Hurricane History Map

Hurricanes that hit Arizona: hurricane history

8 storms have passed within 50 km of Arizona from 1929 to 2016, drawn on the map and coloured by intensity.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Arizona

The record holds 8 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Arizona between 1929 and 2016. The busiest month is September, with 3 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached tropical storm strength.

  • 8storms within 50 km
  • 0major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 0at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Arizona?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression113%
Tropical storm788%
Category 100%
Category 200%
Category 300%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity00%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, eastern Pacific).

Arizona storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 2 in 1960s.1920s11950s11960s21980s11990s22010s1

The 2010s only run to 2016, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1929, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1920s1
1950s1
1960s2
1980s1
1990s2
2010s1

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 3 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun1Jul0Aug2Sep3Oct2Nov0Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun1
Jul0
Aug2
Sep3
Oct2
Nov0
Dec0

Strongest storms near Arizona

  • Nora (1997)16 September 1997 to 26 September 1997, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 950 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1958 (Eastern and central Pacific)30 September 1958 to 6 October 1958, Tropical storm (45 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (75 kt)
  • Katrina (1967)30 August 1967 to 3 September 1967, Tropical storm (45 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (75 kt)
  • Unnamed storm of June 1929 (North Atlantic)27 June 1929 to 30 June 1929, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 982 hPa
  • Lester (1992)20 August 1992 to 24 August 1992, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (70 kt), 985 hPa
  • Newton (2016)4 September 2016 to 8 September 2016, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 977 hPa

Most recent storms near Arizona

  • Newton (2016)4 September 2016 to 8 September 2016, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 977 hPa
  • Nora (1997)16 September 1997 to 26 September 1997, Tropical storm (55 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 950 hPa
  • Lester (1992)20 August 1992 to 24 August 1992, Tropical storm (40 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (70 kt), 985 hPa
  • Raymond (1989)24 September 1989 to 5 October 1989, Tropical storm (35 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 935 hPa
  • Hyacinth (1968)17 August 1968 to 21 August 1968, Tropical depression (25 kt) near here, peak Tropical storm (45 kt)

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

Notable storms near Arizona with their own pages

  • Nora (1997)16 September 1997 to 26 September 1997, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 950 hPa
  • Raymond (1989)24 September 1989 to 5 October 1989, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 935 hPa

Arizona counties

Every county that a storm has come near is listed, most storms first. 6 of them have at least 3 storms and their own page.

CountyStormsStrongest near the county
Pima County6Tropical storm
Graham County5Tropical storm
Santa Cruz County5Tropical storm
Cochise County4Tropical storm
Greenlee County3Tropical storm
Pinal County3Tropical storm
Yuma County2Tropical storm
Apache County1Tropical storm
Gila County1Tropical depression
La Paz County1Tropical storm
Maricopa County1Tropical storm
Mohave County1Tropical depression

Other states

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