NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Yosemite National Park, CA
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 Yosemite National Park, California since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 2 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 2
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Yosemite National Park
The strongest of the 2 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF2 on September 5, 2020; its path came within 24 miles. Of the 705 California cities on this site, 91% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Yosemite National Park. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 3 times since 2007, with stones up to 1 inch (quarter size). Of the 705 California cities, 44% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Yosemite National Park.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Yosemite National Park
By decade
- 2020s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 5, 2020 | EF2 | 24 mi | 12.02 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 15, 1972 | F0 | 11 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 2 of 2, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Yosemite National Park
The Storm Prediction Center has 3 hail reports within 10 miles of Yosemite National Park since 2007. Of these, one was 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1 inch (quarter size), fell on July 13, 2024, the most recent report.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Yosemite National Park
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Yosemite Park Hq, CA, 6 miles northeast of Yosemite National Park at 4,018 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 57°F; December is the coolest, at 46°F and 28°F. January is the wettest at 7.0 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 0.2 inches; the year adds up to 36.8 inches over 49 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 46 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 106 nights a year. That 36.8 inches is more than at 194 of the 226 California stations used on this site (86%). Mariposa, 19 miles southwest, has its own station (So Entrance Yosemite Np, CA): 37.2 inches a year, 0.4 more than here, and a July average high of 80°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 29 | 7.0 | 7 |
| Feb | 51 | 30 | 6.5 | 7 |
| Mar | 57 | 34 | 5.5 | 8 |
| Apr | 63 | 38 | 3.2 | 5 |
| May | 71 | 45 | 1.9 | 4 |
| Jun | 81 | 51 | 0.5 | 1 |
| Jul | 89 | 57 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Aug | 89 | 57 | 0.2 | 0 |
| Sep | 83 | 51 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Oct | 71 | 41 | 1.6 | 3 |
| Nov | 56 | 33 | 4.1 | 4 |
| Dec | 46 | 28 | 5.6 | 7 |
| Year | 67 | 41 | 36.8 | 49 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Yosemite Park Hq, CA (4,018 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 Yosemite National Park
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 31 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Yosemite National Park: 16 floods, 6 heavy rain events, 6 thunderstorm wind reports, 2 lightning strikes and 1 flash flood. They killed 4 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $345,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 20, 2006.
May 14, 2018: heavy rain event 8 miles from the centre of Yosemite National Park — 1 killed, 1 injured.
NWS: “Report on Twitter that a hiker on the cables of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park slipped and fell off of the cables during a thunderstorm. The hiker was found dead from the fall the next day after a search and rescue was performed.”
January 21, 2012: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Yosemite National Park — 1 killed, $5,000 damage.
NWS: “A thunderstorm with heavy rain and lightning moved across Yosemite Valley on the morning of the 21st during a strong winter storm. The thunderstorm briefly generated gusty winds estimated at 40 to 45 mph which caused a tree to fall on a tent.”
June 13, 2009: heavy rain event 5 miles from the centre of Yosemite National Park — 1 killed.
NWS: “A young man fell to his death (indirect fatality) while climbing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. A thunderstorm was in the area at the time of the incident with brief periods of heavy rain.”
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
Mariposa County, which includes Yosemite National Park, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 fires, 5 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 3, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Mariposa County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for heat waves; Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $38.1 million a year, the 51st highest of 58 California counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.2 million (29%), is from heat waves.
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 Yosemite National Park
- Mariposa, CA19 mi
- Oakhurst, CA21 mi
- Groveland, CA22 mi
- Coulterville, CA26 mi
- North Fork, CA33 mi
- Coarsegold, CA34 mi
- Tuolumne, CA35 mi
- Twain Harte, CA39 mi
- La Grange, CA41 mi
- Sonora, CA42 mi
- Auberry, CA45 mi
- Planada, CA45 mi
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