Storms of 2020
Every storm the National Weather Service filed in 2020, month by month, kind by kind and state by state. From 1996 the record holds 48 kinds of event with each office’s narrative; before that, tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind only, and before 1955 tornadoes alone.
2020 on the map
The 600 most significant episodes of 2020, colored by kind of event.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The year
- Events
- 61,281
- Deaths
- 897
- Injuries
- 1,798
- Damage
- $27 billion
- Episodes
- 9,511
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
By month
By kind of event
Deaths, injuries and damage are counted under the kind that heads each episode.
| Kind of event | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 19,315 | 17 | 63 | $50 million |
| Hail | 7,677 | 12 | 53 | $263 million |
| High Wind | 3,682 | 8 | 34 | $4.7 billion |
| Flash Flood | 3,569 | 49 | 34 | $467 million |
| Winter Weather | 2,910 | 28 | 70 | $935,000 |
| Marine Thunderstorm Wind | 2,887 | 1 | 0 | $28,000 |
| Flood | 2,704 | 14 | 10 | $348 million |
| Drought | 2,244 | 0 | 0 | $110 million |
| Winter Storm | 2,102 | 17 | 20 | $7.1 million |
| Heavy Snow | 1,792 | 9 | 37 | $9.5 million |
| Heavy Rain | 1,450 | 1 | 0 | $65,000 |
| Tornado | 1,253 | 104 | 1,023 | $2.8 billion |
| Strong Wind | 1,193 | 7 | 8 | $11 million |
| Heat | 1,106 | 83 | 0 | $35,000 |
| Dense Fog | 1,002 | 10 | 4 | $263,000 |
| Excessive Heat | 961 | 277 | 112 | $6.0 million |
| Frost/Freeze | 878 | 0 | 0 | $31 million |
| Tropical Storm | 714 | 14 | 27 | $213 million |
| Blizzard | 515 | 5 | 18 | $607,000 |
| High Surf | 415 | 8 | 10 | $5.0 million |
| Wildfire | 413 | 43 | 163 | $462 million |
| Funnel Cloud | 264 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lightning | 247 | 9 | 29 | $1.3 million |
| Extreme Cold/Wind Chill | 215 | 2 | 0 | $35,000 |
| Waterspout | 194 | 0 | 0 | |
| Coastal Flood | 190 | 0 | 2 | $2.4 million |
| Ice Storm | 156 | 8 | 3 | $1.3 million |
| Marine Tropical Storm | 153 | 0 | 0 | $500,000 |
| Cold/Wind Chill | 147 | 18 | 2 | |
| Lakeshore Flood | 139 | 0 | 0 | $53 million |
| Storm Surge/Tide | 133 | 1 | 0 | $950,000 |
| Debris Flow | 92 | 2 | 0 | $38 million |
| Rip Current | 88 | 73 | 22 | |
| Dust Storm | 85 | 3 | 24 | $1.5 million |
| Marine High Wind | 82 | 0 | 0 | |
| Lake-Effect Snow | 67 | 0 | 0 | $140,000 |
| Hurricane (Typhoon) | 63 | 47 | 20 | $18 billion |
| Tropical Depression | 38 | 0 | 0 | $80,000 |
| Marine Hurricane/Typhoon | 27 | 0 | 0 | |
| Avalanche | 25 | 21 | 6 | $292,000 |
| Astronomical Low Tide | 19 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marine Hail | 18 | 0 | 0 | |
| Dense Smoke | 14 | 0 | 0 | |
| Freezing Fog | 13 | 1 | 2 | |
| Sleet | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marine Strong Wind | 7 | 0 | 0 | $1.0 million |
| Dust Devil | 5 | 0 | 0 | $21,000 |
| Marine Tropical Depression | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Seiche | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marine Dense Fog | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
| Sneakerwave | 1 | 0 | 0 |
The deadliest
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, July 9 to 14, 2020
- Excessive Heat in Arizona, August 12 to 20, 2020
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, August 1 to 6, 2020
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, July 18 to 22, 2020
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, July 26 to 31, 2020
- Tornadoes and Hail in Tennessee, March 2 to 3, 2020
- Heat in Arizona, July 15 to 17, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Louisiana, August 26 to 27, 2020
- Excessive Heat in Arizona, August 23 to 28, 2020
- Heat in Arizona, July 3 to 8, 2020
- Wildfire and High Wind in California, September 7 to 9, 2020
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, September 2 to 7, 2020
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Mississippi, April 12, 2020
- Excessive Heat and Heat in Arizona, June 1 to 6, 2020
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Georgia, April 12 to 13, 2020
- Tropical Storm in New York, August 4, 2020
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in North Carolina, November 12 to 14, 2020
- Wildfire in Oregon, September 7 to 30, 2020
- Flash Flooding and Hail in Indiana, March 20, 2020
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in South Carolina, April 13, 2020
- Heat in Arizona, June 24 to 28, 2020
- High Wind and Strong Wind in Oregon, September 7 to 8, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Texas, August 26 to 27, 2020
- Hurricane and Tornado in Texas, July 25 to 31, 2020
- Flood and Strong Wind in Kentucky, April 29, 2020
The costliest
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Louisiana, August 26 to 27, 2020
- High Wind and Strong Wind in Oregon, September 7 to 8, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Louisiana, October 9 to 10, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Texas, August 26 to 27, 2020
- Tornadoes and Hail in Tennessee, March 2 to 3, 2020
- High Wind in Washington, September 7 to 8, 2020
- Hurricane and Tornado in Texas, July 25 to 31, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Louisiana, October 28, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Alabama, September 15 to 16, 2020
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Arkansas, March 28, 2020
- Tornadoes and Hail in Louisiana, April 12, 2020
- Flood in Washington, September 17 to 18, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Florida, September 15 to 16, 2020
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in Michigan, May 16 to 26, 2020
- Wildfire in Colorado, October 14 to 31, 2020
- Hurricane and Tornado in Mississippi, October 28, 2020
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Mississippi, April 12, 2020
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in South Carolina, April 13, 2020
- Wildfire in Florida, April 3, 2020
- Hail in Texas, May 20, 2020
- Hurricane and Tropical Storm in Texas, October 9, 2020
- Wildfire in Colorado, October 1 to 31, 2020
- Tropical Storm and Storm Surge in Louisiana, October 8 to 10, 2020
- Drought in New Hampshire, November 1 to 30, 2020
- Hurricane and Tornadoes in Texas, July 25 to 26, 2020
By state
Events filed in each state in 2020.
- Alabama1,353
- Alaska252
- American Samoa29
- Arizona816
- Arkansas1,138
- California1,828
- Colorado1,828
- Connecticut238
- Delaware184
- District of Columbia38
- Florida1,274
- Georgia1,535
- Guam35
- Hawaii622
- Idaho476
- Illinois1,756
- Indiana934
- Iowa1,588
- Kansas1,782
- Kentucky1,285
- Louisiana875
- Maine475
- Maryland1,128
- Massachusetts850
- Michigan811
- Minnesota1,600
- Mississippi1,060
- Missouri1,542
- Montana1,349
- Nebraska1,728
- Nevada310
- New Hampshire263
- New Jersey957
- New Mexico763
- New York1,968
- North Carolina1,691
- North Dakota927
- Ohio1,820
- Oklahoma1,630
- Oregon356
- Pennsylvania1,978
- Puerto Rico174
- Rhode Island94
- South Carolina869
- South Dakota2,174
- Tennessee1,133
- Texas4,128
- U.S. Virgin Islands4
- Utah280
- Vermont231
- Virginia2,368
- Washington463
- West Virginia925
- Wisconsin968
- Wyoming1,024
Coastal and lake waters
More from this year
Tornadoes in 2020The 2020 hurricane seasonEvery warning issued in 2020This day in weather history
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24.