Nor'easters, coastal flooding and the odd hurricane all reach Boston, so check winter storm and tide alerts before you travel
Boston's alert history is mostly nor'easters and coastal flooding, with only 36 tornadoes in the record. Hurricanes have come near 38 times, 8 of them as hurricanes, including Edna in 1954.
Boston, MA has 1 active National Weather Service alert. The list is below. Boston is in Suffolk County.
Severe weather and weather alerts in Boston right now, with tornado warning, flood warning and heat advisory status
Each row is checked against the National Weather Service alerts for the center of the city, which is in Suffolk County.
| Alert type | Right now |
|---|---|
| Tornado warning or watch | None in effect |
| Severe thunderstorm warning or watch | None in effect |
| Flood warning, flood watch or flash flood warning | None in effect |
| Winter storm warning, blizzard or ice storm | None in effect |
| Heat advisory or excessive heat warning | None in effect |
| Hurricane or tropical storm warning or watch | None in effect |
A watch means conditions are possible, so be ready. A warning means the hazard is happening or expected soon, so act now. What watches, warnings and advisories mean → · Tornado watch vs warning, and what to do in each → · All tornado watches and warnings →
Active alerts for Boston
For the center of the city in Suffolk County. Alerts for other parts of the metro area may differ.
| Alert | Level | Ends or expires |
|---|---|---|
| Small Craft Advisory | Advisory | Nov 14, 12:00 AM UTC |
Tornado history near Boston
Every tornado in the official record that started within 25 miles of the city center, 1951 to 2025.
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Date | Rating | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 29, 1974 | EF3 | 0 | 1 |
| July 28, 2014 | EF2 | 0 | 2 |
| August 25, 1958 | EF2 | 0 | 0 |
| July 11, 1958 | EF2 | 0 | 0 |
| November 21, 1956 | EF2 | 0 | 0 |
Most have come from July through September. The single busiest month is July (31% of the total).
Counts use each tornado's starting point and are limited to the official record, so they cover where tornadoes began, not every place they passed. A tornado that crosses a state line is listed once for each state. Ratings are the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale, assigned after National Weather Service damage surveys. Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database. Past counts do not predict the next tornado.
Hurricanes and tropical storms near Boston
Storms whose center passed within 60 nautical miles (about 69 miles) with at least 39 mph winds, 1851 to 2025.
| Storm | Date | Winds at closest pass | Strength | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edna (1954) | September 11, 1954 | 110 mph | Category 2 | 59 mi |
| Unnamed (1869) | October 4, 1869 | 105 mph | Category 2 | 55 mi |
| Bob (1991) | August 19, 1991 | 100 mph | Category 2 | 68 mi |
| Carol (1954) | August 31, 1954 | 90 mph | Category 1 | 55 mi |
| Unnamed (1869) | September 9, 1869 | 90 mph | Category 1 | 31 mi |
Winds are the storm's maximum sustained winds when its center was closest to the city center in the six-hourly record, not the winds felt in the city, which depend on the storm's size and which side of it you were on. Source: NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2.
Flood zone map for Boston
Flood zones are mapped by FEMA, and they are set street by street, so the city center cannot tell you whether your address is in one. FEMA's Flood Map Service Center lets you search an address and see its flood zone.
Be ready in Boston
Steps from official sources, with each point linked to the page it comes from.
- In a tornado warning, move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building, or to your basement or safe room. Avoid windows. (NWS: Tornado watches and warnings)
- A mobile home or tent is not safe. Move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from flying debris. (NWS: During a tornado)
- Being in a vehicle during a tornado is not safe. The best option is to drive to the closest shelter. (NWS: During a tornado)
- Identify and practice going to a safe shelter: a safe room built to FEMA criteria or a storm shelter built to ICC 500 standards. (Ready.gov: Tornadoes)
- The next best protection is a small, interior, windowless room or basement on the lowest level of a sturdy building. (Ready.gov: Tornadoes)
- During a tornado, cover your head and neck with your arms and put furniture or blankets around or on top of you. (Ready.gov: Tornadoes)
- Know your evacuation zone by contacting your local government or emergency management office. (NWS: Hurricane plan)
- Build an emergency kit and check equipment such as flashlights, generators and storm shutters. (NWS: Hurricane plan)
- Write or review a family emergency plan: how you will reach each other, where you will go and what you will do. (NWS: Hurricane plan)
- It is never safe to drive or walk into flood waters. Turn around, don't drown. (NWS: Turn Around Don't Drown)
- Never drive around the barriers blocking a flooded road. The road may have collapsed under the water. (NWS: Turn Around Don't Drown)
- Evacuate immediately when water starts to rise, and get to higher ground if you are in a flood-prone or low-lying area. (NWS: During a flood)
- When thunder roars, go indoors. Move from outdoors into a building or a car with a roof. (Ready.gov: Thunderstorms & Lightning)
- Avoid using electronic devices connected to an electrical outlet, and avoid running water. (Ready.gov: Thunderstorms & Lightning)
- Do not drive through flooded roadways. Six inches of fast-moving water can knock you down, and one foot can sweep a vehicle away. (Ready.gov: Thunderstorms & Lightning)
- Do not rely on a fan as your primary cooling device. Fans do not reduce body temperature or prevent heat-related illness. (Ready.gov: Extreme Heat)
- If your home has no air conditioning, find a cooling center, take cool showers or baths, and drink plenty of fluids. (Ready.gov: Extreme Heat)
- Never leave people or pets in a closed car on a warm day. Check on family members, older adults and neighbors. (Ready.gov: Extreme Heat)
- A winter storm watch means conditions are favorable for a significant winter storm: heavy sleet, heavy snow, an ice storm, or a combination. (NWS: Winter watches, warnings and advisories)
- In a winter storm warning, travel can become difficult or impossible. Delay travel until conditions improve. (NWS: Winter watches, warnings and advisories)
- In a blizzard warning, do not travel. If you must, carry a winter survival kit. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle and wait for help. (NWS: Winter watches, warnings and advisories)
- Heavy ice can bring down trees, utility poles and communication towers, and power and communication outages can last days. (NWS: Ice and Frost)
- Even a thin layer of ice is dangerous to drivers and pedestrians, and bridges and overpasses freeze before other surfaces. (NWS: Ice and Frost)
- Black ice is a thin, patchy layer on roads that is hard to see, most common in early morning, especially when melted snow refreezes overnight. (NWS: Ice and Frost)
Nearby cities
Common questions about weather in Boston
What county is Boston in?
Boston is in Suffolk County, Massachusetts.
Is there a tornado watch, tornado warning, winter storm, ice storm, snow or other weather warning in Boston and the rest of Suffolk County right now?
The National Weather Service has 1 active alert for the center of Boston, listed above. An alert can cover only part of Suffolk County, so the Massachusetts alerts page lists every county with an active National Weather Service alert.
What happened in the EF3 tornado near Boston on September 29, 1974?
It is the strongest tornado in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center record that started within 25 miles of the center of Boston. It was rated EF3, caused no deaths and 1 injury, and began in Massachusetts. Of the 36 tornadoes that started that close since 1950, 6 were rated EF2 or stronger. Ratings before 2007 use the original Fujita scale.
How many tornadoes have started within 25 miles of Boston?
36 tornadoes from 1951 through 2025, 9 of them since 2000. In the last 10 years (2016 to 2025) there were 6, and 2023 was the busiest year with 3. Most came from July through September, and July is the busiest single month (31% of the total). One tornado that crosses a county or state line can appear as two records.
When did a tornado last start near Boston?
The most recent tornado in the database that started within 25 miles of the center of Boston began on August 18, 2023 and was rated EF0. The database runs through 2025, so it does not include anything after that.
What is the strongest hurricane to pass near Boston?
Edna in 1954 is the strongest on record: winds of 110 mph (Category 2) at its closest recorded position on September 11, 1954, about 59 miles away. In all, 38 tropical storms and hurricanes have passed within 60 nautical miles (about 69 miles) of Boston since 1851, 8 of them with hurricane-strength winds. September has the most (32%). Wind and damage in the city itself depend on a storm's size and path.
Alerts come from the National Weather Service, the NOAA Storm Prediction Center and the National Hurricane Center.