TornadoLookup

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Thurston County, Nebraska

Tornadoes, hail, floods and severe storms recorded here between 1954 and 2026, from NOAA's Storm Events Database. Search an address to see which tornadoes came closest to it.

17
Tornado reports
112
Hail reports
23
Floods since 1996
433
All events
1
Deaths
$4.7M
Property damage

Tornado paths in Thurston County

The part of each tornado’s path NOAA recorded in this county, 17 in all. Zoom in and the paths widen to their surveyed width.

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

Year by year

19542026
Hover or tap a bar to see that year.
All storm eventsTornadoes

NOAA's storm database records tornadoes back to 1950 and hail and thunderstorm wind back to 1955, but floods only from 1996 on. Older floods are missing here. For those, the U.S. Geological Survey's stream gauge records and flood reports are the place to look.

Most significant events

The strongest tornadoes, deadliest events and biggest damage here, up to 50.

June 17, 1954 · Thurston, Nebraska
Tornado F3 Tornado1 death
July 7, 1977 · Thurston, Nebraska
Tornado Tornado$2.5M damage
June 1, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Drought Drought
Moderate (D1) drought conditions covered nearly 98 percent of Thurston County at the beginning of June before temporarily easing early in the month. However, conditions degraded later in June with the introduction of severe (D2) drought, which expanded to cover around 7 percent o…
May 17, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Hail Hail
Broadcast media report of hail estimated up to 1.00 inch in diameter.
May 17, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Broadcast media report of thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at 65 mph.
May 17, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Personal weather station measured wind gust of 58 mph.
May 17, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Personal weather station measured wind gust of 58 mph.
May 17, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Tornado EF1 Tornado
An EF-1 tornado touched down west of Highway 77 and tracked northeast damaging trees and the roofs of homes. The tornado impacted locations near baseball fields on the south side of Highway 75. Damage to bleachers, signage, and the dugout occurred, and across the highway there wa…
April 1, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Drought Drought
Severe (D2) drought conditions were present across Thurston County at the beginning of the month. However, severe drought coverage was reduced to zero early in the month, and the coverage of moderate (D1) drought shrank from around 45 percent at the beginning of the month down to…
March 15, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Personal weather station measured wind gust of 58 mph near Pender, IA.
March 15, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Blizzard Blizzard
While no visibility observations were available within the county, surrounding counties measured several hours of visibility down to a quarter of a mile or less under snow and strong wind gusts. Wind gusts in the county were measured up to 58 mph range with snowfall totals of 3-4…
March 3, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Drought Drought
A D2 (Severe) drought was introduced across the western portion of the county on March 3, persisting through the remainder of the month. No rainfall reports were available within the county.
January 23, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
No observations within the county. Estimated minimum wind chill temperatures of 30 to 35 degrees below zero based on surrounding observations.
January 21, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Personal weather station measured wind gust of 59 mph near Pender, NE.
January 16, 2026 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Personal weather station measured wind gust of 62 mph near Pender, NE.
December 18, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
No observations within the county. Estimated maximum wind gusts of 58-63 mph based on surrounding observations.
December 9, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
No observations within the county. Estimated maximum wind gusts of 58-63 mph based on surrounding observations.
November 25, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Personal weather station measured gust of 63 mph near Pender, NE.
July 27, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Excessive Heat Excessive Heat
While no observations were available within the county, personal weather stations and mesonets surrounding the county measured heat index values of 112 to 119 degrees.
June 20, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Excessive Heat Excessive Heat
While no observations were available within the county, ASOS/AWOS and personal weather stations in surrounding counties measured heat index values of 109 to 114 degrees.
June 16, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Emergency management report of heavy rain and wind gusts of 50-60 mph.
June 16, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Emergency management report of straight line winds gusting at 60-65 mph.
March 19, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Blizzard Blizzard
US Highway 75, Highway 9, and Highway 94 closed across Thurston County due to blizzard conditions. Snowfall amounts generally in the 4 to 8 range with wind gusts estimated in the 50 to 70 mph range.
March 4, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Blizzard Blizzard
General snowfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches throughout the county. Emergency management reported visibility quickly decreasing at 17:13Z. Surrounding conditions supporting blizzard criteria. Wind gusts up to 55 mph.
March 4, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Personal weather station measured 55 mph wind gust. Surrounding conditions support High Wind Warning.
February 19, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Wind chill got as low as -30 in the county.
February 17, 2025 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Wind chill got as low as -31 in the county.
December 19, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
High Wind High Wind
Though no direct measurements were made in the county of severe level wind gusts, observations from surrounding counties support the high likelihood of wind gusts up to 60 mph occurring the afternoon of the 19th.
August 26, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Excessive Heat Excessive Heat
A max heat index of 123 degrees was recorded by a mesonet station in Macy.
June 24, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Flood Flood
River flooding from upstream excessive rain impacted the region, bringing the Missouri River to moderate flood stage. The Missouri River crested at 37.55 feet at the Decatur gauge at 03:45 CDT on 6/26. Flood stage at this gauge is 35.0 feet.
May 24, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Emergency Management relayed a report of a 70 mph wind gust recorded in the town of Macy.
January 18, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Snow began falling across the county after 11 am the morning of the 18th. Snow continued through the afternoon, with periods of heavy snow resulting in visibilities down to a mile. At 6:45 pm, a cold front moved through the area bringing strong northerly winds ranging from 35 to …
January 12, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Wind chills across the county dropped under 35 degrees below zero every night during the duration of this event. The coldest wind chills were felt on January 13th and 14th. The coldest recorded wind chill in the county was minus 47 degrees, observed in Walthill on the evening of …
January 11, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
An estimated 5 to 7 inches of snow fell across the county from this winter storm. This included a public reported snowfall amount of 6 inches in Wakefield. Peak wind gusts across the county were estimated to be between 30 and 40 miles per hour. This included a 35 miles per hour w…
January 8, 2024 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Public reports of 7 to 10 inches of snow were received across the county. The highest snowfall total came out of Rosalie where 10 inches of snow was reported. Peak wind gusts across the county were estimated to be between 30 and 35 miles per hour.
December 25, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Reports from the public via social media show up to 6 inches of snow fell across the county. Most reports across the northern part of the county were 4-6 inches with 2 to 4 inches of snow falling across the southern part of the county. The highest snowfall report came out of Emer…
August 21, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Excessive Heat Excessive Heat
For 4 days beginning on August 21, high temperatures in Thurston County were in the mid to upper 90s. Dew point temperatures were in the mid to upper 70s and yielded a heat index at or above 105.
July 30, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Hail Hail
Trained spotter reported 1.25-inch hail.
July 30, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Trained spotter reported an estimated 65 mph wind gust.
July 28, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Excessive Heat Excessive Heat
Interpolation of area observations show that the county had a heat index near and above 110 for approximately 5 hours.
July 4, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Hail Hail
Public reported 1 to 1.75 inch hail south of Emerson via socia media. Hail lasted 1 to 2 minutes and caused some damage to vehicles, crops, and gardens.
January 27, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Emergency Manager reported 5.75 inches of snowfall.
January 18, 2023 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Public reported 6.1 inches of snow.
December 22, 2022 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Interpolation of ground stations near the area had Thurston County mostly below -30 wind chills for approximately 36 hours.
December 22, 2022 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Interpolation of ground stations near the area had Thurston County mostly below -30 wind chills for approximately 36 hours.
May 12, 2022 · Thurston, Nebraska
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Public reported a destroyed grain bin and damaged outbuildings.
December 15, 2021 · Thurston, Nebraska
Tornado EF1 Tornado
Tornado segment 2 of 2. This tornado is a continuation of a tornado that started in Cuming County. It entered Thurston County northwest of Rosalie. Here, the tornado damaged some outbuildings before dissipating just northeast of 26th Road and N Avenue.
February 14, 2021 · Thurston, Nebraska
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Personal weather stations and local analysis show extreme cold occurred in the county.
January 25, 2021 · Thurston, Nebraska
Winter Storm Winter Storm
Emergency Manager reported 6-8 inches of snow across the county.
January 14, 2021 · Thurston, Nebraska
Blizzard Blizzard
Public reported white out conditions. Analysis of area observations confirm blizzard conditions.
Events by year, as a table
YearEventsTornadoes
2026131
2025120
202480
202380
202230
202141
202090
201990
201880
201750
2016100
2015110
2014271
2013131
2012150
2011240
2010180
2009110
2008200
2007210
200650
2005110
2004180
2003280
2002141
200180
200070
199980
199881
199780
1996180
199510
1994100
199321
199240
199110
199011
198910
198810
198610
198510
198420
198330
198210
198020
197930
197811
197732
197610
197522
197430
197321
196721
195610
195422