Storm records

Storms of 2021

61,389 events in 9,484 episodes

Every storm the National Weather Service filed in 2021, 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.

2021 on the map

The 600 most significant episodes of 2021, 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

Open the live radar

The year

Events
61,389
Deaths
1,260
Injuries
1,666
Damage
$20 billion
Episodes
9,484

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 eventEventsDeathsInjuriesDamage
Thunderstorm Wind15,5331983$175 million
Hail6,272517$616 million
Flash Flood4,79711887$1.6 billion
High Wind4,5991215$222 million
Drought4,08300$147 million
Winter Weather3,9141787$3.3 million
Winter Storm2,9456144$198 million
Marine Thunderstorm Wind2,684150$50 million
Heavy Snow2,236814$1.1 million
Flood2,03156$98 million
Tornado1,545159925$1.7 billion
Heavy Rain1,36277$56 million
Heat1,3331350$25,000
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill978660$61 million
Excessive Heat87035169$8.7 million
Strong Wind863710$3.5 million
Cold/Wind Chill728284$48 million
Dense Fog6171125$1.2 million
Frost/Freeze58121$467 million
Ice Storm37822106$10 million
High Surf355131$1.5 million
Wildfire3521255$2.1 billion
Tropical Storm27610$22 million
Blizzard25346$28 million
Lightning242834$931,000
Coastal Flood21400$14 million
Debris Flow21212$151 million
Funnel Cloud18300
Waterspout17900
Rip Current1209926
Dust Storm111425$1.1 million
Marine Tropical Storm10190
Marine High Wind7700$100,000
Storm Surge/Tide5900
Sleet5500
Lake-Effect Snow4900$100,000
Hurricane (Typhoon)39300$12 billion
Avalanche322613
Tropical Depression3100$31,000
Marine Hail2500
Astronomical Low Tide2100
Lakeshore Flood1700$2.7 million
Marine Hurricane/Typhoon1200
Freezing Fog1100$385,000
Marine Tropical Depression600
Marine Dense Fog320
Marine Strong Wind314$5,000
Sneakerwave220

The deadliest

The costliest

By state

Events filed in each state in 2021.

Coastal and lake waters

More from this year

Tornadoes in 2021The 2021 hurricane seasonEvery warning issued in 2021This day in weather history

Storms of 2020Storms of 2022

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.