Kenedy County, Texas Hurricane History

No active tropical cyclones are within 500 miles of Kenedy County, Texas as of Thursday, 10 September 2026. Official forecasts at nhc.noaa.gov.

Since 1854, 34 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Kenedy County, Texas — about one every 5.1 years. Of those, 15 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Harold (2023), which passed 19 miles away on 22 August 2023.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

5.1

Avg. years between

Years since the last

Storm tracks within 50 miles

TS / TDCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5

Each line is one storm track, coloured by the strongest category it reached while within 50 miles. The dashed ring marks that 50-mile radius; hairlines are one-degree graticule. Source: NOAA NHC HURDAT2.

How strong they get

Cat 4 · 2Cat 3 · 5Cat 2 · 2Cat 1 · 5TS / TD · 20

The 34 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 2 of them reached Cat 4.

Key facts

Most recentHarold (2023) — 19 mi away, 22 August 2023
Strongest stormBret (1999) — 116 kt (133 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordUnnamed Storm (1910) — 0.9 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)Bret (1999) — 3.3 miles
Passes within 25 miles18 of 34
Peak monthSeptember — 12 storms (35% of all)
Most active year1945 — 2 storms
Most active decade1910s — 5 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi7
Record span1854–2023

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Kenedy County, Texas, September is the most active month, with 12 of the 34 recorded storms (35%). Activity concentrates in June, August and September, together 79% of all storms. The 1910s was the most active decade on record, with 5 storms. 7 of the 34 storms were major hurricanes (Category 3 or stronger) while within 50 miles.

J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
0	0	0	0	0	7	6	8	12	1	0	0

Activity by decade

19002000

Tropical cyclones passing within 50 miles, by decade, 1850s to 2020s. Decades with no storms are shown as empty columns. Comparing two equal 38-year windows inside the aircraft-reconnaissance era: 11 storms in 1950–1987 against 8 in 1988–2025.

1850s	1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s	1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
2	0	1	2	0	1	5	0	2	2	2	3	4	2	2	2	2	2

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Harold (2023)	22 Aug 2023	18.7 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Hanna (2020)	26 Jul 2020	13.2 mi	Cat 1	75 kt
Don (2011)	30 Jul 2011	30.7 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Hermine (2010)	7 Sep 2010	19.5 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Dolly (2008)	23 Jul 2008	29.5 mi	Cat 1	66 kt
Bertha (2002)	9 Aug 2002	30.7 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Bret (1999)	23 Aug 1999	3.3 mi	Cat 2	93 kt
Arlene (1993)	20 Jun 1993	17.2 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Unnamed Storm (1986)	5 Aug 1986	41.6 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Allen (1980)	10 Aug 1980	29.9 mi	Cat 2	88 kt
Amelia (1978)	31 Jul 1978	5.5 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Fern (1971)	11 Sep 1971	37.0 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Unnamed Storm (1971)	10 Jul 1971	7.6 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1970)	1 Sep 1970	22.3 mi	TS / TD	29 kt
Candy (1968)	23 Jun 1968	47.9 mi	TS / TD	55 kt
Beulah (1967)	20 Sep 1967	24.9 mi	Cat 1	82 kt
Unnamed Storm (1960)	24 Jun 1960	11.8 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Gerda (1958)	20 Sep 1958	14.9 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Ella (1958)	6 Sep 1958	42.1 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1945)	26 Aug 1945	48.9 mi	Cat 3	100 kt
Unnamed Storm (1945)	22 Jul 1945	42.6 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1936)	13 Sep 1936	23.0 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Unnamed Storm (1931)	28 Jun 1931	12.8 mi	TS / TD	34 kt
Unnamed Storm (1919)	14 Sep 1919	26.2 mi	Cat 2	92 kt
Unnamed Storm (1916)	18 Aug 1916	14.0 mi	Cat 4	115 kt
Unnamed Storm (1913)	28 Jun 1913	18.7 mi	Cat 1	65 kt
Unnamed Storm (1912)	16 Oct 1912	17.6 mi	Cat 2	85 kt
Unnamed Storm (1910)	15 Sep 1910	0.9 mi	Cat 1	65 kt
Unnamed Storm (1902)	26 Jun 1902	32.5 mi	TS / TD	62 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	23 Sep 1886	7.7 mi	Cat 1	77 kt
Unnamed Storm (1880)	13 Aug 1880	49.2 mi	Cat 3	97 kt
Unnamed Storm (1874)	5 Sep 1874	33.0 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Unnamed Storm (1857)	30 Sep 1857	47.2 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1854)	26 Jun 1854	41.9 mi	TS / TD	60 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

No system on record passed within 50 miles of Kenedy County, Texas after losing tropical characteristics, so every storm listed above was still a tropical or subtropical cyclone at its closest approach.

About this data. Computed from NOAA's HURDAT2 Atlantic and Northeast Pacific hurricane databases (hurdat2-1851-2025-02272026.txt), covering 1854–2025. Tracks are recorded every six hours and are interpolated to one-hour steps before distances are measured, so closest-approach figures are not distorted by the sampling interval. Distances are measured to the county's Census internal point, not to its nearest boundary, so a storm listed at 55 miles may still have crossed the coastline — see Methodology. Records before about 1900 are sparser and less precise than modern ones, and storms that stayed at sea were less likely to be recorded at all.

How Kenedy County, Texas compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Kenedy County, Texas ranks #434 — more exposed than 80.3% of them. Within Texas it ranks #21 of 223, against a state average of 15.7 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 4 Bret (1999) passed 3 miles away on 23 August 1999 as a hurricane, reaching 116 kt (133 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 4 Unnamed Storm (1916) passed 14 miles away on 18 August 1916 as a hurricane, reaching 115 kt (132 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 3 Unnamed Storm (1945) passed 49 miles away on 26 August 1945 as a hurricane, reaching 100 kt (115 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 3 Unnamed Storm (1919) passed 26 miles away on 14 September 1919 as a hurricane, reaching 100 kt (115 mph) while within 50 miles.

24 of the 34 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 5.1 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 34 storms spread over the 172 years from 1854 to 2025. 3 separate years saw more than one storm pass within 50 miles while stretches of a decade or more have passed with none. The longest recorded quiet stretch was 17 years, between 1857 and 1874. It has been 2 years since the last one; 21 of the 30 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Kenedy County, Texas?

15 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Kenedy County, Texas at hurricane strength since 1854. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 34.

When was the last hurricane in Kenedy County, Texas?

Hanna (2020), on 26 July 2020, passing 13 miles away — 6 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Harold (2023) in 2023.

What was the strongest storm to affect Kenedy County, Texas?

Bret (1999), which reached 116 kt (133 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 3 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Kenedy County, Texas?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 5.1 years — 34 storms over the 172 years from 1854 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Kenedy County, Texas borders or sits close to 5 other counties with a published storm record. Kleberg County, Texas has 34 on record.

Kleberg County, Texas34 storms within 50 mi Willacy County, Texas33 storms within 50 mi Cameron County, Texas33 storms within 50 mi Brooks County, Texas29 storms within 50 mi Hidalgo County, Texas27 storms within 50 mi