Refugio County, Texas Hurricane History

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

Since 1851, 33 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Refugio County, Texas — about one every 5.3 years. Of those, 13 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Beta (2020), which passed 38 miles away on 22 September 2020.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

5.3

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 · 4Cat 3 · 3Cat 2 · 2Cat 1 · 6TS / TD · 18

The 33 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 4 of them reached Cat 4.

Key facts

Most recentBeta (2020) — 38 mi away, 22 September 2020
Strongest stormUnnamed Storm (1886) — 130 kt (150 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordCandy (1968) — 2.8 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)Harvey (2017) — 3.1 miles
Passes within 25 miles19 of 33
Peak monthAugust — 11 storms (33% of all)
Most active year1886 — 2 storms
Most active decade1960s — 5 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi7
Record span1851–2020

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Refugio County, Texas, August is the most active month, with 11 of the 33 recorded storms (33%). Activity concentrates in June, August and September, together 85% of all storms. The 1960s was the most active decade on record, with 5 storms. 7 of the 33 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	4	11	10	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: 10 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
1	2	2	3	0	1	1	1	2	2	1	5	3	1	2	3	2	1

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Beta (2020)	22 Sep 2020	38.3 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Harvey (2017)	26 Aug 2017	3.1 mi	Cat 2	92 kt
Bill (2015)	16 Jun 2015	26.2 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Erin (2007)	16 Aug 2007	8.0 mi	TS / TD	29 kt
Claudette (2003)	15 Jul 2003	18.3 mi	Cat 1	67 kt
Fay (2002)	7 Sep 2002	48.0 mi	TS / TD	43 kt
Frances (1998)	11 Sep 1998	4.2 mi	TS / TD	43 kt
Charley (1998)	22 Aug 1998	32.6 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1986)	5 Aug 1986	44.0 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Fern (1971)	11 Sep 1971	27.4 mi	TS / TD	55 kt
Unnamed Storm (1970)	2 Sep 1970	19.6 mi	TS / TD	24 kt
Celia (1970)	3 Aug 1970	31.0 mi	Cat 3	112 kt
Candy (1968)	24 Jun 1968	2.8 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Abby (1964)	8 Aug 1964	40.1 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Cindy (1963)	19 Sep 1963	19.7 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Carla (1961)	11 Sep 1961	37.9 mi	Cat 3	106 kt
Unnamed Storm (1960)	24 Jun 1960	45.5 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Gerda (1958)	21 Sep 1958	21.2 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1945)	27 Aug 1945	28.3 mi	Cat 3	100 kt
Unnamed Storm (1942)	30 Aug 1942	23.7 mi	Cat 2	90 kt
Unnamed Storm (1936)	27 Jun 1936	17.5 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Unnamed Storm (1934)	25 Jul 1934	14.8 mi	Cat 1	72 kt
Unnamed Storm (1929)	28 Jun 1929	28.0 mi	Cat 1	70 kt
Unnamed Storm (1912)	17 Oct 1912	32.7 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1902)	27 Jun 1902	6.0 mi	TS / TD	49 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	24 Sep 1886	16.0 mi	Cat 1	66 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	20 Aug 1886	8.0 mi	Cat 4	121 kt
Unnamed Storm (1881)	14 Aug 1881	2.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1875)	17 Sep 1875	9.2 mi	Cat 2	83 kt
Unnamed Storm (1874)	5 Jul 1874	39.7 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1869)	17 Aug 1869	12.8 mi	Cat 1	78 kt
Unnamed Storm (1866)	15 Jul 1866	19.3 mi	TS / TD	57 kt
Unnamed Storm (1851)	26 Jun 1851	6.5 mi	Cat 1	67 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

No system on record passed within 50 miles of Refugio 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 1851–2025. 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 Refugio County, Texas compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Refugio County, Texas ranks #459 — more exposed than 79.2% of them. Within Texas it ranks #29 of 223, against a state average of 15.7 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 4 Unnamed Storm (1886) passed 8 miles away on 20 August 1886 as a hurricane, reaching 130 kt (150 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 4 Carla (1961) passed 38 miles away on 11 September 1961 as a hurricane, reaching 125 kt (144 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 4 Celia (1970) passed 31 miles away on 3 August 1970 as a hurricane, reaching 120 kt (138 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 4 Harvey (2017) passed 3 miles away on 26 August 2017 as a hurricane, reaching 115 kt (132 mph) while within 50 miles.

29 of the 33 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 5.3 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 33 storms spread over the 175 years from 1851 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 1912 and 1929. It has been 5 years since the last one; 10 of the 29 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Refugio County, Texas?

13 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Refugio County, Texas at hurricane strength since 1851. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 33.

When was the last hurricane in Refugio County, Texas?

Harvey (2017), on 26 August 2017, passing 3 miles away — 9 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Beta (2020) in 2020.

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

Unnamed Storm (1886), which reached 130 kt (150 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 8 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Refugio County, Texas?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 5.3 years — 33 storms over the 175 years from 1851 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Refugio County, Texas borders or sits close to 6 other counties with a published storm record. Calhoun County, Texas has 37 on record.

Calhoun County, Texas37 storms within 50 mi Aransas County, Texas33 storms within 50 mi San Patricio County, Texas33 storms within 50 mi Victoria County, Texas32 storms within 50 mi Bee County, Texas31 storms within 50 mi Goliad County, Texas31 storms within 50 mi