | 6 |
| Nov | 57 | 36 | 4.3 | 5 |
| Dec | 47 | 28 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Year | 68 | 46 | 47.2 | 70 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at West Plains Municipal Airport, MO (1,223 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 Willow Springs
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 127 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Willow Springs: 59 thunderstorm wind reports, 33 flash floods, 26 floods, 7 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $229,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on August 1, 2003. April has had the most flash floods, 15 of 33. Of the 334 Missouri cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 233 have had fewer than Willow Springs.
April 23, 2013: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Willow Springs — 1 killed.
NWS: “The Howell County Coroner reported that a lightning strike caused the death of a woman near Pomona. Time was estimated by radar and thunderstorms in the area.”
April 30, 2019: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Willow Springs — 5 injured.
NWS: “Many trees were uprooted and minor damage occurred to a property.”
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 Willow Springs's ZIP code 65793 have filed 13 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1993, and were paid $69,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 62% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 172 Missouri cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 13 have fewer than Willow Springs.
Howell County, which includes Willow Springs, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Howell County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $30.2 million a year, the 25th highest of 115 Missouri counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $15.2 million (50%), 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 Willow Springs
- Cabool, MO12 mi
- Mountain View, MO13 mi
- West Plains, MO20 mi
- Mountain Grove, MO21 mi
- Houston, MO22 mi
- Birch Tree, MO26 mi
- Norwood, MO26 mi
- Licking, MO34 mi
- Mansfield, MO36 mi
- Winona, MO36 mi
- Hartville, MO37 mi
- Gainesville, MO38 mi
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