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California tornado and storm history

Tornadoes, hurricanes, hail, and severe storms recorded in California between 1951 and 2026, from NOAA's Storm Events Database. Search an address to see the storms that came closest to it.

488

Tornado reports

41,553

Storm events

1,364

Deaths, all storms

Every tornado track in California

469 county track segments since 1950, coloured by rating. Zoom in and each path widens to its surveyed width. Tap one for the storm.

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

Tornadoes by decade in California

All tornado reports against only the strong ones (F2 and above). Averages are per year over the years the federal record covers completely — 1952, 1976 and 1993 are each missing whole months in NOAA’s own files and are left out.

Decade	All reports	Strong (F2+)	All per year	Strong per year
1950s	21	6	2	1
1960s	26	4	3	0
1970s	36	3	4	0
1980s	63	9	6	1
1990s	122	2	14	0
2000s	83	1	8	0
2010s	83	1	8	0

The 2020s are left out because the decade is not finished. Reports are counted per county, so one tornado crossing a county line can appear more than once.

Significant recent events in California

Events with deaths, several injuries, $1M+ property damage, or tornadoes rated EF3 and up.

June 10, 2026 · Northern Monterey Bay, California

High Surf High Surf2 deaths

Two women from Fremont died after being swept out to sea on June 10 at Yellowbank Beach, also known as Hole in the Wall Beach, around 2 miles southeast of Davenport. The women were believed to be swimming when an incoming tide caught them unaware. Rescue swimmers were called out …

June 9, 2026 · Orange County Coastal, California

Storm Surge/Tide Storm Surge/Tide1 death

Lifeguard reported 8 foot surf. Three people were swept out to sea. Two were rescued. One child (5 years old) was swept out with the body found 2 days later. Time is approximated. Body was recovered approximately 250-300 yards offshore from Christmas Cove, on Thursday morning, 11…

May 26, 2026 · El Dorado, California

Heavy Rain Heavy Rain2 deaths, 2 injuries

Broadcast Media relayed information from California Highway Patrol regarding an accident that occurred on May 26th around 4 PM PDT. Showers and thunderstorms brought wet road conditions on May 26th to Highway 50 in El Dorado County. Just east of Ice House Road, a vehicle veered o…

May 17, 2026 · North Bay Interior Valleys, California

Strong Wind Strong Wind1 death

A 61-year old man was struck by a fallen branch near the 800 block of Howard Street in Santa Rosa. Paramedics took the man to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Around the time of the incident, wind gusts of 25 to 30 miles per hour were reported in a couple of statio…

May 16, 2026 · Southern Monterey Bay and Big Sur Coast, California

High Surf High Surf1 death

A 25-year old man was found dead in the water off China Vista Point in the Big Sur coastline. The man had been fishing on rocks near the shore. A distress call was placed around 1 PM on Saturday after a tourist reported a man floating in the water. Rescue personnel from CAL FIRE …

March 21, 2026 · Coastal North Bay Including Point Reyes National Seashore, California

Strong Wind Strong Wind1 death, 1 injury

A 37-year old woman from Los Angeles died after her kayak overturned on March 21 in Tomales Bay near Mendoza Beach. First responders received reports of the overturned kayak around 6 PM and multiple rescue crews from the Marin and Sonoma County Sheriff's Offices, Marin County Fir…

March 18, 2026 · Santa Clara Valley Including San Jose, California

Heat Heat1 death

A 41-year old man died on the western side of San Jose early on the morning of March 18. The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner's office reported that while the immediate cause was hypertensive cardiovascular disease, environmental heat exposure was a significant factor.

February 17, 2026 · San Benito, California

Flood Flood1 death, 1 injury

A small sedan attempted to ford Tres Pinos Creek along Browns Valley Road near Paicines on the night of February 17, with first responders responding to the scene during the night. The next morning, the driver was found walking along Highway 25 asking about the location of the pa…

February 15, 2026 · Greater Lake Tahoe Area, California

Avalanche Avalanche9 deaths

Nevada Co Sheriff responded to a report of avalanche just north of Frog Lake near Castle Peak during the afternoon on the 17th. The avalanche caught a buried 15 backcountry skiers, resulting in 9 fatalities.

February 10, 2026 · Southern Monterey Bay and Big Sur Coast, California

High Wind High Wind1 death

The California Highway Patrol received initial reports of a vehicle going over the cliff off of Highway One into the ocean at 4:20 PM on 2/10/2026. Nearby PGE observation stations reported 40 mph (Coast Road, 404 ft in elevation, north of accident site) and 45 mph (Funt Ranch, 99…

February 6, 2026 · Northern Monterey Bay, California

High Surf High Surf6 injuries

A boat carrying six people, two adults and their four children, capsized off Steamer Lane near Santa Cruz around 11:45 AM on February 6. The children were wearing life vests, but the parents were not. Around ten surfers, one of whom was 14, helped to rescue the family and bring t…

January 30, 2026 · Carquinez Strait and Delta, California

Dense Fog Dense Fog1 death

A crash was reported near Walnut Grove, CA in Sacramento County at intersection of Twin Cities Rd and River Rd around 7:30 AM on January 30th. Dense fog was being observed at the time. Fairfield visibility observations were down to 0.12 miles, Davis Airport was down to less than …

January 20, 2026 · Southern Sacramento Valley, California

Dense Fog Dense Fog1 death, 2 injuries

A traffic collision occurred at 7:26 pm on January 20th 2026 in the south bound lanes of Highway 70 by Striplin Road in Sutter County, California. Dense fog was present in Sutter County California on Highway 70, with visibilities of a quarter mile or less. Two cars where involved…

January 18, 2026 · Delano - Wasco - Shafter, California

Dense Fog Dense Fog1 death

CHP reported 2 vehicle collision on Highway 46 east of Poplar Ave due to heavy fog.

January 16, 2026 · Fresno - Clovis, California

Dense Fog Dense Fog2 deaths

CHP reports a fatal car crash on Auberry Rd west of Summit Mountain Rd due to fog. Two confirmed fatalities per ABC30.

Counties and zones

Each county’s full storm history, with its event count. Some entries are National Weather Service forecast zones rather than civil counties.

Search your address

See every tornado that passed within 25 miles of a place in California, measured to its path.