Storm Records: West Virginia
Every storm the National Weather Service has filed in West Virginia: its floods, heat, cold, winter storms, hail, wind, lightning and tornadoes, year by year and county by county, each episode with its narrative.
The worst in West Virginia on the map
The deadliest and costliest episodes on record here, 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 record
- Events
- 29,911
- Deaths
- 153
- Injuries
- 425
- Damage
- $1.4 billion
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.
Every year
Tap a year for every episode in it.
Deaths each year
By kind of event
| Kind of event | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 8,453 | 19 | 175 | $113 million |
| Winter Weather | 3,294 | 2 | 27 | $1.7 million |
| Hail | 3,144 | 1 | 3 | $33 million |
| Flash Flood | 2,321 | 57 | 11 | $638 million |
| Heavy Snow | 2,010 | 6 | 3 | $31 million |
| Flood | 1,845 | 28 | 1 | $399 million |
| Winter Storm | 1,543 | 0 | 6 | $16 million |
| Cold/Wind Chill | 965 | 3 | 0 | $653,000 |
| High Wind | 936 | 1 | 6 | $13 million |
| Drought | 922 | 0 | 0 | $23 million |
| Strong Wind | 878 | 2 | 6 | $6.6 million |
| Heat | 586 | 1 | 6 | |
| Dense Fog | 545 | 0 | 0 | |
| Frost/Freeze | 513 | 0 | 0 | $9.4 million |
| Heavy Rain | 505 | 20 | 16 | $1.2 million |
| Extreme Cold/Wind Chill | 465 | 2 | 0 | $7.4 million |
| Excessive Heat | 318 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ice Storm | 235 | 1 | 0 | $10 million |
| Tornado | 191 | 3 | 122 | $46 million |
| Lightning | 96 | 3 | 42 | $5.8 million |
| Blizzard | 58 | 1 | 0 | $22 million |
| Wildfire | 32 | 2 | 1 | $73,000 |
| Funnel Cloud | 22 | 0 | 0 | |
| Debris Flow | 21 | 1 | 0 | $1.2 million |
| Northern Lights | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| Astronomical Low Tide | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Dust Devil | 1 | 0 | 0 | $1,000 |
| Freezing Fog | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Avalanche | 1 | 0 | 0 |
The deadliest
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 23, 2016One of the worst flash floods in the history of West Virginia occurred on June 23, 2016 as extreme rainfall occurred across portions of Greenbrier and several adjacent counties.
- Flash Flooding and Heavy Rain in West Virginia, June 14, 2025On the evening of June 14th, a slow moving thunderstorm passed over portions of Ohio County just east of the city of Wheeling. It's slow movement and interaction with another storm allowed for very heavy rainfall in a short period of time.
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 23 to 24, 2016Multiple rounds of convection resulted in wind damage and flooding. Flash flooding on small streams turned into river flooding. A historic and record setting flood occurred along portions of the Elk and Gauley Rivers in central West Virginia.
- Heavy Rain in West Virginia, December 6, 2014Light to moderate rain fell most of the day. Rain amounts of 1 to 1.5 inches were common.
- Heavy Rain in West Virginia, February 8, 1996A tragedy unfolded on a family farm along Goose Creek, thatdevastated a close-knit rural community. A 67 year oldgrandfather crossed his concrete low water bridge just aftersunset in a pickup truck.
- Hail and Damaging Winds in West Virginia, June 29, 2012On the second day of a developing heat wave, under a sunny sky, afternoon temperatures reached record levels. The lowlands saw thermometers reach into the upper 90s and above 100 degrees. For example, both Huntington and Charleston had 103 degrees.
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, February 15 to 19, 2025Light precipitation started to arrive on the evening of February 14th due to an approaching low pressure system, with more substantial rain spreading across the area overnight into the 15th as a warm front approached from the south.
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, February 18 to 21, 2000A warm front surged north during the morning of Friday the 18th, dropping a half inch to an inch of rain. Meanwhile, low pressure extended from southern Ohio on down the entire length of the Ohio River during that afternoon.
- Flash Flooding and Flood in West Virginia, May 2 to 4, 2002Repetitive showers and thunderstorms moved rapidly across the southern coal fields, from the late morning hours to the early evening, on a Thursday, the 2nd of May.
- Blizzard and Heavy Snow in West Virginia, October 29 to 31, 2012A rare consolidation of a strong mid and upper level trough in the polar jet with a tropical hurricane named Sandy resulted in a historical snow storm for the month of October. Periods of rain fell for 2 days from the 27th into the 28th, as a cold front moved east.
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, June 27 to 30, 1998Three consecutive nights of thunderstorms left western and northern counties with wind damage and flooding. The first night was from Friday evening, the 26th, into early Saturday morning, the 27th.
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, January 27 to 28, 1998A surprise heavy wet snow fell over these mountainous counties. Since the environment was near the freezing mark, through a deep layer, a wide variation in snow depth was observed. The variation was based on elevation. Elevations above 2000 feet were impacted the most.
- Flooding in West Virginia, November 19 to 20, 2003Rains of 2 to 4.2 inches fell from 2200E on the 18th through 1600E on the 19th. A strong inflow of moist air from the southeast, helped enhance these rains.
- Flooding in West Virginia, February 15 to 17, 2003Rains from Friday afternoon, the 14th, into Sunday the 16th were on the order of 3.5 to 4.9 inches, with the maximum over Wayne and Lincoln Counties. Small streams flooded onto roads Saturday evening, the 15th, into early Sunday, the 16th.
- Flooding in West Virginia, March 13 to 14, 2010After a cold and snowy February, a switch to a warmer pattern began during the second week of the month. This started the runoff from a deep snow pack over the West Virginia mountainous counties.
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, May 16 to 17, 1996
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 1, 1997One hour rains of 1.5 to 2 inches, with totals of 2 to 3 inches in less than 3 hours, flooded small streams in the eastern and northeastern part of the county. One gauge along Drift Run reported 2.9 inches of rain. Ripley had a 24 hour rainfall total of 3.3 inches.
- Flash Flooding and Flood in West Virginia, May 18 to 19, 2001A rotating supercell developed in southeast Ohio, then moved across Mason and Jackson counties. The large hail damaged houses and vehicles. In its wake, a larger complex of thunderstorms moved through.
- Flood in West Virginia, March 2 to 7, 1997
- Extreme Cold and Winter Weather in West Virginia, February 18 to 20, 2015In less than a week, a second arctic front swept through West Virginia during the early afternoon hours of the 18th. Snow showers formed ahead of the front.
- Heavy Rain in West Virginia, February 3 to 4, 1998Heavy rain and some wet snow in combination with the leftover heavy snowfall from the end of January resulted in the roof of a recycling center to collapse near Princeton. Two men were crushed to death when the roof fell on them.
- Flood and Damaging Winds in West Virginia, July 25, 2005After a hot and humid afternoon, strong to severe thunderstorms moved southeast, out of Ohio, and through much of West Virginia. Damaging wind gusts were common with the storms and the associated outflow boundary.
- Flooding in West Virginia, January 12 to 13, 2018Strong moisture advection ahead of a southern stream low pressure system brought a prolonged period of moderate to heavy rainfall across the middle Ohio River Valley and Central Appalachians.
- Tornado and Hail in West Virginia, April 9, 1991
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, July 8, 2001This episode, on the 8th of July, saw fast moving thunderstorms form along a north/south warm frontal boundary. This boundary marked the division between the dry and less humid air to the east, from the incoming steamy moist air, to the west.
The costliest
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, July 8, 2001
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 23 to 24, 2016
- Flash Flooding and Flood in West Virginia, May 2 to 4, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in West Virginia, June 29, 2012
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 23, 2016
- Flooding and Damaging Wind in West Virginia, May 8 to 10, 2009
- Flood in West Virginia, September 17 to 20, 2004
- Flood in West Virginia, September 17 to 19, 2004
- Blizzard and Heavy Snow in West Virginia, October 29 to 31, 2012
- Flooding in West Virginia, January 19 to 21, 1996
- Flood in West Virginia, September 17 to 20, 2004
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, June 27 to 30, 1998
- Flooding in West Virginia, September 6 to 8, 1996
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, May 30 to 31, 2004
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 16, 2003
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, February 15 to 19, 2025
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in West Virginia, November 12 to 13, 2003
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in West Virginia, April 4, 1974
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, January 27 to 28, 1998
- Drought in West Virginia, July 1 to 31, 1997
- Tornadoes and Hail in West Virginia, June 2, 1998
- Flooding in West Virginia, November 19 to 20, 2003
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, August 15 to 16, 2022
- Flash Flood in West Virginia, January 19, 1996
- Flash Flooding in West Virginia, June 27 to 30, 1998
Counties
Every storm event filed in each county, including the zone-filed ones that covered it.
- Barbour County456
- Berkeley County954
- Boone County509
- Braxton County415
- Brooke County291
- Cabell County579
- Calhoun County310
- Clay County354
- Doddridge County332
- Fayette County436
- Gilmer County350
- Grant County982
- Greenbrier County585
- Hampshire County732
- Hancock County311
- Hardy County627
- Harrison County683
- Jackson County489
- Jefferson County819
- Kanawha County1,233
- Lewis County438
- Lincoln County474
- Logan County468
- Marion County470
- Marshall County389
- Mason County472
- McDowell County473
- Mercer County514
- Mineral County839
- Mingo County453
- Monongalia County576
- Monroe County271
- Morgan County626
- Nicholas County345
- Ohio County379
- Pendleton County727
- Pleasants County250
- Pocahontas County322
- Preston County626
- Putnam County672
- Raleigh County572
- Randolph County455
- Ritchie County416
- Roane County432
- Summers County291
- Taylor County392
- Tucker County371
- Tyler County374
- Upshur County561
- Wayne County568
- Webster County343
- Wetzel County291
- Wirt County271
- Wood County629
- Wyoming County423
Counties and zones as filed
The places filed most often, as the offices named them.
| County or zone | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kanawha | 1,004 | 15 | 74 | $128 million |
| Berkeley | 493 | 0 | 7 | $2.6 million |
| Greenbrier | 489 | 18 | 8 | $50 million |
| Monongalia | 487 | 1 | 7 | $8.5 million |
| Putnam | 479 | 1 | 12 | $14 million |
| Harrison | 479 | 3 | 6 | $16 million |
| Western Grant zone | 466 | 0 | 0 | $15,000 |
| Preston | 465 | 1 | 30 | $14 million |
| Berkeley zone | 461 | 0 | 3 | $6.7 million |
| Wood | 455 | 6 | 33 | $16 million |
| Jefferson | 410 | 2 | 7 | $3.3 million |
| Jefferson zone | 409 | 0 | 4 | $24 million |
| Raleigh | 405 | 4 | 41 | $57 million |
| Hampshire zone | 400 | 0 | 0 | $7.3 million |
| Cabell | 396 | 7 | 5 | $13 million |
| Hardy zone | 391 | 0 | 0 | $10 million |
| Marion | 380 | 2 | 1 | $10 million |
| Morgan zone | 380 | 0 | 0 | $2.2 million |
| Wayne | 375 | 1 | 5 | $11 million |
| Mercer | 347 | 2 | 4 | $17 million |
| Western Pendleton zone | 347 | 0 | 0 | |
| Hampshire | 332 | 0 | 6 | $2.5 million |
| Western Mineral zone | 326 | 0 | 0 | $28,000 |
| Boone | 324 | 1 | 0 | $10 million |
| Eastern Grant zone | 310 | 0 | 0 | $25,000 |
| Marshall | 303 | 0 | 1 | $11 million |
| Lincoln | 301 | 1 | 1 | $9.3 million |
| Upshur | 300 | 0 | 4 | $3.6 million |
| Eastern Mineral zone | 300 | 0 | 0 | $23,000 |
| Mason | 298 | 3 | 1 | $4.9 million |
| Logan | 297 | 3 | 3 | $30 million |
| Fayette | 288 | 4 | 30 | $71 million |
| Jackson | 287 | 7 | 17 | $12 million |
| McDowell | 284 | 7 | 0 | $158 million |
| Mingo | 284 | 1 | 4 | $46 million |
| Randolph | 278 | 3 | 5 | $6.5 million |
| Ohio | 268 | 9 | 6 | $5.5 million |
| Upshur zone | 261 | 0 | 0 | $4.3 million |
| Lewis | 253 | 0 | 2 | $4.9 million |
| Preston zone | 252 | 0 | 3 | $1.5 million |
| Pocahontas zone | 248 | 0 | 0 | $3.6 million |
| Morgan | 246 | 2 | 0 | $2.8 million |
| Randolph zone | 243 | 0 | 0 | $5.3 million |
| Ritchie | 241 | 5 | 0 | $5.9 million |
| Roane | 237 | 5 | 2 | $13 million |
| Hardy | 236 | 0 | 5 | $12 million |
| Hancock | 235 | 0 | 1 | $2.5 million |
| Barbour zone | 231 | 2 | 0 | $1.3 million |
| Wyoming | 230 | 2 | 10 | $78 million |
| Kanawha zone | 229 | 4 | 3 | $17 million |
| Barbour | 225 | 0 | 9 | $6.1 million |
| Braxton | 224 | 0 | 3 | $6.9 million |
| Eastern Pendleton zone | 219 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mineral | 213 | 0 | 1 | $1.2 million |
| Webster zone | 211 | 0 | 0 | $7.2 million |
| Wetzel | 209 | 1 | 0 | $15 million |
| Grant | 206 | 2 | 0 | $583,000 |
| Nicholas | 205 | 0 | 3 | $31 million |
| Brooke | 204 | 0 | 1 | $3.5 million |
| Harrison zone | 204 | 1 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| Jackson zone | 202 | 0 | 0 | $4.8 million |
| Taylor | 200 | 1 | 1 | $7.6 million |
| Webster | 200 | 0 | 1 | $13 million |
| Tyler | 199 | 0 | 0 | $3.8 million |
| Roane zone | 195 | 0 | 2 | $2.8 million |
| Tucker zone | 194 | 1 | 0 | $2.3 million |
| Wayne zone | 193 | 3 | 0 | $6.5 million |
| Putnam zone | 193 | 1 | 1 | $2.5 million |
| Wyoming zone | 193 | 0 | 0 | $3.1 million |
| Taylor zone | 192 | 0 | 0 | $527,000 |
| Nicholas zone | 192 | 1 | 0 | $14 million |
| Braxton zone | 191 | 0 | 1 | $2.4 million |
| McDowell zone | 189 | 1 | 1 | $4.0 million |
| Boone zone | 185 | 1 | 2 | $2.4 million |
| Clay zone | 185 | 0 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| Lewis zone | 185 | 0 | 0 | $741,000 |
| Cabell zone | 183 | 1 | 0 | $5.9 million |
| Pendleton zone | 181 | 0 | 2 | $10 million |
| Summers | 179 | 0 | 0 | $3.6 million |
| Fayette zone | 179 | 0 | 0 | $7.6 million |
| Raleigh zone | 178 | 2 | 4 | $12 million |
| Gilmer zone | 177 | 0 | 0 | $2.1 million |
| Tyler zone | 175 | 0 | 0 | $1.9 million |
| Ritchie zone | 175 | 0 | 0 | $351,000 |
| Mason zone | 174 | 0 | 0 | $3.0 million |
| Calhoun zone | 174 | 1 | 0 | $1.2 million |
| Wood zone | 174 | 0 | 0 | $4.2 million |
| Gilmer | 173 | 0 | 1 | $4.0 million |
| Lincoln zone | 173 | 2 | 0 | $9.0 million |
| Doddridge zone | 172 | 0 | 0 | $303,000 |
| Logan zone | 171 | 3 | 0 | $1.8 million |
| Clay | 169 | 0 | 0 | $20 million |
| Mingo zone | 169 | 1 | 0 | $7.2 million |
| Tucker | 167 | 0 | 0 | $847,000 |
| Monroe | 167 | 0 | 2 | $3.4 million |
| Mercer zone | 167 | 1 | 6 | $6.9 million |
| Wirt zone | 163 | 0 | 0 | $1.6 million |
| Pendleton | 161 | 1 | 3 | $12 million |
| Doddridge | 160 | 0 | 1 | $6.0 million |
| Pleasants zone | 158 | 0 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| Pocahontas | 149 | 1 | 1 | $3.3 million |
| Eastern Tucker zone | 149 | 0 | 0 | $90,000 |
| Grant zone | 147 | 1 | 3 | $5.1 million |
| Calhoun | 136 | 0 | 3 | $4.2 million |
| Mineral zone | 136 | 0 | 0 | $12 million |
| Greenbrier zone | 124 | 0 | 0 | $4.7 million |
| Summers zone | 112 | 0 | 0 | $964,000 |
| Ohio zone | 111 | 0 | 0 | $49 million |
| Northwest Pocahontas zone | 109 | 0 | 0 | $94,000 |
| Wirt | 108 | 0 | 0 | $3.2 million |
| Monongalia zone | 108 | 1 | 0 | $800,000 |
| Monroe zone | 104 | 1 | 1 | $2.8 million |
| Eastern Preston zone | 99 | 0 | 0 | $96,000 |
| Southeast Randolph zone | 99 | 0 | 7 | $585,000 |
| Southeast Raleigh zone | 93 | 0 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| Pleasants | 92 | 1 | 3 | $2.0 million |
| Marion zone | 90 | 0 | 0 | $334,000 |
| Brooke zone | 87 | 0 | 0 | $22 million |
| Marshall zone | 86 | 1 | 1 | $7.5 million |
| Wetzel zone | 82 | 0 | 0 | $10 million |
| Northwest Randolph zone | 78 | 0 | 0 | $120,000 |
| Hancock zone | 76 | 0 | 0 | $39 million |
| Southeast Fayette zone | 76 | 0 | 0 | $154,000 |
| Northwest Raleigh zone | 74 | 0 | 0 | $1.1 million |
| Southeast Nicholas zone | 73 | 0 | 0 | $74,000 |
| Southeast Webster zone | 73 | 0 | 0 | $80,000 |
| Northwest Fayette zone | 72 | 0 | 0 | $164,000 |
| Northwest Webster zone | 70 | 0 | 0 | $88,000 |
| Northwest Nicholas zone | 67 | 0 | 0 | $65,000 |
| Southeast Pocahontas zone | 64 | 0 | 0 | $86,000 |
| Western Tucker zone | 54 | 0 | 0 | $120,000 |
| Western Greenbrier zone | 52 | 0 | 5 | $168,000 |
| Eastern Greenbrier zone | 44 | 0 | 5 | $291,000 |
| Ridges of E Monongalia and Nw Preston zone | 35 | 0 | 0 | $20,000 |
| 14 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Tucker, Barbour, Randolph, Upshur and Webster | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Every year
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- 1950
More
Every tornado in West VirginiaEvery warning in West Virginia since 1986River gauges in West VirginiaEvery state
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.