Historical record — not a forecast
South Padre Island
South Padre Island, TX has had 30 storms pass within 75 km since 1851, the strongest being an unnamed storm (1880, Category 4 Hurricane).
Location 01
South Padre Island
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The historical record
Storm history
30 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of South Padre Island since 1851, based on NOAA’s HURDAT2 best-track data (1851-2025). Atlantic storm counts before the mid-20th century undercount storms that stayed at sea; aircraft reconnaissance began in the 1940s and systematic satellite coverage in 1966. Storms that struck populated coastline are the most reliably recorded part of the record.
By storm category
- Tropical Depression
- 2
- Tropical Storm
- 12
- Category 1 Hurricane
- 5
- Category 2 Hurricane
- 6
- Category 3 Hurricane
- 3
- Category 4 Hurricane
- 2
By decade
- 1850s
- 2
- 1860s
- 2
- 1880s
- 3
- 1900s
- 2
- 1910s
- 2
- 1930s
- 4
- 1940s
- 2
- 1960s
- 3
- 1970s
- 2
- 1980s
- 1
- 1990s
- 2
- 2000s
- 1
- 2010s
- 2
- 2020s
- 2
Strongest & most recent
- Strongest on record
- an unnamed storm (1880, Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt) passed within 39.5 km in 1880
- Most recent
- Nicholas (2021, Tropical Storm, 50 kt) passed within 53.0 km in 2021
- Coordinates
- 26.12046, -97.17070
- Basin
- atlantic
Notable storms on record
- Unnamed storm (1880) — Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt, passed within 39.5 km on 1880-08-13
- Bret (1999) — Category 4 Hurricane, 120 kt, passed within 64.9 km on 1999-08-22
- Allen (1980) — Category 3 Hurricane, 110 kt, passed within 3.7 km on 1980-08-10
- Beulah (1967) — Category 3 Hurricane, 110 kt, passed within 24.7 km on 1967-09-20
- Unnamed storm (1933) — Category 3 Hurricane, 110 kt, passed within 3.7 km on 1933-09-05
- Unnamed storm (1945) — Category 2 Hurricane, 95 kt, passed within 70.8 km on 1945-08-26
- Unnamed storm (1867) — Category 2 Hurricane, 90 kt, passed within 25.5 km on 1867-10-02
- Dolly (2008) — Category 2 Hurricane, 85 kt, passed within 31.2 km on 2008-07-23
Historical return intervals
These are plain historical averages — years of record divided by how many times a storm of that strength has passed within 75 km. They are not a probability or a forecast of a future storm; they describe how often storms of each strength have occurred in the past.
- Tropical storm strength or greater
- on average every 6.2 years, historically
- Hurricane strength
- on average every 10.9 years, historically
- Major hurricane (Cat 3+)
- on average every 35.0 years, historically
How many hurricanes and storms have hit near South Padre Island?
Since 1851, 30 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 75 km of South Padre Island, TX, based on NOAA HURDAT2 best-track data.
What was the strongest storm to affect South Padre Island?
an unnamed storm (1880, Category 4 Hurricane, 130 kt) passed within 39.5 km in 1880, reaching Category 4 Hurricane strength.
Is this a hurricane forecast for South Padre Island?
No. This page presents only historical, already-occurred storm data. It contains no forecast, prediction, or safety or evacuation guidance. Return-interval figures above are historical averages, not a probability of a future storm. See our methodology.
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