Seaside, CA Tornado History — 6 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Seaside, CA had?
Seaside has had 6 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950.
When was the most recent tornado near Seaside?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Seaside was an EF0 on December 22, 2012.
When is tornado season in Seaside?
December is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Seaside, with 4 on record. Spring through early summer (April–June) generally sees the highest activity across most of the central and southern United States.
At a Glance
Recent Tornado Activity Near Seaside
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 1 total, averaging 0.1 per year over this window.
Tornadoes by Decade
Tornadoes by Enhanced Fujita Rating
F0–F5 ratings (pre-2007) are grouped with their EF equivalents. The Enhanced Fujita scale replaced the original Fujita scale in February 2007.
Tornadoes by Month
Have any tornadoes near Seaside been fatal?
No fatalities are on record within 25 miles of Seaside from any of the 6 tornadoes since 1950, though 2 injuries have been reported. NOAA Storm Prediction Center records.
Notable Tornadoes Near Seaside
About Tornadoes in Seaside
This overview was written April 23, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
Seaside, California, located along the central coast of Monterey Bay, has experienced six documented tornadoes within a 25-mile radius since 1950, according to NOAA Storm Prediction Center records. This relatively low frequency reflects the region's coastal climate, where the moderating influence of the Pacific Ocean typically suppresses the severe thunderstorm activity that spawns most tornadoes across the United States.
All recorded tornadoes in the Seaside area have been rated EF0 or EF1 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which measures tornado intensity based on damage. Four events were classified as EF0, the weakest category with winds of 65 to 85 mph, while two reached EF1 intensity with winds of 86 to 110 mph. Notably, none of these tornadoes resulted in fatalities, though they did cause property damage ranging from minor to moderate.
The temporal distribution of these events shows activity concentrated in the 1980s and 1990s, with two tornadoes occurring in the 1980s and three in the 1990s. After a gap of more than a decade, one tornado was recorded in the 2010s. Unusually for most tornado-prone regions, December stands out as the peak month for tornado activity near Seaside, accounting for four of the six recorded events. This winter peak contrasts sharply with the spring maximum typical of the central United States, where warm-season instability drives most tornado formation.
The most significant tornado on record occurred on December 7, 1992, an F1 event that traveled 7.0 miles with a maximum width of 73 yards and caused $275,000 in property damage. This tornado holds the distinction of being simultaneously the costliest, widest, and longest-track tornado documented in the area. The most recent event was an EF0 tornado on December 22, 2012, which traveled 1.1 miles with a maximum width of 20 yards and caused $40,000 in damage. While tornadoes remain rare along California's central coast, these records demonstrate that the phenomenon does occasionally occur in the region's winter storm systems.