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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Worcester, NY

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

10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Worcester, New York since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isaias in 2020. Since 1950, 18 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
1

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
9

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
18

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
2

no recorded deaths

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Worcester

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Worcester, New York, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2020IsaiasAug 433 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 1
1979DavidSep 61 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 5
1972AgnesJun 2364 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
1949Unnamed 1949 stormAug 2921 miTropical storm (54 mph)Category 4
1929Unnamed 1929 stormOct 34 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1899Unnamed 1899 stormNov 151 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 2
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2967 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 3
1878Unnamed 1878 stormOct 2334 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 2
1876Unnamed 1876 stormSep 1875 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1866Unnamed 1866 stormOct 3056 miTropical storm (53 mph)Tropical storm

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

By decade

  • 2020s1
  • 2010s2
  • 2000s1
  • 1990s7(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s6(1 EF3+)
  • 1970s1
Strongest tornadoes near Worcester, New York
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Jul 10, 1989F417 mi42 mi0 / 20
May 31, 1998F311 mi5 mi0 / 3
Oct 1, 1986F224 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Jun 16, 1976F213 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
May 29, 2013EF19 mi1.57 mi0 / 0
Jun 26, 1998F14 mi5.7 mi0 / 0
Jul 5, 1992F118 mi1.2 mi0 / 0
May 2, 1992F115 mi6 mi0 / 0
Jul 26, 1985F121 mi5 mi0 / 0
Oct 7, 2020EF021 mi0.11 mi0 / 0
Jul 29, 2011EF025 mi0.51 mi0 / 0
May 31, 2002F011 mi3 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 18, 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 Worcester 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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