NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Zionsville, IN
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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Zionsville, Indiana since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 154 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 13 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 154
- EF3 or stronger
- 13
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
35 deaths in all
What the records show for Zionsville
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Zionsville; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 47 miles away. The record near Zionsville begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 5 systems, one has come since 2000. Zionsville has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 63% of the 356 Indiana cities on this site. The highest rating among the 154 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 11, 1998, came within 22 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 11, 1965, killed 28 people. Of the 154, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 56 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 34. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Zionsville has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 99% of the 356 Indiana cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 175 times since 1965, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Zionsville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 94% of the 356 Indiana cities.
Compare Zionsville's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Zionsville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 21 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 Zionsville: 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 Zionsville
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s22
- 2000s23(1 EF3+)
- 1990s23(2 EF3+)
- 1980s17
- 1970s27(3 EF3+)
- 1960s19(6 EF3+)
- 1950s12(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 11 mi | 45.7 mi | 28 / 123 |
| Jun 11, 1998 | F4 | 22 mi | 13.2 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 14, 1972 | F4 | 17 mi | 30 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Apr 9, 1953 | F3 | 21 mi | 156.7 mi | 3 / 22 |
| Sep 20, 2002 | F3 | 18 mi | 112 mi | 0 / 127 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 11 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1978 | F3 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 25, 1978 | F3 | 21 mi | 27.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F3 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Nov 26, 1965 | F3 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Nov 26, 1965 | F3 | 3 mi | 14.7 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 22, 1963 | F3 | 15 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 20 |
The strongest 12 of 154, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Zionsville
The Storm Prediction Center has 175 hail reports within 10 miles of Zionsville since 1965, made on 81 separate days. Of these, 95 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 3 days, most recently July 17, 2023. The most recent report is from April 2, 2025. April has the most reports, 61.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Zionsville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Whitestown, IN, 5 miles northwest of Zionsville at 941 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 20°F. June is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.5 inches; the year adds up to 41.5 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 114 nights a year. Snowfall averages 22.0 inches a year, most of it in January. That 41.5 inches is more than at 44 of the 115 Indiana stations used on this site (38%). Carmel, 8 miles east, has its own station (Carmel 3 E, IN): 44.7 inches a year, 3.2 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 20 | 2.9 | 6 | 7.2 |
| Feb | 39 | 23 | 2.5 | 5 | 6.8 |
| Mar | 50 | 32 | 3.2 | 6 | 2.4 |
| Apr | 63 | 42 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.2 |
| May | 73 | 53 | 4.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 61 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 64 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 62 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 44 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 50 | 34 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 38 | 25 | 2.9 | 6 | 4.7 |
| Year | 61 | 43 | 41.5 | 76 | 22.0 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Whitestown, IN (941 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 Zionsville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 231 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Zionsville: 182 thunderstorm wind reports, 23 floods, 12 flash floods, 10 lightning strikes and 4 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $4.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on January 29, 2008. June has had the most flash floods, 7 of 12. Of the 337 Indiana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 179 have had fewer than Zionsville.
July 9, 2017: flood 10 miles from the centre of Zionsville — 1 killed, 1 injured, $1,000 damage.
August 1, 2017: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Zionsville — 3 injured.
July 13, 2015: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Zionsville — 1 injured, $15,000 damage.
NWS: “A driver was injured by a tree falling due to damaging thunderstorm wind gusts. This event was reported by WTHR.”
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 Zionsville's ZIP code 46077 have filed 25 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $197,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 8% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Indiana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 46 have fewer than Zionsville.
Boone County, which includes Zionsville, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 severe storms, 3 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Boone County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $25.5 million a year, the 22nd highest of 92 Indiana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $15.2 million (60%), 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.