Laredo

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.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 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 Webb County, the county that contains Laredo.

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 Webb County, the county that contains Laredo.

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 Webb County, the county that contains Laredo.

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Jun 2, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$33.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A NWS storm survey team observed the most severe damage at the Laredo International Airport and homes and businesses surrounding the airport. $750,000 in damage was done to city owned buildings at the airport. An estimated $2 million in damage was done to privately owned buildings and hangars on airport grounds. Twenty five aircraft were damaged, most in hangars which failed. A parked Boeing 737 was blown off a runway and through a chain linked fence. An American Eagle plane suffered punctures when a jet way was flipped over into it. The main terminal building suffered minor roof damage. Runways were closed until the next morning so crews could survey them for damage. Thirty two…

2. May 21, 2017Thunderstorm Wind$20.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Damage survey in connection with a severe thunderstorm revealed straight-line wind damage along a line around 5 miles in length and 1 mile in width across northwest Laredo. The damage was from west of the intersection of Interstate 69W and Mines Road to the intersection of east Del Mar Boulevard and McPherson Road. Damage was widespread through this area with numerous large tree limbs snapped, shingle damage to homes, dozens of utility poles bent or broken. The most significant damage occurred at the U.S. Customs facility near World Trade Bridge #3 and to homes in the Villas San Agustin neighborhood. At the U.S. Customs facility, several tractor trailers were overturned, and…

3. Jul 8, 2010Flood$5.3 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The remnants of Hurricane Alex brought a large area of 10 to 20 inches of rain to the upper Rio Grande basin and mountains from July 1 to July 5, 2010. The Rio Grande Valley of Mexico and Texas also received widespread 3 to 7 inches of rain contributing to the inflow to the Rio Grande. During the period July 8 to 9, 2010 another tropical cyclone, depression number 2, brought additional significant rainfall to South Texas and the Rio Grande Basin, but its contribution was much less significant.||The excessive rainfall inundated the tributaries to the Rio Grande and resulted in large releases to the water storage system. A large flood wave of water was tracked from Del Rio to Eagle…

4. Jul 27, 2012Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Laredo Fire Chief reported flash flooding across the north and northeast side of the city. Portions of Interstate 35 were closed north of Laredo near mile marker 12 due to debris blocking the roadway. Several high water rescues occurred with motorists stranded in high water in northeast Laredo. One person was evacuated from her home due to rising water near the intersection of Shiloh Road and McPherson Road. Eleven people were evacuated from a home near Orange Blossom Loop. Around 100 homes were damaged by the flood waters in northeast Laredo with many of the homes receiving damage in the tens of thousands of dollars.

5. May 14, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A supercell produced severe winds, with a measured gust of 61 mph at the Laredo International Airport (LRD), causing damage to homes, businesses, trees and power poles throughout the north and east-central side of the city. Over 11,000 customers were left without power on the evening of the 14th and morning of the 15th, forcing many businesses to close and school to cancel classes. The storm also tore a roof off of the administrative building at the Laredo Community College (LCC). There were other LCC buildings which received minor damage.

6. Feb 14, 2021Cold/Wind Chill, Webb$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Freezing temperatures affected the area from the 14th until 18th. Long duration cold spell led to power outages and issues with water pressure. Damages to homes occurred when frozen pipes burst.

7. Jun 17, 2007Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A widespread 4 to 6 inches of torrential rainfall fell across Laredo during the early morning hours with localized amounts possibly up to 8 inches. 4.29 was recorded by a television station on the north side of town. 5.41 was recorded at the Laredo International Airport between 1 and 3 AM CDT before lightning knocked out the AWISS site. Widespread flash flooding occurred on many city streets and several creeks and storm drainage ditches across Laredo. Over 100 vehicles were stalled in high water and many vehicles were carried off of streets by the high water. A van with 6 family members drove into high water near Century Blvd and Loop 20. The van became buoyant and was swept into…

8. May 21, 2020Thunderstorm Wind$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The strong winds toppled trees and damaged the roof of a business in the downtown area. Many branches were broken and left in the middle of streets due to the strong winds. Perez Elementary in south Laredo suffered significant roof damage due to the storm. Multiple power lines were blown down.

9. May 10, 2012Hail$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Large hail up to the size of softballs occurred for 20 minutes near Callaghan Ranch at mile marker 28 on Interstate 35. Several car windows were broken out.

10. May 17, 2016Hail$250,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Television station showed pictures of hail through social media in excess of three inches in diameter in the community of Ranchitos Las Lomas. Several cars suffered broken windshields. Several homes had holes where hail went through the roof or walls. A county vehicle suffered hail damage. A basketball goal was broken by the hail at the community center.

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

114°F5 times, most recently Jun 21, 2023

All-time low

11°FDec 30, 1983

Warmest night

86°FJul 27, 1979

Coldest day

30°FFeb 3, 2011

Wettest day

6.82 inAug 15, 2022

Snowiest day

2.7 in2 times, most recently Feb 9, 1973

Hottest year

2023mean 77.0°F

Coldest year

1968mean 71.5°F

Wettest year

197142.28 in

Driest year

20119.28 in

Snowiest season

2.7 in1966-67

Station Laredo 2 (USC00415060), 482 ft elevation, 3.5 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1965 to August 31, 2026; 99.1% 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 Webb 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 USC00415060.
• 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.
• 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.