Travis County, Texas Tropical Cyclone History

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

Since 1874, 12 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Travis County, Texas — about one every 12.7 years. Of those, 1 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Bill (2015), which passed 36 miles away on 17 June 2015.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

12.7

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 1 · 1TS / TD · 11

The 12 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 1 of them reached Cat 1.

Key facts

Most recentBill (2015) — 36 mi away, 17 June 2015
Strongest stormCarla (1961) — 66 kt (76 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordCandy (1968) — 5.4 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)None on record
Passes within 25 miles6 of 12
Peak monthSeptember — 5 storms (42% of all)
Most active year1874 — 1 storms
Most active decade1900s and 1960s — 3 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi0
Record span1874–2015

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Travis County, Texas, September is the most active month, with 5 of the 12 recorded storms (42%). Activity concentrates in June, July and September, together 92% of all storms. The 1900s and 1960s are tied as the most active decades on record, with 3 storms. 0 of the 12 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	4	2	1	5	0	0	0

Activity by decade

19002000

Tropical cyclones passing within 50 miles, by decade, 1870s to 2010s. Decades with no storms are shown as empty columns. Comparing two equal 38-year windows inside the aircraft-reconnaissance era: 5 storms in 1950–1987 against 1 in 1988–2025.

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

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Bill (2015)	17 Jun 2015	35.5 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Delia (1973)	6 Sep 1973	6.7 mi	TS / TD	31 kt
Unnamed Storm (1970)	2 Sep 1970	22.0 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Candy (1968)	24 Jun 1968	5.4 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Carla (1961)	12 Sep 1961	11.4 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Unnamed Storm (1960)	26 Jun 1960	32.5 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1932)	14 Aug 1932	39.4 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Unnamed Storm (1909)	22 Jul 1909	35.5 mi	TS / TD	28 kt
Unnamed Storm (1902)	27 Jun 1902	19.4 mi	TS / TD	39 kt
Unnamed Storm (1901)	10 Jul 1901	17.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	24 Sep 1886	44.5 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1874)	6 Sep 1874	48.4 mi	TS / TD	30 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

No system on record passed within 50 miles of Travis 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 1874–2025. 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 Travis County, Texas compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Travis County, Texas ranks #1,172 — more exposed than 46.9% of them. Within Texas it ranks #124 of 223, against a state average of 15.7 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 1 Carla (1961) passed 11 miles away on 12 September 1961 as a hurricane, reaching 66 kt (76 mph) while within 50 miles.
TS / TD Unnamed Storm (1932) passed 39 miles away on 14 August 1932 as a tropical storm, reaching 44 kt (51 mph) while within 50 miles.
TS / TD Candy (1968) passed 5 miles away on 24 June 1968 as a tropical storm, reaching 43 kt (49 mph) while within 50 miles.
TS / TD Unnamed Storm (1902) passed 19 miles away on 27 June 1902 as a tropical storm, reaching 41 kt (47 mph) while within 50 miles.

8 of the 12 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 12.7 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 12 storms spread over the 152 years from 1874 to 2025. 0 separate years saw more than one storm pass within 50 miles while decades have gone by with none. The longest recorded quiet stretch was 42 years, between 1973 and 2015. It has been 10 years since the last one; 5 of the 11 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Travis County, Texas?

1 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Travis County, Texas at hurricane strength since 1874. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 12.

When was the last hurricane in Travis County, Texas?

Carla (1961), on 12 September 1961, passing 11 miles away — 65 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Bill (2015) in 2015.

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

Carla (1961), which reached 66 kt (76 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 11 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Travis County, Texas?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 12.7 years — 12 storms over the 152 years from 1874 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Travis County, Texas borders or sits close to 4 other counties with a published storm record. Bastrop County, Texas has 18 on record.

Bastrop County, Texas18 storms within 50 mi Caldwell County, Texas17 storms within 50 mi Williamson County, Texas14 storms within 50 mi Hays County, Texas14 storms within 50 mi