NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information
Georgia Summary
From 1980–2024 (as of November 1, 2024), there have been 133 confirmed weather/climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each to affect Georgia. These events included 16 drought events, 4 flooding events, 3 freeze events, 68 severe storm events, 27 tropical cyclone events, 3 wildfire events, and 12 winter storm events. The 1980–2023 annual average is 2.8 events (CPI-adjusted); the annual average for the most recent 5 years (2019–2023) is 7.6 events (CPI-adjusted).
| Disaster Type | Events | Events/Year | Percent Frequency | Total Costs | Percent of Total Costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drought | 16 | 0.4 | 12.0% | $5.0B-$10.0B | 17.6% |
| Flooding | 4 | 0.1 | 3.0% | $1.0B-$2.0B | 3.0% |
| Freeze | 3 | 0.1 | 2.3% | $1.0B-$2.0B | 2.8% |
| Severe Storm | 68 | 1.5 | 51.1% | $10.0B-$20.0B | 27.6% |
| Tropical Cyclone | 27 | 0.6 | 20.3% | $20.0B-$50.0B‡ | 42.3%‡ |
| Wildfire | 3 | 0.1 | 2.3% | $250M-$500M | 0.6% |
| Winter Storm | 12 | 0.3 | 9.0% | $2.0B-$5.0B | 6.1% |
| All Disasters | 133 | 3.0 | 100.0% | $20.0B-$50.0B‡ | 100.0%‡ |
| Drought | 16 | 0.4 | 13.3% | $2.0B-$5.0B | 12.5% |
| Flooding | 3 | 0.1 | 2.5% | $5M-$100M | 0.3% |
| Freeze | 3 | 0.1 | 2.5% | $500M-$1.0B | 2.7% |
| Severe Storm | 60 | 1.3 | 50.0% | $5.0B-$10.0B | 31.4% |
| Tropical Cyclone | 27 | 0.6 | 22.5% | $10.0B-$20.0B‡ | 47.2%‡ |
| Wildfire | 3 | 0.1 | 2.5% | $100M-$250M | 0.6% |
| Winter Storm | 8 | 0.2 | 6.7% | $1.0B-$2.0B | 5.4% |
| All Disasters | 120 | 2.7 | 100.0% | $20.0B-$50.0B‡ | 100.0%‡ |
| Time Period | Billion-Dollar Disasters | Events/ | Cost | Percent of Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s (1980-1989) | 9 | 0.9 | $2.0B-$5.0B | 7.7% |
| 1990s (1990-1999) | 14 | 1.4 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 14.8% |
| 2000s (2000-2009) | 25 | 2.5 | $10.0B-$20.0B | 23.0% |
| 2010s (2010-2019) | 37 | 3.7 | $10.0B-$20.0B | 33.3% |
| Last 5 Years (2019-2023) | 38 | 7.6 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 19.2% |
| Last 3 Years (2021-2023) | 26 | 8.7 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 12.4% |
| Last Year (2023) | 14 | 14.0 | $2.0B-$5.0B | 6.9% |
| All Years (1980-2024)* | 133 | 3.0 | $20.0B-$50.0B‡ | 100.0%‡ |
| 1980s (1980-1989) | 4 | 0.4 | $500M-$1.0B | 3.0% |
| 1990s (1990-1999) | 12 | 1.2 | $2.0B-$5.0B | 10.2% |
| 2000s (2000-2009) | 21 | 2.1 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 18.6% |
| 2010s (2010-2019) | 35 | 3.5 | $10.0B-$20.0B | 38.9% |
| Last 5 Years (2019-2023) | 38 | 7.6 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 26.2% |
| Last 3 Years (2021-2023) | 26 | 8.7 | $5.0B-$10.0B | 17.7% |
| Last Year (2023) | 14 | 14.0 | $2.0B-$5.0B | 10.2% |
| All Years (1980-2024)* | 120 | 2.7 | $20.0B-$50.0B‡ | 100.0%‡ |
| Event | Type | Begin Date |
End Date |
Summary |
CPI-AUnadjusted Estimated Cost (in Billions) |
Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hurricane Milton August 2024 | Tropical Cyclone | October 9, 2024 | October 10, 2024 | Category 3 Hurricane Milton with 120 mph sustained winds made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida on October 9. In addition to the destructive winds, a storm surge of 5 to 10 feet cased damage from Naples to Charlotte Harbor. Milton's track to the south of Tampa Bay prevented worse storm surge to accumulate in the densely populated Tampa metro region. Dozens of tornadoes were also spawn from Milton that damaged many homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure across southern Florida. Milton underwent rapid intensification exploding into a Category 5 hurricane with 180 mph sustained winds and a 897 mb central pressure reading. An environment of enhanced wind shear the day prior to landfall reduced Milton's peak wind potential. Additional information is currently being assembled that summarizes the damage produced by Milton. | TBD | 24 |
Hurricane Helene September 2024 | Tropical Cyclone | September 24, 2024 | September 29, 2024 | Category 4 Hurricane Helene with 140 mph sustained winds was the strongest hurricane on record to strike the Big Bend region of Florida having made landfall near Perry, Florida on September 26. Helene was a massive storm and the third hurricane to hit the Big Bend region in just over a year. It caused up to 15 feet of storm surge along the Big Bend coast and six feet of surge as far south as St. Petersburg. It also caused billions of dollars in damage to Georgia's agriculture sector. Helene's most severe impacts were from the historic rainfall (up to 30+ inches) and catastrophic flooding across much of western North Carolina. This flooding eclipsed the region's previous worst flood from 1916. Asheville and many surrounding cities and communities were heavily impacted. Southwestern Virginia and extreme eastern Tennessee were also heavily impacted. Damage came in many forms. Landslides, debris flows, and historic levels of flooding inundated and destroyed an immense number of homes, businesses, parks, hospitals, the electrical, cellular and water system infrastructure, and damaged thousands of roads, highways and bridges, as examples. Additional information is currently being assembled that summarizes the vast scope of damage produced by Helene. The human toll was also record-breaking, as Helene was the deadliest Atlantic hurricane since Maria (2017), and the deadliest to strike the U.S. mainland since Katrina (2005). | TBD | 225 |
Hurricane Debby August 2024 | Tropical Cyclone | August 5, 2024 | August 9, 2024 | Category 1 Hurricane Debby made landfall on August 5 near Steinhatchee, Florida with 80 mph sustained winds and a second landfall near Bulls Bay, South Carolina as a tropical storm on August 8. Debby produced over 10 inches of rainfall from southwestern Florida up through the coastal sections of Georgia and the Carolinas. Debby continued to track up the East Coast affecting numerous states with heavy rain, flash flood and river flooding and strong winds. A frontal system merged with the remnants of Debby that led to flash flooding in parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and southeastern New York. This interaction also produced an EF-1 tornado that impacted Buffalo, New York. | $2.5 CI | 10 |
Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather July 2024 | Severe Storm | July 13, 2024 | July 16, 2024 | An outbreak producing more than 79 tornadoes developed across many central and eastern states. There were also over 1,000 reports of high wind and hail damage during this multi-day event. On July 15, this outbreak spawned 32 tornadoes and broke the Chicago-area record for the most tornadoes in a day. The states most impacted were Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and New York that experienced considerable damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. | $2.4 CI | 2 |
Southern Derecho May 2024 | Severe Storm | May 16, 2024 | May 17, 2024 | A rare southern derecho event produced high wind damage from Texas to Florida. Central and eastern Texas were impacted by high winds at times exceeding 100 mph. These winds also ripped through downtown Houston blowing out numerous windows in skyscrapers causing considerable damage. Louisiana, Alabama and Florida also were impacted by damaging winds impacting many homes, vehicles and businesses. | $1.6 CI | 8 |
Central, Southern, Southeastern Tornado Outbreak May 2024 | Severe Storm | May 6, 2024 | May 9, 2024 | An outbreak producing more than 165 tornadoes developed across many central, southern and southeastern states. The states most affected include Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. This multi-day torando outbreak produced at least 61 EF-0, 79 EF-1, 13 EF-2, three EF-3, one EF-4 tornado and dozens of EF-U (unknown/unrated) tornadoes, causing widespread damage to many homes, businesses, vehicles, agriculture and other infrastructure. The towns of Barnsdall and Bartlesville, Oklahoma were impacted by a violet EF-4 tornado that caused extensive damage. | $6.6 CI | 3 |
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather April 2024 | Severe Storm | April 8, 2024 | April 11, 2024 | Southern and eastern severe weather produced tornadoes, hail and high wind, from Texas to Virginia. The event began with severe hail and high wind impacts across central and eastern Texas, followed by more than 20 tornadoes impacting the Gulf Coast counties of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. There were additional high wind and tornado impacts in North Carolina and Virginia. | $2.7 CI | 0 |
Central Tornado Outbreak and Eastern Severe Weather April 2024 | Severe Storm | April 1, 2024 | April 3, 2024 | A central tornado outbreak produced more than 85 tornadoes across a three-day period from Oklahoma to West Virginia. This outbreak included 19 EF-0, 52 EF-1 and 14 EF-2 tornadoes, which were most concentrated across the Ohio River Valley on April 1-2. These tornadoes and severe weather impacts across several eastern states caused damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. | $2.5 CI | 3 |
Central and Eastern Severe Weather February 2024 | Severe Storm | February 27, 2024 | February 28, 2024 | Severe storms produced two dozen tornadoes, hail and high wind impacts across northern Illinois, central Ohio and southern Michigan. There were additional high wind impacts focused across northern Kentucky and northern Georgia causing damage to homes, vehicles, businesses and other infrastructure. | $1.5 CI | 0 |
Southern Severe Weather February 2024 | Severe Storm | February 10, 2024 | February 12, 2024 | Severe storms produced up to golf ball sized hail across central and eastern Texas causing damage to homes, vehicles and businesses. Additional damage from hail and high winds and training thunderstorms caused flooding across portions of Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and North Carolina. | $1.1 CI | 0 |
Central, Southern, Northeastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave January 2024 | Winter Storm | January 14, 2024 | January 18, 2024 | A bitterly cold airmass affected numerous central and southern states most including Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee and Georgia. This long-duration cold wave produced sleet and freezing rain accumulations into the deep south, across much of Mississippi. High winds also pushed wind chills well below zero for many states contributing to dozens of fatalities, many in Tennessee. Damage also occurred to homes, vehicles and businesses from the high winds and frozen precipitation. | $1.9 CI | 41 |
Southern Tornado Outbreak and East Coast Storm January 2024 | Severe Storm | January 8, 2024 | January 10, 2024 | Southern tornado outbreak and east coast storm impacted more than a dozen states. At least 39 preliminary tornadoes were clustered around the Florida Panhandle through the Carolinas while hundreds of high wind reports were scattered up the East Coast reflecting damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. The strongest tornado was an EF-3 that caused significant damage around Panama City Beach, Florida, after an intense waterspout moved onshore. | $2.8 CI | 3 |
East Coast Storm and Flooding December 2023 | Flooding | December 16, 2023 | December 18, 2023 | Powerful east coast storm from Florida to Maine produced widespread impacts from heavy rainfall, flooding, high winds and coastal erosion. The heavy rainfall and snowmelt were amplified by record-high temperatures in the Northeast. | $1.3 CI | 5 |
Southern/ Spring-Fall 2023 | Drought | April 1, 2023 | September 30, 2023 | Drought conditions impacted numerous Southern and Midwestern states (TX, LA, OK, KS, IL, MO, NE) and surrounding states. The agriculture sector has been impacted across these affected states including damage to field crops from lack of rainfall. Ranchers have also been forced to sell-off livestock early in some regions due to high feeding costs. For the second straight year, portions of the Mississippi River have experienced low water levels impacting river commerce. This low flow has also allowed salt water from the Gulf of Mexico to migrate northward, along the bottom of the Mississippi River, impacting water quality in southern Louisiana. Several Northwestern states including Washington, Oregon and Montana have also been impacted by increasing drought effects. | $14.8 CI | 247 |
Hurricane Idalia August 2023 | Tropical Cyclone | August 29, 2023 | August 31, 2023 | Hurricane Idalia made landfall near Keaton Beach in the Big Bend region of Florida as a strong Category 3 hurricane with winds of 125 mph. Idalia was the strongest hurricane to hit the Big Bend region in more than 125 years. Storm surge was about 8 feet above ground at Cedar Key, which caused heavy damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. Other Big Bend coastal communities were also inundated by storm surge. Idalia produced 5 to 10 inches of rainfall across the Big Bend region of Florida and southeastern portions of Georgia and the Carolinas. The relatively low population density of the Big Bend region helped to reduce the physical exposure and damage costs. Significant flooding was reported in downtown Charleston, SC and nearby Edisto Beach. There was also 2 to 4 feet of storm surge along the Carolina coastline, which was exacerbated by the full moon and high tide cycle. | $3.6 CI | 5 |
Northeastern and Eastern Severe Weather August 2023 | Severe Storm | August 5, 2023 | August 8, 2023 | More than one thousand reports of high wind, severe hail or tornadoes across many Northeastern and Eastern states. August 7 was a prolific day of severe weather with damage reports from Georgia to New York. These storms caused impacts to many homes, vehicles, businesses, agriculture and other infrastructure. | $1.7 CI | 4 |
North Central and Southeastern Severe Weather July 2023 | Severe Storm | July 19, 2023 | July 21, 2023 | Severe storms caused damage across several North Central and Southeastern states. The states most impacted were Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Tennessee and Georgia. Ping pong to golf ball-sized hail and high winds damaged many homes, vehicles, businesses and other infrastructure. | $1.9 CI | 1 |
Central Severe Weather June 2023 | Severe Storm | June 28, 2023 | July 2, 2023 | Severe storms caused damage across numerous Central states. The state most impacted were Missouri, Illinois and Indiana while there were also damage in many surrounding states. The damage to many homes, vehicles, businesses and agriculture assets was largely from high wind and damaging hail but there were also scattered tornado impacts. | $2.0 CI | 3 |
Rockies Hail Storms and Central and Eastern Severe Weather June 2023 | Severe Storm | June 21, 2023 | June 26, 2023 | Severe hail storms across Colorado damaged many homes, vehicles and injured approximately 100 people at a large outdoor concert. This multi-day outbreak of severe weather also produced more than 60 tornadoes across portions of Wyoming, Colorado, Minnesota, Indiana, Kentucky and Arkansas that caused damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, agriculture and other infrastructure. | $5.4 CI | 8 |
Central and Southern Severe Weather June 2023 | Severe Storm | June 15, 2023 | June 18, 2023 | Severe storms produce over one thousand reports of damaging weather across Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, Florida, Arkansas and Ohio. Among these reports were over 70 preliminary tornadoes including an EF-3 tornado in Louin, Mississippi. This combination of high winds, hail and tornadoes caused damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, agriculture and other infrastructure. The damage was most focused in Oklahoma. | $3.9 CI | 5 |
Southern Severe Weather June 2023 | Severe Storm | June 11, 2023 | June 14, 2023 | Numerous southern states including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, South Carolina and Florida were impacted by hail, tornadoes and high winds. These storms caused damage to many homes, vehicles and businesses across several days of severe storm activity. | $4.2 CI | 0 |
Central and Eastern Tornadoes and Hail Storms May 2023 | Severe Storm | May 10, 2023 | May 12, 2023 | Dozens of tornadoes and severe hail storms from the eastern Rockies and across several central states. The most costly severe hail impacts were focused in Colorado while numerous tornadoes also impacted western Kansas, central Oklahoma and eastern Nebraska. Texas and North Dakota were also impacted from combination of high winds, hail and isolated tornadoes with damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, farms and other infrastructure. | $3.6 CI | 1 |
Southern Severe Weather April 2023 | Severe Storm | April 25, 2023 | April 27, 2023 | Southern severe weather across Texas, Georgia and Florida. Considerable hail and wind damage to many homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. | $1.4 CI | 0 |
Central Tornado Outbreak and Eastern Severe Weather March 2023 | Severe Storm | March 31, 2023 | April 1, 2023 | A historic tornado outbreak across numerous central states caused widespread damage from at least 145 tornadoes. States most impacted were Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, Iowa, Arkansas, Tennessee and Pennsylvania where there was severe damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, agriculture and other infrastructure. | $5.9 CI | 33 |
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather April 2023 | Severe Storm | March 24, 2023 | March 26, 2023 | Southern and eastern severe storms including more than 40 tornadoes caused damage across Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee to many homes, businesses, vehicles and other infrastructure. Additional high wind damage occurred in parts of Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. | $3.0 CI | 23 |
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather March 2023 | Severe Storm | March 2, 2023 | March 3, 2023 | Severe storms impact numerous southern and eastern states including Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. Impacts from high wind and tornadoes cause widespread damage to homes, vehicles, businesses, government buildings and infrastructure. | $6.1 CI | 13 |
Central and Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave December 2022 | Winter Storm | December 21, 2022 | December 26, 2022 | Historic winter storm and powerful arctic front caused significant impact across much of the nation, bringing heavy rains, snow, ice and high winds that sent temperatures plummeting. More than 200 million people were under a winter weather advisory or warning and more than a million customers, from Texas to Maine, were left without power. Buffalo, New York was paralyzed by near hurricane force winds and continuous snow squalls, which contributed to dozens of fatalities in the region. Additional impacts were widespread frozen water pipes that led to extensive water damage in many homes, businesses and to other critical infrastructure. | $9.0 CI | 87 |
Hurricane Nicole November 2022 | Tropical Cyclone | November 10, 2022 | November 11, 2022 | Category 1 Hurricane Nicole made landfall at North Hutchinson Island, Florida producing heavy rain, flooding and coastal erosion. Many of the Florida counties and communities impacted by Nicole were still recovering from the high wind and flooding impacts of Hurricane Ian several weeks earlier. This compounded the existing damage and recovery timeline. Nicole was the first hurricane to make landfall in Florida during November since Hurricane Kate in 1985. | $1.1 CI | 5 |
Hurricane Ian September 2022 | Tropical Cyclone | September 28, 2022 | September 30, 2022 | Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa, Florida, as a Category 4 Hurricane with sustained winds of 150 mph. | $118.5 CI | 152 |
Central Derecho June 2022 | Severe Storm | June 13, 2022 | June 13, 2022 | A powerful derecho carved a path a high wind damage across several states with the impacts focused in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Thousands of trees were downed from the high winds causing damage to many homes, businesses, vehicles, power lines and other infrastructure. There was also considerable hail damage across southern Wisconsin. | $3.4 CI | 1 |
Southeast Tornado Outbreak April 2022 | Severe Storm | April 4, 2022 | April 6, 2022 | A tornado outbreak on April 4-6 with a combined 100 preliminary tornadoes reported. The tornadoes occurred across Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. Many of these tornadoes were clustered along the southern regions of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. During this three-day period many of these tornadoes were rated as either EF-1 or EF-0, but there were also nine EF-2, three EF-3 and one EF-4 tornado. This EF-4 occurred in Pembroke, Georgia on April 5th with winds of 185 mph that destroyed several neighborhoods. Many of the other tornadoes across the South caused considerable damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, and other infrastructure. | $1.5 CI | 3 |
Southern Tornado Outbreak March 2022 | Severe Storm | March 30, 2022 | March 30, 2022 | An outbreak of 83 tornadoes was focused across the Gulf Coast states including Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. | $1.4 CI | 2 |
Hurricane Ida August 2021 | Tropical Cyclone | August 29, 2021 | September 1, 2021 | Category 4 Hurricane Ida made landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph (240km/h) and a minimum central pressure of 930 mb. Ida was one of three hurricanes in recorded history to make landfall in Louisiana with 150 mph winds, along with Hurricane Laura in 2020 and the 'Last Island' hurricane of 1856. Grand Isle, Louisiana took a direct hit with 100% of its homes damaged and nearly 40% were nearly-to-completely destroyed. There was heavy damage to the energy infrastructure across southern Louisiana causing widespread, long duration power outages to millions of people. Parts of New Orleans were without power for nearly a week due to the widespread damage. As the remnants of Ida moved into the Northeast it merged with a frontal system creating severe weather and flash flooding across a wide region from eastern Pennsylvania to New York. Flash flood emergencies were declared in New Jersey and New York for the first time, producing damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and infrastructure while also causing dozens of fatalities. | $84.6 CI | 96 |
Tropical Storm Fred August 2021 | Tropical Cyclone | August 16, 2021 | August 18, 2021 | Tropical Storm Fred made landfall near Panama City, Florida. As Fred progressed northward it caused torrential flooding across the southern Appalachian Mountains with more than a foot of rainfall reported in some locations of western North Carolina. This flash flooding caused damage to many homes, businesses, vehicles, roads and bridges, in additional to several fatalities. Fred also produced nearly a dozen tornadoes across the Northeast as it moved up the East Coast. | $1.5 CI | 7 |
Tropical Storm Elsa July 2021 | Tropical Cyclone | July 7, 2021 | July 9, 2021 | Tropical Storm Elsa made landfall in Taylor County, Florida producing heavy rain, wind, flooding and tornadoes in portions of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, as well as flooding across parts of the Northeast. Southern New England and New York's Long Island experienced flash flooding, leading to impassable roads, stranded vehicles and disruption. Elsa was the earliest fifth-named storm on record. | $1.4 CI | 1 |
Southern Tornadoes and Southeast Severe Weather May 2021 | Severe Storm | May 2, 2021 | May 4, 2021 | Tornadoes and severe storms with widespread high wind and large hail cause damage across many Southern and Southeastern states including Mississippi, Texas, Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee. There were over 111 confirmed tornadoes largely clustered in central Mississippi and surrounding states. | $1.5 CI | 4 |
Eastern Severe Weather March 2021 | Severe Storm | March 27, 2021 | March 28, 2021 | Severe weather producing hail, high wind and more than two dozen tornadoes impacted numerous states including Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. Tennessee was also affected with significant flooding in Nashville and surrounding areas that damaged businesses, homes and vehicles. There were also many high wind damage reports across Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey. | $1.6 CI | 8 |
Southeast Tornadoes and Severe Weather March 2021 | Severe Storm | March 24, 2021 | March 25, 2021 | At least 41 tornadoes impact several states including Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. These included one EF-4, four EF-3s, ten EF-2s and approximately two-dozen EF-1 or EF-0 tornadoes. The strongest of these tornadoes were focused across central Alabama and western Georgia with tracks across the entire width of Alabama. There was widespread damage to homes, businesses, vehicles and infrastructure. | $2.0 CI | 6 |
Tropical Storm Eta November 2020 | Tropical Cyclone | November 8, 2020 | November 12, 2020 | Tropical Storm Eta made landfall in the Florida Keys on November 8 followed by a second landfall near Cedar Key on the west coast of Florida on November 10. Eta produced wind and heavy rain impacts in southern Florida. These impacts continued well inland, as Eta's energy merged with a cold front across several eastern states. This combination produced extreme rainfall across North Carolina and Virginia, which led to significant flooding that damaged homes, businesses and infrastructure. This flooding also caused one dozen fatalities. | $1.8 CI | 12 |
Hurricane Zeta October 2020 | Tropical Cyclone | October 28, 2020 | October 29, 2020 | Hurricane Zeta was a category 2 hurricane that made landfall at Cocodrie, Louisiana with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph on October 28th. Zeta's path inland saw an acceleration of its quick landfall speed to nearly 40 mph, which allowed the wind fields to maintain some strength. These wind impacts propagated well inland affecting parts of Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, northern Georgia and into the Carolinas. Hurricane Zeta was the fifth tropical cyclone to make landfall in Louisiana during 2020 as part of a historically active Atlantic hurricane season. | $5.3 CI | 6 |
Hurricane Delta October 2020 | Tropical Cyclone | October 9, 2020 | October 11, 2020 | Hurricane Delta was a category 2 hurricane that made landfall near Creole, Louisiana with winds of 100 mph on October 9. This was nearly the same location in which category 4 Hurricane Laura made landfall 6 weeks prior. Heavy rainfall, high winds, storm surge, and nearly one dozen EF-0 or EF-1 tornadoes caused damage across several states including Louisiana, eastern Texas, Mississippi and Georgia. | $3.5 CI | 5 |
Hurricane Sally September 2020 | Tropical Cyclone | September 15, 2020 | September 17, 2020 | Hurricane Sally was a category 2 hurricane at landfall in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Wind gusts up to 100 mph and 20-30 inches of rainfall caused considerable flood and wind damage across Alabama, the Florida panhandle and into Georgia. Many homes and businesses in downtown Pensacola, FL were impacted from flooding produced by storm surge and heavy rainfall. 2020 is now the fourth consecutive year (2017-2020) that the U.S. has been impacted by a slow moving tropical cyclone that produced extreme rainfall and damaging floods - Harvey, Florence, Imelda and Sally. | $8.8 CI | 5 |
Hurricane Isaias August 2020 | Tropical Cyclone | August 3, 2020 | August 4, 2020 | Hurricane Isaias made landfall in southeastern North Carolina as a category 1 storm. Isaias accelerated up the East Coast, resulting in widespread damage and power outages across New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. There was also considerable inland flooding most notably in Pennsylvania. In addition, 34 tornadoes developed across North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey due to Isaias. Many tornadoes were weaker (EF-0 and EF-1) producing scattered damage to agriculture, structures and residences. Isaias also produced several EF-2 tornadoes and one EF-3 tornado that caused damage in coastal North Carolina and Virginia. | $5.8 CI | 16 |
South, Central and Eastern Severe Weather May 2020 | Severe Storm | May 20, 2020 | May 23, 2020 | A combination of thunderstorm high winds, hail and tornadoes affected numerous Southern, Central and Eastern states. The states most affected included Texas, Illinois and North Carolina with damage to homes, businesses and vehicles. Oklahoma, Arkansas, Indiana, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. | $1.9 CI | 2 |
Southern Severe Weather April 2020 | Severe Storm | April 21, 2020 | April 23, 2020 | Severe weather caused damage across many Southern states. The states most affected from a combination of high winds, hail and tornadoes included Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and Virginia. The states with the highest damage totals for the event were Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas. | $1.7 CI | 3 |
Southeast and Eastern Tornado Outbreak April 2020 | Severe Storm | April 12, 2020 | April 13, 2020 | Outbreak of at least 140 tornadoes from Texas to Maryland including 3 EF4s, 12 EF3s, 20 EF2s, 77 EF1s and 28 EF0s. Damage was extensive and highly destructive to many homes, vehicles and businesses across more than a dozen Southeast and Eastern states. | $4.2 CI | 35 |
South, East and Northeast Severe Weather February 2020 | Severe Storm | February 5, 2020 | February 7, 2020 | Severe weather across many South, East and Northeastern states including AL, FL, GA, SC, LA, MS, TN, NC, VA, PA, RI, NY, NJ, MD and MA. There were more than 20 tornadoes clustered across central Mississippi into Tennessee. There were also hundreds of high wind damage reports from Florida to New Jersey, with the Carolinas and Florida receiving the most costly damage. | $1.5 CI | 3 |
Southeast Tornadoes and Northern Storms and Flooding January 2020 | Severe Storm | January 10, 2020 | January 12, 2020 | More than 80 tornadoes and severe storms caused damage across many southeastern states (AL, AR, GA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MS, MO, NC, OH, SC, TN, TX, VA, WI). Storms and severe flooding also impacted northern states including Michigan, Wisconsin and New York. Significant damage occurred along the shoreline of Lake Michigan to roads, the foundation of homes and to Port Milwaukee. These powerful waves were generated by high winds and a lack of seasonal ice cover. | $1.4 CI | 10 |
Hurricane Dorian September 2019 | Tropical Cyclone | August 28, 2019 | September 6, 2019 | Category 1 hurricane makes landfall on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, after devastating the northern Bahama Islands as a historically-powerful and slow-moving hurricane. Dorian tracked offshore parallel to the Florida, Georgia and South Carolina coastline before making a North Carolina landfall, bringing a destructive sound-side surge that inundated many coastal properties and isolated residents who did not evacuate. Significant flood, severe storm, and tornado damage to many homes and businesses occurred on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Dorian's intensification to a category 5 storm marks the fourth consecutive year, in which a maximum category 5 storm developed in the Atlantic basin - a new record. Dorian also tied the record for maximum sustained wind speed for a landfalling hurricane (185 mph) in the Atlantic, a record shared with the historic 1935 Labor Day Hurricane. | $2.0 CI | 10 |
Southern and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather April 2019 | Severe Storm | April 13, 2019 | April 14, 2019 | Tornado outbreak and severe storms impacted many states (TX, LA, MS, AL, GA, NC, OH and PA). More than 50 tornadoes occurred across central Mississippi and Alabama causing damage to vehicles, homes and businesses. More than 25 additional tornadoes also caused damage across several eastern states from Georgia to Pennsylvania. These severe storms also delivered damaging hail and high wind damage that was widespread across many Southern and and Eastern states. | $1.5 CI | 7 |
Hurricane Michael October 2018 | Tropical Cyclone | October 10, 2018 | October 11, 2018 | Powerful category 5 hurricane made landfall at Mexico Beach, Florida with devastating winds of 160 mph and storm surge in excess of 15 feet. Mexico Beach was nearly destroyed, while Panama City suffered extensive damage. Florida's Tyndall Air Force Base also suffered a direct strike from Michael's most intense eye wall winds causing billions in damage costs. Michael's intense winds also reached well inland causing billions in damage costs to agriculture and forestry, as high winds hit during harvest season for numerous crops across several states. Michael is the third category 4 or higher storm to make landfall in the U.S. since 2017. Michael is the first category 5 to strike the U.S. mainland since Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and is only the fourth on record. The others are the Labor Day Hurricane (1935) and Hurricane Camille (1969). Michael was initially rated as a category 4 with 155 winds but upgraded to a category 5 with 160 mph winds upon further analysis. | $31.0 CI | 49 |
Hurricane Florence September 2018 | Tropical Cyclone | September 13, 2018 | September 16, 2018 | Hurricane Florence was a large and very slow moving hurricane that produced extreme rainfall across eastern North Carolina (up to 35.93") and South Carolina (up to 23.81"), as prodigious amounts of rainfall were common in many locations. Florence made landfall as a category 1, at Wrightsville Beach, NC with damaging storm surge up to 10 feet and wind gusts reported over 100 mph. However, the majority of the damage caused by Florence was due to the rainfall inland, which caused many rivers to surpass previous record flood heights. U.S. Marine base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina suffered extensive damage that will cost billions to repair. The total damage from Florence in North Carolina is more than the cost experienced during Hurricane Matthew (2016) and Hurricane Floyd (1999) combined. | $30.0 CI | 53 |
Central and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather July 2018 | Severe Storm | July 19, 2018 | July 22, 2018 | At least 41 tornadoes and high wind damage from thunderstorms impact numerous Central and Eastern states (MO, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, AL, AR, GA, TN, NC, SC, VA, MD, PA) over a multi-day event. The tornado damage was most severe across Iowa. | $2.0 CI | 0 |
Southern and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather April 2018 | Severe Storm | April 13, 2018 | April 16, 2018 | Tornadoes and severe storms with large hail cause widespread damage across many Southern and Eastern states (AR, FL, GA, LA, MD, MI, MS, MO, NJ, NY, NC, PA, SC, TX, VA) over a multi-day period. There were over 70 confirmed tornadoes largely clustered in Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and Virginia. This same system also caused winter storm impacts of high wind and ice accumulation in northeastern states. | $1.7 CI | 3 |
Southeastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather March 2018 | Severe Storm | March 18, 2018 | March 21, 2018 | A potent severe storm system caused over 20 tornadoes across Alabama and also widespread hail damage from Texas to Florida. Most notably this system produced an EF-3 tornado that caused extensive damage in Jacksonville, Alabama and across the campus of Jacksonville State University. | $1.8 CI | 0 |
Central and Eastern Winter Storm January 2018 | Winter Storm | January 3, 2018 | January 5, 2018 | A Nor'easter caused damage across many Northeastern states including MA, NJ, NY, CT, ME, NH, PA, MD, RI, SC, TN, VA, NC and GA. | $1.3 CI | 22 |
Hurricane Irma September 2017 | Tropical Cyclone | September 6, 2017 | September 12, 2017 | Category 4 hurricane made landfall at Cudjoe Key, Florida after devastating the U.S. Virgin Islands - St John and St Thomas - as a category 5 storm. The Florida Keys were heavily impacted, as 25% of buildings were destroyed while 65% were significantly damaged. Severe wind and storm surge damage also occurred along the coasts of Florida and South Carolina. Jacksonville, FL and Charleston, SC received near-historic levels of storm surge causing significant coastal flooding. Irma maintained a maximum sustained wind of 185 mph for 37 hours, the longest in the satellite era. Irma also was a category 5 storm for longer than all other Atlantic hurricanes except Ivan in 2004. | $64.0 CI | 97 |
Southeast Severe Weather and Tornadoes April 2017 | Severe Storm | April 4, 2017 | April 6, 2017 | Severe weather and tornadoes impact numerous southern and eastern states. The states most impacted include Alabama, Georgia and Kentucky. | $1.3 CI | 1 |
Southeast Freeze March 2017 | Freeze | March 14, 2017 | March 16, 2017 | Severe freeze heavily damaged fruit crops across several southeastern states (SC, GA, NC, TN, AL, MS, FL, KY, VA). Mid-March freezes are not climatologically unusual in the Southeast, however many crops were blooming 3+ weeks early due to unusually warm temperatures during the preceding weeks. Damage was most severe in Georgia and South Carolina. Crops most impacted include peaches, blueberries, strawberries and apples, among others. | $1.3 CI | 0 |
Central/ March 2017 | Severe Storm | February 28, 2017 | March 1, 2017 | Over 70 tornadoes developed during a widespread outbreak across many central and southern states causing significant damage. There was also widespread straight-line wind and hail damage. This was the second largest tornado outbreak to occur early in 2017. | $2.3 CI | 6 |
Southern Tornado Outbreak and Western Storms January 2017 | Severe Storm | January 20, 2017 | January 22, 2017 | High wind damage occurred across southern California near San Diego followed by 79 confirmed tornadoes during an outbreak across many southern states including AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, SC and TX. This was the 3rd most tornadoes to occur in a single outbreak of extreme weather during a winter month (Dec.-Feb.) based on records from 1950. | $1.4 CI | 24 |
Western/ Summer-Fall 2016 | Wildfire | June 1, 2016 | December 31, 2016 | Western and Southern states experienced an active wildfire season with over 5.0 million acres burned nationally. Most notable was the firestorm that impacted Gatlinburg, Tennessee with hurricane-force wind gusts in extremely dry conditions creating volatile wildfire behavior. These wildfires destroyed nearly 2,500 structures and caused 14 fatalities. The drought conditions in many areas of the Southeast and California worsened the wildfire potential. | $3.1 CI | 21 |
West/ 2016 | Drought | January 1, 2016 | December 31, 2016 | California's 5-year drought persisted during 2016 while new areas of extreme drought developed in states across the Northeast and Southeast. The long-term impacts of the drought in California have damaged forests where 100+ million trees have perished and are a public safety hazard. The agricultural impacts were reduced in California as water prices and crop fallowing declined. However, agricultural impacts developed in Northeast and Southeast due to stressed water supplies. | $4.6 CI | 0 |
Hurricane Matthew October 2016 | Tropical Cyclone | October 8, 2016 | October 12, 2016 | Category 1 hurricane made landfall in North Carolina, after it paralleled the Southeast coast along Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas causing widespread damage from wind, storm surge and inland flooding. The most costly impacts were due to historic levels of river flooding in eastern North Carolina where 100,000 homes, businesses and other structures were damaged. This inland flooding was comparable to Hurricane Floyd (1999) that also impacted eastern North Carolina. Matthew narrowly missed landall on Florida's east coast as a powerful category 4 storm. | $13.0 CI | 49 |
South/ April 2016 | Severe Storm | April 26, 2016 | May 2, 2016 | Large outbreak of tornadoes affects numerous states across the South and Southeast. Additional damage also from large hail and straight-line wind during the multi-day thunderstorm event. | $3.1 CI | 6 |
Southeast and Eastern Tornadoes February 2016 | Severe Storm | February 22, 2016 | February 24, 2016 | Early outbreak of tornadoes and severe weather across many southern and eastern states including (AL, CT, FL, GA, LA, MA, MD, MS, NC, NJ, NY, PA, SC, TX, VA). There were at least 50 confirmed tornadoes causing widespread damage. | $1.4 CI | 10 |
Texas and Oklahoma Flooding and Severe Weather May 2015 | Flooding | May 23, 2015 | May 26, 2015 | A slow-moving system caused tremendous rainfall and subsequent flooding to occur in Texas and Oklahoma. The Blanco river in Texas swelled from 5 feet to a crest of more than 40 feet over several hours causing considerable property damage and loss of life. The city of Houston also experienced flooding which resulted in hundreds of high-water rescues. The damage in Texas alone exceeded $1.0 ($1.4) billion. There was also damage in other states (KS, CO, AR, OH, LA, GA, SC) from associated severe storms. | $3.4 CI | 31 |
South and Southeast Severe Weather April 2015 | Severe Storm | April 24, 2015 | April 25, 2015 | Severe weather produced tornadoes, large hail and high wind damage across numerous southern and southeastern states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. These storms caused widespread impacts to many homes, vehicles and businesses. | $1.3* CI | 3 |
South/ April 2015 | Severe Storm | April 18, 2015 | April 20, 2015 | Severe storms across the South and Southeastern states (AL, AR, FL, GA, KS, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX). High winds and severe hail created the most significant damage in Texas. | $1.7 CI | 0 |
Central and Eastern Winter storm, Cold Wave February 2015 | Winter Storm | February 14, 2015 | February 20, 2015 | A large winter storm and associated cold wave impacted many central, eastern and northeastern states (CT, DE, GA, IL, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VA). The city of Boston was particularly impacted as feet of snow continued to accumulate causing load-stress on buildings and clogging transportation corridors. Total, direct losses in Massachusetts alone exceed $1.0 ($1.3) billion for this event, with considerable damage in many other states. | $4.0 CI | 30 |
Midwest/ April 2014 | Severe Storm | April 27, 2014 | May 1, 2014 | Tornado outbreak across the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast states (AL, AR, DE, FL, GA, KS, MD, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, PA, TN, VA) with 83 confirmed tornadoes. Mississippi had its 3rd greatest number of tornadoes reported for any day since 1950. Torrential rainfall in the Florida panhandle also caused major flooding, as Pensacola set new 1-day and 2-day precipitation records of 15.55 and 20.47 inches, respectively. Flooding rains were also reported in coastal Alabama, as Mobile received 11.24 inches of rain, the third greatest calendar day rainfall total for the city. | $2.3 CI | 33 |
Midwest/ January 2014 | Winter Storm | January 5, 2014 | January 8, 2014 | Winter storm caused widespread damage across numerous Midwest, Southeast and Northeastern states (AL, GA, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TN, VA). | $2.9 CI | 16 |
Midwest/ May 2013 | Severe Storm | May 18, 2013 | May 22, 2013 | Outbreak of tornadoes and severe weather over the Midwest, Plains and Eastern states (GA, IA, IL, KS, MO, NY, OK, TX) with 59 confirmed tornadoes including the deadly tornado that impacted Moore, OK. Many destructive tornadoes remained on the ground for an extended time. | $3.2 CI | 27 |
Southeast Severe Weather March 2013 | Severe Storm | March 18, 2013 | March 18, 2013 | Severe weather over the Southeast (MS, AL, GA, TN) with 10 confirmed tornadoes. Considerable damage resulting from large hail and straight-line wind. | $2.7 CI | 1 |
U.S. Drought/ 2012 | Drought | January 1, 2012 | December 31, 2012 | The 2012 drought is the most extensive drought to affect the U.S. since the 1930s. Moderate to extreme drought conditions affected more than half the country for a majority of 2012. The following states were affected: CA, NV, ID, MT, WY, UT, CO, AZ, NM, TX, ND, SD, NE, KS, OK, AR, MO, IA, MN, IL, IN, GA. Costly drought impacts occurred across the central agriculture states resulting in widespread harvest failure for corn, sorghum and soybean crops, among others. The associated summer heat wave also caused 123 direct deaths, but an estimate of the excess mortality due to heat stress is still unknown. | $41.7 CI | 123 |
Southeast/ March 2012 | Severe Storm | March 2, 2012 | March 3, 2012 | Outbreak of tornadoes and severe weather over the southeast and Ohio Valley (AL, GA, IN, OH, KY, TN) with 75 confirmed tornadoes. | $4.3 CI | 42 |
Tropical Storm Lee September 2011 | Tropical Cyclone | September 1, 2011 | September 5, 2011 | Wind and flood damage across the southeast (LA, MS, AL, GA, TN) but considerably more damage from record flooding across the northeast (PA, NY, NJ, CT, VA, MD). Pennsylvania and New York were most affected. | $3.5 CI | 21 |
Southern Plains/ Spring-Summer 2011 | Drought | March 1, 2011 | August 31, 2011 | Drought and heat wave conditions created major impacts across Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, southern Kansas, and western Louisiana. In Texas and Oklahoma, a majority of range and pastures were classified in "very poor" condition for much of the 2011 crop growing season. | $17.1 CI | 95 |
Midwest/ June 2011 | Severe Storm | June 18, 2011 | June 22, 2011 | Outbreak of tornadoes over central states (OK, TX, KS, NE, MO, IA, IL) with an estimated 81 tornadoes. Additional wind and hail damage across the Southeast (TN, GA, NC, SC). | $2.1 CI | 3 |
Midwest/ May 2011 | Severe Storm | May 22, 2011 | May 27, 2011 | Outbreak of tornadoes over central and southern states (MO, TX, OK, KS, AR, GA, TN, VA, KY, IN, IL, OH, WI, MN, PA) with an estimated 180 tornadoes. Notably, an EF-5 tornado struck Joplin, MO resulting in at least 160 deaths, making it the deadliest single tornado to strike the U.S. since modern tornado record keeping began in 1950. | $12.6 CI | 177 |
Southeast/ April 2011 | Severe Storm | April 25, 2011 | April 28, 2011 | Outbreak of tornadoes over central and southern states (AL, AR, LA, MS, GA, TN, VA, KY, IL, MO, OH, TX, OK) with an estimated 343 tornadoes. The deadliest tornado of the outbreak, an EF-5, hit northern Alabama, killing 78 people. Several major metropolitan areas were directly impacted by strong tornadoes including Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and Huntsville in Alabama and Chattanooga, Tennessee, causing the estimated damage costs to soar. | $14.3 CI | 321 |
Midwest/ April 2011 | Severe Storm | April 14, 2011 | April 16, 2011 | Outbreak of tornadoes over central and southern states (OK, TX, AR, MS, AL, GA, NC, SC, VA, PA) with an estimated 177 tornadoes. | $2.9 CI | 38 |
Midwest/ April 2011 | Severe Storm | April 4, 2011 | April 5, 2011 | Outbreak of tornadoes and derecho over central and southern states (KS, MO, IA, IL, WI, KY, GA, TN, NC, SC) with an estimated 46 tornadoes. | $3.9 CI | 9 |
Rockies/ June 2010 | Severe Storm | June 10, 2010 | June 15, 2010 | Severe storms cause high wind and hail damage across numerous states including CO, NM, KS, OK, IL, IN, GA, SC and NC. | $1.3* CI | 2 |
East/ May 2010 | Flooding | April 30, 2010 | May 2, 2010 | Flooding, hail, tornadoes, and severe thunderstorms occurred across many Southern states (TN, AR, KY, GA) on April 30-May 2. Flooding in the Nashville, TN area alone contributed > $1.0 ($1.5) billion in damages. Western and Middle Tennessee were hardest hit with local rainfall amounts of 18-20 inches to the south and west of Greater Nashville. | $3.3 CI | 32 |
Georgia Flooding September 2009 | Flooding | September 19, 2009 | September 22, 2009 | Severe multi-day flooding across numerous Georgia counties including all of the Atlanta metro. The maximum 24-hour rainfall total for September 20-21, 2009 was 21.03 inches in Douglas County. This extreme rainfall caused widespread flooding and damage to thousands of homes, businesses and vehicles. There was significant infrastructure damage across the region from this major flooding event including 20 river gages that went underwater and stopped reporting. | $1.3* CI | 10 |
South/ April 2009 | Severe Storm | April 9, 2009 | April 10, 2009 | Outbreak of tornadoes, hail and severe thunderstorms over the south and southeastern states (AL, AR, GA, KY, MO, SC, TN) with 85 confirmed tornadoes. | $2.1 CI | 6 |
Midwest/ March 2009 | Severe Storm | March 25, 2009 | March 28, 2009 | Outbreak of tornadoes over central and southern states (NE, KS, OK, IA, TX, LA, MS, AL, GA, TN, KY) with 56 tornadoes confirmed. | $2.4 CI | 0 |
U.S. Drought 2008 | Drought | January 1, 2008 | December 31, 2008 | Severe drought and heat caused agricultural losses across a large portion of the U.S. Record low lake levels also occurred in areas of the southeast. The states impacted include AL, AR, CA, CO, GA, ID, IN, KS, KY, MD, MN, MS, MT, NC, ND, NJ, NM, OH, OK, OR, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA and WI. | $10.4 CI | 0 |
Southeast Tornadoes March 2008 | Severe Storm | March 14, 2008 | March 15, 2008 | Tornadoes and severe weather across Georgia and South Carolina. This includes an EF-2 tornado causing damage to numerous buildings in downtown Atlanta. | $1.7 CI | 5 |
Western/ Summer-Fall 2007 | Drought | June 1, 2007 | November 30, 2007 | Severe drought with periods of extreme heat over most of the southeast and portions of the Great Plains, Ohio Valley, and Great Lakes area, resulting in major reductions in crop yields, along with very low stream-flows and lake levels. Includes states of ND, SD, NE, KS, OK, TX, MN, WI, IA, MO, AR, LA, MS, AL, GA, NC, SC, FL, TN, VA, WV, KY, IN, IL, OH, MI, PA, NY. | $5.5 CI | 15 |
Western Wildfires Summer 2007 | Wildfire | June 1, 2007 | August 31, 2007 | Continued drought conditions and high winds over much of the western U.S. (AK, AZ, CA, ID, UT, MT, NV, OR, WA) resulting in numerous wildfires; with national acreage burned exceeding 8.9 million acres (mainly in the west) and over 3,000 homes and structures destroyed in southern California alone. | $4.1 CI | 12 |
East/ April 2007 | Severe Storm | April 13, 2007 | April 17, 2007 | Flooding, hail, tornadoes, and severe thunderstorms across numerous states (CT, DE, GA, LA, ME, MD, MA, MS, NH, NJ, NY, NC, PA, RI, SC, TX, VT, VA) in mid-April, including 3 "killer" tornadoes. | $3.8 CI | 9 |
Spring Freeze April 2007 | Freeze | April 4, 2007 | April 10, 2007 | Widespread severe freeze over much of the east and midwest (AL, AR, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MO, MS, NC, NE, OH, OK, SC, TN, VA, WV), causing significant losses in fruit crops, field crops (especially wheat), and the ornamental industry. Temperatures in the teens/20s accompanied by rather high winds nullified typical crop-protection systems. | $3.2 CI | 0 |
Midwest/ Spring-Summer 2006 | Drought | March 1, 2006 | August 31, 2006 | Rather severe drought affected crops especially during the spring-summer, centered over the Great Plains region with other areas affected across portions of the south -- including states of ND, SD, NE, KS, OK, TX, MN, IA, MO, AR, LA, MS, AL, GA, FL, MT, WY, CO, NM. | $9.5 CI | 0 |
Midwest/ April 6-8, 2006 | Severe Storm | April 6, 2006 | April 8, 2006 | Severe weather and numerous tornadoes affecting the states of OK, KS, MO, NE, KY, OH, TN, IN, MS, GA, and AL on April 6-8 with 3 "killer" tornadoes in TN. | $2.5 CI | 10 |
Hurricane Katrina August 2005 | Tropical Cyclone | August 25, 2005 | August 30, 2005 | Category 3 hurricane initially impacts the U.S. as a Category 1 near Miami, FL, then as a strong Category 3 along the eastern LA-western MS coastlines, resulting in severe storm surge damage (maximum surge probably exceeded 30 feet) along the LA-MS-AL coasts, wind damage, and the failure of parts of the levee system in New Orleans. Inland effects included high winds and some flooding in the states of AL, MS, FL, TN, KY, IN, OH, and GA. | $200.0 CI | 1,833 |
Hurricane Dennis July 2005 | Tropical Cyclone | July 9, 2005 | July 11, 2005 | Category 3 hurricane makes landfall in western Florida panhandle resulting in storm surge and wind damage along the FL and AL coasts, along with scattered wind and flood damage in GA and MS. | $4.0 CI | 15 |
Southeast Severe Weather March 2005 | Severe Storm | March 24, 2005 | March 27, 2005 | Severe storms cause widespread hail damage across numerous states including TX, AL, MS, GA, FL, NC and VA. | $1.4* CI | 0 |
Hurricane Jeanne September 2004 | Tropical Cyclone | September 15, 2004 | September 29, 2004 | Category 3 hurricane makes landfall in east-central Florida, causing considerable wind, storm surge, and flooding damage in FL, with some flood damage also in the states of GA, SC, NC, VA, MD, DE, NJ, PA, and NY. Puerto Rico also affected. | $12.4 CI | 28 |
Hurricane Ivan September 2004 | Tropical Cyclone | September 12, 2004 | September 21, 2004 | Category 3 hurricane makes landfall on Gulf coast of Alabama, with significant wind, storm surge, and flooding damage in coastal AL and FL panhandle, along with wind/flood damage in the states of GA, MS, LA, SC, NC, VA, WV, MD, TN, KY, OH, DE, NJ, PA, and NY. | $34.0 CI | 57 |
Hurricane Frances September 2004 | Tropical Cyclone | September 3, 2004 | September 9, 2004 | Category 2 hurricane makes landfall in east-central Florida, causing significant wind, storm surge, and flooding damage in FL, along with considerable flood damage in the states of GA, SC, NC, and NY due to 5-15 inch rains. | $16.3 CI | 48 |
Southern Derecho and Eastern Severe Weather July 2003 | Severe Storm | July 21, 2003 | July 23, 2003 | Derecho across several southern states with the most focused damage across the Memphis, Tennessee metro area. Severe storms impact states across the South, Southeast, Midwest and Northeast regions including AR, AL, MS, GA, FL, SC, TN, KY, MI, NY, OH, PA and VT. | $1.7 CI | 7 |
Severe Storms/ May 2003 | Severe Storm | May 3, 2003 | May 10, 2003 | Numerous tornadoes over the midwest, Mississippi valley, OH/TN valleys, and portions of the southeast, with a modern record one-week total of approximately 400 tornadoes reported | $7.1 CI | 51 |
Western Fire Season Fall 2002 | Wildfire | September 1, 2002 | November 30, 2002 | Major wildfires over 11 western states from the Rockies to the west coast due to drought and periodic high winds, with over 7.1 million acres burned. | $2.3 CI | 21 |
U.S. Drought Spring-Fall 2002 | Drought | March 1, 2002 | November 30, 2002 | Moderate to extreme drought over large portions of more than 30 states, including the western states, the Great Plains, and much of the eastern U.S. | $16.0 CI | 0 |
Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Storms November 2002 | Severe Storm | November 9, 2002 | November 11, 2002 | Tornado outbreak of over 100 tornadoes across many eastern states causes widespread damage (AL, MS, GA, TN, KY, OH, PA). Tennessee and Ohio had the highest count of tornadoes. | $1.2* CI | 28 |
Severe Storms and Tornadoes April 2002 | Severe Storm | April 27, 2002 | April 28, 2002 | Numerous tornadoes and widespread hail damage over the Central and Eastern states including NC, GA, VA, TX, AR, MO, MS, TN, IL, IN, KY, PA, MD, NY, OH, WV, and KS. | $3.7 CI | 7 |
Western/ Spring-Fall 2000 | Drought | March 1, 2000 | November 30, 2000 | Western/Central/Southeast Drought/Heat Wave. The states impacted include AZ, AL, AR, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, KS, LA, MS, MT, NE, NM, OK, OR, SC, TN, and TX. | $9.3 CI | 140 |
Southeast Winter Storm January 2000 | Winter Storm | January 21, 2000 | January 24, 2000 | Strong winter storm causes disruption and damage over numerous southeastern states (AL, GA, NC, SC, TN, LA, VA). Record amounts of snowfall occured across central North Carolina, with snow totals in excess of 20 inches. | $1.3* CI | 4 |
Eastern Drought/ Summer 1999 | Drought | June 1, 1999 | August 31, 1999 | Very dry summer and high temperatures, mainly in eastern U.S., with extensive agricultural losses. The states impacted include AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MD, MS, NC, NJ, OH, SC, TN, VA, WV and PA. | $4.8 CI | 502 |
Oklahoma and Kansas Tornadoes May 1999 | Severe Storm | May 3, 1999 | May 6, 1999 | Outbreak of F4-F5 tornadoes hit the states of Oklahoma and Kansas, along with Texas and Tennessee, Oklahoma City area hardest hit. | $3.8 CI | 55 |
Central and Eastern Winter Storm January 1999 | Winter Storm | January 1, 1999 | January 4, 1999 | South, Southeast, Midwest, Northeast affected by damaging winter storm | $2.0 CI | 25 |
Southern Drought and Heat Wave Summer 1998 | Drought | June 1, 1998 | August 31, 1998 | Severe drought and heat wave from Texas/Oklahoma eastward to the Carolinas. The states impacted include AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX, and VA. | $6.9 CI | 200 |
Western/ Winter-Spring 1998 | Severe Storm | December 1, 1997 | February 28, 1998 | Tornadoes and flooding cause damage across the West and Southeast. The states impacted include CA, TX, FL, AL, GA, LA, MS, NC and SC. | $2.0 CI | 132 |
Mississippi and Ohio Valley Severe Weather and Flooding March 1997 | Severe Storm | February 28, 1997 | March 5, 1997 | Tornadoes and severe flooding hit the states of AR, MO, MS, TN, IL, IN, KY, OH, and WV, with over 10 inches of rain in 24 hours in Louisville. | $1.9 CI | 67 |
Hurricane Opal October 1995 | Tropical Cyclone | October 4, 1995 | October 6, 1995 | Category 3 hurricane strikes Florida panhandle, Alabama, western Georgia, eastern Tennessee, and the western Carolinas, causing storm surge, wind, and flooding damage. | $9.6 CI | 27 |
Central, Southern and Northeast Drought/ September 1995 | Drought | July 1, 1995 | September 30, 1995 | Historic mid-July heat wave and urban heat island amplification caused hundreds of deaths across several major cities including Chicago, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia. Following the heat wave was hot, dry weather in July and August 1995 that affected crops in numerous states, as crops had not rooted well due to late planting from previous wet soils. This left crops vulnerable to a flash drought during a key portion of the growing season. | $2.0 CI | 872 |
Tropical Storm Alberto July 1994 | Tropical Cyclone | July 7, 1994 | July 10, 1994 | Remnants of slow-moving Alberto bring torrential 10-25 inch rains in 3 days, widespread flooding and agricultural damage in parts of Georgia, Alabama, and panhandle of Florida. | $2.1 CI | 32 |
Southeast Ice Storm February 1994 | Winter Storm | February 8, 1994 | February 13, 1994 | Intense ice storm with extensive damage in portions of TX, OK, AR, LA, MS, AL, TN, GA, SC, NC, and VA. | $6.4 CI | 9 |
Southeast Drought and Heat Wave Summer 1993 | Drought | June 1, 1993 | August 31, 1993 | Drought and heat wave across Southeastern U.S. The states most impacted include AL, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, TN, and VA. | $2.8 CI | 16 |
East Coast Blizzard and Severe Weather March 1993 | Winter Storm | March 11, 1993 | March 14, 1993 | The "Storm of the Century" impacts the entire Eastern seaboard from Florida to Maine. This historic storm dumped 2-4 feet of snow and caused hurricane force winds across many Eastern and Northeastern states. This caused power outages to over 10 million households. Additional impacts included numerous tornadoes across Florida causing substantial damage. This was the most destructive and costly winter storm to affect the United States (since 1980), until it was surpassed by the February 2021 winter storm and cold wave. | $12.2 CI | 270 |
Southeast Severe Weather November 1992 | Severe Storm | November 21, 1992 | November 23, 1992 | Three-day tornado outbreak strikes many Central and Eastern states including TX, LA, AL, MS, GA, AR, IN, OH, KY, TN, and NC. Major damage was reported across many areas, as more than 100 tornadoes were reported. This event remains one of the most prolific Fall season tornado outbreaks on record. | $1.5* CI | 26 |
Severe Storms, Tornadoes March 1991 | Severe Storm | March 26, 1991 | March 29, 1991 | Severe storms hit the Midwest, Southeast, Northeast. The states impacted include KS, IL, MI, IN, MS, TN, KY, OH, AL, PA, NY, GA, SC and NC. | $1.5* CI | 0 |
Winter Storm, Cold Wave December 1989 | Winter Storm | December 21, 1989 | December 26, 1989 | Winter storm and deep cold impacts the Northeast, South and Southeast. The states impacted include AL, AR, CT, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, LA, ME, MO, MS, NC, NH, NY, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT and WV. | $1.7* CI | 100 |
Southern Derecho and Severe Storms May 1989 | Severe Storm | May 1, 1989 | May 6, 1989 | A derecho caused high wind damage across much of Texas into Louisiana. Severe storms cause damage in states across the South and Southeast. The states impacted include OK, TX, LA, MS, GA, SC, NC and VA. | $1.4* CI | 21 |
Southeast Drought/ Summer 1986 | Drought | June 1, 1986 | August 31, 1986 | Severe summer drought in parts of the southeastern U.S. with severe losses to agriculture. The states impacted include AL, AR, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN and VA. | $5.2 CI | 100 |
Winter Storm, Cold Wave January 1985 | Winter Storm | January 19, 1985 | January 22, 1985 | Extreme cold and winter storms in the Southeast, South, Southwest, Northeast, Midwest, and North | $2.5* CI | 150 |
Tornadoes, Severe Storms, Floods Spring 1984 | Severe Storm | March 27, 1984 | April 7, 1984 | States in the Southeast and Northeast regions are impacted by tornadoes, severe storms, and flooding. The states impacted include GA, FL, SC, NC, VA, MD, DE, NJ, NY, PA, CT, MA and RI. | $1.9* CI | 80 |
Freeze/ December 1983 | Freeze | December 15, 1983 | December 25, 1983 | Severe freeze damages citrus crops across central/northern Florida. Associated cold wave over much of the U.S. causes over 100 deaths and additional damages. | $6.5 CI | 151 |
Southeast Drought Summer 1983 | Drought | June 1, 1983 | August 31, 1983 | 1983 flash drought in the southeastern U.S. with losses to agriculture, most notably corn and soybeans. The states impacted include AL, AR, GA, KY, LA, MO, MS, NC, SC, TN and VA. | $9.5 CI | 0 |
Midwest/ January 1982 | Winter Storm | January 8, 1982 | January 16, 1982 | Winter storm and cold wave affect numerous states (AL, AR, CT, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV) across the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast. | $2.2* CI | 85 |
Central/ Summer-Fall 1980 | Drought | June 1, 1980 | November 30, 1980 | Central and eastern U.S. drought/heat wave caused damage to agriculture and other related industries. Combined direct and indirect deaths (i.e., excess mortality) due to heat stress estimated at 10,000. | $40.5 CI | 1,260 |
†Deaths associated with drought are the result of heat waves. (Not all droughts are accompanied by extreme heat waves.)
Flooding events (river basin or urban flooding from excessive rainfall) are separate from inland flood damage caused by tropical cyclone events.
*Statistics valid as of November 1, 2024
Citing this information:
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2024). https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/billions/, DOI: 10.25921/stkw-7w73