Indianapolis

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
2. 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.

Smoke overhead

1. 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.

Flood insurance figures are for Marion County, the county that contains Indianapolis.

Claims by ZIP code

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 Marion County, the county that contains Indianapolis.

River gauges

1. 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.

The drought index is for Marion County, the county that contains Indianapolis.

1. 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.

1. 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.
2. 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 Marion County.

Mapped by NASA (1).

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 20, 2002Tornado$40.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   One of Indiana's longest tracking tornados formed along a squall line on the morning of September 20. The tornado touched down near Ellettsville in Monroe county and then remained on the ground for 112 miles before lifting in Blackford county. The tornado produced F3 damage at its strongest points. Nearly 100 single family homes were destroyed, along with several mobile homes. Some apartments were also destroyed. Many businesses and hundreds of homes received damage. Several counties were declared disaster areas.

2. May 30, 2008Tornado$29.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous structures were damaged in Marion County with the hardest hit area being an apartment complex near 38th Street and Mitthoefer Road. The tornado was associated with an embedded supercell that was overtaken by a line. Based on damage indicators, wind speeds were estimated around 125 mph. This tornado formed near 42nd Street and Post Road and tracked southeastward for 3.1 miles before exiting Marion County on North County Line Road 500 meters south of East 38th Street. The tornado continued in Hancock County. While in Marion County the tornado was rated EF-2 and while in Hancock County the tornado was rated EF-1. The tornado continued to the southeast in Hancock County for…

3. May 30, 2004Tornado$19.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado cut a near continuous 18 mile path across southern and eastern Marion County before briefly moving into Hancock County. The tornado dropped down near exit 4 at Harding Street and Interstate 465 on the south side of metro Indianapolis and moved into Hancock County to near Mount Comfort. The worst damage was found near South Keystone Avenue between Raymond St. And Troy. The damage was rated F2 there. There was significant damage to numerous homes, a nursing home and an elementary school. 26 nursing home inhabitants were treated at local hospitals for mainly minor cuts and scrapes, and the rest were relocated as the building was inhabitable. The tornado continued across 465…

4. Jul 6, 2003Flood, Marion$10.6 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous thunderstorm complexes marched across central Indiana from the evening of the 4th and not ending until the 11th. This caused near major flooding along the White River in Hamilton and northern Marion counties. The White River at Noblesville reached its highest level since March 1913. However, measured peak flow at Noblesville was about 30% less than the April 1964 flood. Major agricultural damage resulted along the entire length of the White River. Location: FS: Crest: Crest Date:Muncie 9.0 10.94 7/10Anderson 10.0 15.79 7/9Noblesville 14.0 21.85 7/10Nora 11.0 17.78 7/11Broad Ripple 6.0 8.98 7/11Ravenswood 6.0 11.30 7/11Morris St. 16.0 17.19 7/11Centerton 12.0 16.89…

5. Sep 1, 2003Flash Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Record rainfall event occurred across central Indiana starting in the evening of August 31 and continuing through the morning of September 2. The heaviest rain occurred along an axis from Vigo to Clay to Putnam to Hendricks to Marion to Hamilton to Madison, Delaware and Randolph counties. Many spots near the axis received 8 to 10 inches over the 30 hour period. This resulted in widespread flash flooding and flooding along small creeks. There were numerous evacuations from homes and rescues from vehicles. Many schools were closed. Many neighborhoods that never saw flooding before were flooded. There were also hundreds of flooded basements. The National Guard was activated to help…

6. Jun 29, 2023Thunderstorm Wind$2.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extensive tree and powerline damage caused by thunderstorm wind gusts across the county. Over 57000 power outages caused by the storm within the county.

7. Sep 1, 2003Flood, Marion$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   8 to 10 inches of rain fell over the Labor Day weekend causing major flooding along Eagle Creek and Little Eagle Creek near Speedway. Eagle Creek crested at Speedway at 16.57 feet . Flood stage is 9 feet. Eagle Creek at Zionsville crested at 12.34 feet. Flood stage is 9 feet. The Speedway area had it's worst flooding since June 1957.

8. Sep 1, 2003Flood, Marion$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   8 to 10 inches of rain fell across central Indiana during the Labor Day weekend causing major flooding along parts of the White River. In fact, Indianapolis received the most rain ever for a calendar day (7.2 inches) breaking the old record set in 1895 (6.8 inches). According to a local newspaper account, nearly 3,000 residents across central Indiana applied for flood assistance and flood damage was estimated in excess of 20 million dollars. SEMA reports indicated more than 300 homes and nearly 60 businesses were flooded. Nearly 200 people were forced to evacuate their residences. The cities of Muncie and Anderson had near major flooding as the river crested at its highest level…

9. Jul 25, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Indianapolis Star reported that strong thunderstorm wind gusts led to widespread damage to the Kittle's Superstore in Castleton. Damage to the roof and ruptured water pipes at the furniture store caused the sprinkler system to activate, dumping numerous gallons of water on the inventory. Kittle's Chairman Jim Kittle Jr. estimated the damage at several million dollars.

10. Jan 22, 1999Flood, Marion$1.7 million
    National Weather Service narrative

    Heavy rain of up to 5 inches on the 21st and 22nd combined with rapid snow melt upstream causing widespread flooding along the White River from Muncie to East Mount Carmel. Crests ranged from around a foot above flood stage along extreme eastern sections of the White to around 10 feet above flood stage across extreme western sections. Flooding along the river in Hamilton and northern Marion counties were the highest seen since December 1990 and January 1991. Many homes and streets were flooded, and a few rescues took place. The following are various crests along the river: Muncie - 9.62 feet (flood stage is 9 feet); Anderson - 12.8 feet (flood stage is 10 feet); Noblesville -…

1. 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.

All-time high

105°F2 times, most recently Jul 7, 2012

All-time low

−27°FJan 19, 1994

Warmest night

81°FJul 7, 2012

Coldest day

−11°FJan 20, 1985

Wettest day

7.20 inSep 1, 2003

Snowiest day

11.4 inJan 5, 2014

Hottest year

2012mean 56.9°F

Coldest year

2014mean 50.1°F

Wettest year

199656.81 in

Driest year

195427.93 in

Snowiest season

58.2 in1981-82

Station Indianapolis (USW00093819), 887 ft elevation, 8.6 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 27, 2026; 100.0% 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.

Declarations for Marion County.

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.

• 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 USW00093819.
• 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.