Hollister
Population 45,695 (2025)
8 tornadoes have tracked within 25 miles of Hollister since 1950, 0 of them rated EF3 or F3 or stronger; the most recent was on January 6, 2016.
Hazard fingerprint Each spoke is this county’s percentile among U.S. counties where that hazard occurs. How it is computed
- Tornado damage paths within 25 miles since 19508
- Wildfire burn scars within 25 miles since 198417
- Major flood years since 1978, San Benito County3
At a glance
Tornado paths within 25 miles, tropical cyclone tracks within 100 miles and wildfire perimeters within 25 miles of the city centre. Storm events, flood insurance claims and disaster declarations are for San Benito County. Earthquakes within 50 miles, volcanoes within 100 miles and smoke days are measured from the city centre; river and tide gauges, tsunami and landslide records and the drought index are for San Benito County.
Strongest tornado
F2
March 11, 1985, 0.5 mile path
Federal disaster declarations
18
Most recent: Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, 2023
DetailsTornadoes
About one every 9.5 years since 1950, none rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Strongest
March 11, 1985
F2, 0.5 mile path
20 yards wide.
Most recent
Wednesday, January 6, 2016
EF0, 0.6 mile path
10 years ago.
Every recorded tornado
| Jan 6, 2016 | EF0 | 0.6 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 22, 2012 | EF0 | 1.1 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 14, 2007 | EF0 | 0.2 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 20, 2001 | F1 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 11, 1992 | F0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 3, 1987 | F0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 11, 1985 | F2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 1, 1965 | F1 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
- Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
- Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.
Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.
Hurricanes and tropical storms
No tropical storm or hurricane has tracked within 100 miles since records began in 1851.
Wildfire and smoke
17 large fires burned within 25 miles since 1984.
Largest
August 16, 2020
Scu Lightning Complex, 405,644 acres
17.5 miles from the city centre.
Most recent
July 2, 2024
Airline Fire
1,348 acres in total.
Every large fire
| Airline | 2024 | 14.3 | 1,348 |
| Scu Lightning Complex | 2020 | 17.5 | 405,644 |
| River | 2020 | 21.9 | 51,566 |
| Coyote | 2020 | 24.1 | 1,559 |
| Crews | 2020 | 10.0 | 5,799 |
| Pass | 2020 | 17.4 | 2,248 |
| Pacheco | 2009 | 10.9 | 1,731 |
| Johnson | 2005 | 21.1 | 1,400 |
| Annie | 2003 | 23.1 | 17,377 |
| I-5 | 2003 | 22.7 | 1,102 |
| 152 | 2003 | 19.1 | 1,701 |
| Croy | 2002 | 22.5 | 3,106 |
| Unnamed | 2001 | 19.2 | 1,637 |
| Romero | 2000 | 22.7 | 1,582 |
| Romero | 1999 | 22.9 | 1,863 |
| Unnamed | 1992 | 10.4 | 1,106 |
| Bonanza | 1984 | 22.6 | 12,101 |
- Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.
Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.
Smoke overhead
Smokiest year
2020: 54 days
Heavy smoke on 28 days in 2020, the most of any year.
Last 10 years
14.8 days a year
Medium or heavy smoke, 2016 to 2025.
2025
3 days
Medium or heavy smoke. 6 so far in 2026.
- A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.
NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Floods and flood insurance
129 federal flood insurance claims since 1995, with $3.9 million paid.
Flood insurance figures are for San Benito County, the county that contains Hollister.
Most claims in one year
2017: 39 claims
$1.3 million paid.
2nd most
1998: 36 claims
$492,000 paid.
3rd most
2023: 36 claims
$2.0 million paid.
Claims by ZIP code
| 95023 | 112 | $3.7 million |
| 95045 | 14 | $80,000 |
Flood events since 1996
- Flood19
- Flash Flood6
- Heavy Rain2
1 death recorded in flood events since 1996.
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).
OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.
River crests
River gauges in San Benito County, the county that contains Hollister.
Most severe crest
February 3, 1998
Pajaro River at Chittenden, 33.73 ft
9.63 feet above the 24.1 ft flood stage; major flooding by today’s categories.
Most recent moderate or major crest
March 11, 2023
Pajaro River at Chittenden, 29.11 ft
Major flooding.
River gauges
| Clear Creek (San Benito Co.) near Idria | 10.6 | 6.75 ft | 0 |
| Pajaro River at Chittenden | 24.1 | 33.73 ft | 5 |
| Tres Pinos Creek near Tres Pinos | 11.6 | 16.00 ft | 0 |
- Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.
NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Drought
In severe drought or worse for 215 of 1,581 months since 1895 (14%); the longest spell lasted 31 months.
The drought index is for San Benito County, the county that contains Hollister.
215
Months in severe drought or worse since 1895
96
Months in extreme drought
14%
Share of all months, severe or worse
Lowest reading
July 2014
−7.47, extreme drought
Longest severe spell
31 months
April 2013 to October 2015.
Latest month
September 2026
−1.71, mild drought
Last severe month: August 2025.
- The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.
NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.
Earthquakes and landslides
336 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles since 1900; the largest was magnitude 6.9 in 1989.
2,828
Magnitude 3+ within 50 miles since 1973
336
Magnitude 4+ within 50 miles since 1900
45
Magnitude 5+ within 50 miles since 1900
Largest within 50 miles
October 17, 1989
The 1989 Loma Prieta, California Earthquake; 29.3 miles away, 10.7 miles deep.
Most recent, magnitude 3 or more
October 22, 2026
Magnitude 3.0
15 km S of Tres Pinos, CA; 14.8 miles away.
Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles
- Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the city centre.
- Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).
USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Mapped landslides
Landslides mapped in San Benito County.
13
Landslides mapped, probable or better
10
With a recorded date
3
Source inventories
Mapped by USGS Earthquake-Triggered Ground Failure (10), USGS Conterminous (2), West Coast Slow Moving (Yuankun and others, 2021) (1).
- Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.
USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.
Severe weather and other events
42 events in the National Weather Service record for San Benito County, 41 of them since 1996.
1
Hail reports, 1 inch or larger
0
Hail, 2 inches or larger
0
Damaging gusts, 58 mph+
0
Winter weather events since 1996
1
Heat events since 1996
1
Cold events since 1996
Largest hail
March 15, 2008
1.00 inches
More event types since 1996
| Debris flows | 4 | 0 |
Costliest events since 1996
- Jan 27, 2021Debris Flow$4.5 million
National Weather Service narrative
Mudslide on Panoche Rd. Preliminary damage estimates from public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$3.5 million
National Weather Service narrative
New Idria Rd from Panoche Valley to 20 plus miles south, road completely washed out. Exact time of damage unknown, estimate sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$3.0 million
National Weather Service narrative
Coalinga Road damaged from SR25 to Fresno County. Exact time of damage unknown. Damage estimate sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$2.5 million
National Weather Service narrative
Damage to Cienega Rd from Mudstone Ranch to Bird Creek. Damage occurred sometime between the 26th and the end of the event. Estimates of repair cost sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$2.0 million
National Weather Service narrative
Southside Rd damaged from Hollister to Tres Pinos Creek. Exact time of damage occurrence unknown, estimate sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$2.0 million
National Weather Service narrative
King City Road damaged from SR 25 to Monterey County. Exact time of damage occurrence is unknown. Estimates sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$2.0 million
National Weather Service narrative
Damage to Salinas Grade Rd from San Juan Bautista to Monterey County. Exact time of damage occurrence unknown, estimates sent b public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$250,000
National Weather Service narrative
Union Road near Riverside Drive flooding on shoulder. Exact time of damage unknown, estimate sent by public works.
- Jan 27, 2021Flood$250,000
National Weather Service narrative
Roadway flooding at Fairview Rd and Mansfield Rd. Damage estimate sent in by public works.
- Feb 28, 2014Debris Flow$1,500
National Weather Service narrative
A Pacific storm system moved across the Bay Area on February 28. It dropped several inches of rainfall and brought gusty winds to the area. This resulted in flooding of urban areas, small streams and creeks, and damage to power lines and trees as well as a few localized mud and rockslides.
- Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.
Weather records
From Hollister 2, 1.3 miles from the city centre, with records from 1975.
- All-time high
- 112°FJul 22, 2006
- All-time low
- 14°FDec 22, 1990
- Warmest night
- 72°FAug 17, 2020
- Coldest day
- 41°F2 times, most recently Dec 22, 1990
- Wettest day
- 2.82 inJan 3, 2006
- Snowiest day
- 1.0 inDec 25, 2000
- Hottest year
- 2014mean 61.4°F
- Coldest year
- 1982mean 56.8°F
- Wettest year
- 198326.26 in
- Driest year
- 20131.58 in
Station Hollister 2 (USC00044025), 275 ft elevation, 1.3 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1975 to October 14, 2026; 92.3% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.
NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.
Federal disaster declarations
18 since 1953. The most recent: Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, April 3, 2023.
Declarations for San Benito County.
| Apr 3, 2023 | Severe Storm | DR-4699-CA |
| Mar 10, 2023 | Flood | EM-3592-CA |
| Jan 14, 2023 | Flood | DR-4683-CA |
| Jan 9, 2023 | Flood | EM-3591-CA |
| Mar 22, 2020 | Biological | DR-4482-CA |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | EM-3428-CA |
| Apr 1, 2017 | Flood | DR-4308-CA |
| Feb 14, 2017 | Severe Storm | DR-4301-CA |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | EM-3248-CA |
| Feb 9, 1998 | Severe Storm | DR-1203-CA |
| Jan 4, 1997 | Severe Storm | DR-1155-CA |
| Mar 12, 1995 | Severe Storm | DR-1046-CA |
| Feb 11, 1991 | Freezing | DR-894-CA |
| Oct 18, 1989 | Earthquake | DR-845-CA |
| Feb 21, 1986 | Flood | DR-758-CA |
| Feb 9, 1983 | Coastal Storm | DR-677-CA |
| Jan 20, 1977 | Drought | EM-3023-CA |
| Jan 26, 1969 | Flood | DR-253-CA |
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).
OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.
Sources and vintage
Every number on this page comes from these public records.
- Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
- Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
- Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
- Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
- Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
- Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00044025.
- River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
- Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
- Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.
Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.