Hillsboro, OR Tornado History — 22 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Hillsboro, OR had?
Hillsboro has had 22 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950, including 1 violent (EF3+) tornado.
When was the most recent tornado near Hillsboro?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Hillsboro was an EF0 on November 10, 2020.
When is tornado season in Hillsboro?
October is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Hillsboro, with 7 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 Hillsboro
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 11 total, averaging 0.6 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
Casualties on Record Near Hillsboro
6 fatalities have been recorded within 25 miles of Hillsboro since 1950, across 1 event. 300 injuries have been reported across all events. 1972 was the deadliest year on record.
The deadliest single event was a F3 on April 5, 1972, which caused 6 fatalities along a 8.7-mile track.
Notable Tornadoes Near Hillsboro
About Tornadoes in Hillsboro
This overview was written July 27, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
The Hillsboro, Oregon area sits within a part of the country where tornadoes are a recurring part of the climate rather than a rare anomaly. The tornado history summarized on this page is drawn from the NOAA Storm Prediction Center's severe weather database, which covers the area within the search radius shown above. The counts, ratings and individual events listed on this page are generated directly from that database and update as it is revised, so they always reflect the current record rather than a snapshot frozen at the time this summary was written.
Activity in this area concentrates most heavily in the autumn months, as the jet stream returns south and frontal systems sharpen again. There is also a meaningful secondary season in the autumn, a pattern common across this part of the country and one that catches people out precisely because it falls outside the spring window most residents watch. The underlying setup is a familiar one: tornadoes are comparatively uncommon and are usually weaker and shorter-lived than their counterparts further east, often forming along convergence lines or in association with landfalling systems and cool-season troughs rather than classic Plains supercells.
Tornado intensity is described using the Enhanced Fujita scale, which runs from EF0 for the weakest tornadoes to EF5 for the most extreme, and which rates a tornado by the damage it leaves behind rather than by wind speed measured directly. Most tornadoes in the area have been at the weaker end of the scale, though the record includes strong tornadoes capable of significant structural damage. A weak rating is a statement about observed damage, not a guarantee about the next storm. Tornadoes in this area have caused loss of life; the casualty figures and the specific events behind them are listed above, straight from the record.
One caveat is worth carrying into any look at the numbers above: the modern record begins in 1950, and reported tornado counts have risen over the decades in large part because detection and reporting have improved. Doppler radar, storm spotter networks, mobile phones and denser development all mean that tornadoes which would once have gone unrecorded are now documented. A rising count does not by itself prove that more tornadoes are forming. The practical takeaway for Hillsboro residents is unchanged: know where your safe room is, keep a way to receive warnings that will wake you at night, and treat every warning as though it applies to you, because the record here shows that it can.