Burke County, North Dakota

What hazards hit Burke County most?

The most frequent records are hail reports: 120 since 1975. 68% of its hail reports since 1975 fell in July and August. The rank column places the county among North Dakota's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Burke County had?

NOAA records 28 tornadoes in Burke County from 1969 to 2026, the strongest rated EF3, with 0 deaths and 0 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 27 tornadoes whose track touched Burke County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 28: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 1 person, 0 of them in Burke County.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in North Dakota.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Burke County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the June 7, 2026 tornado ($50,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

A brief, dusty tornado touched down southeast of Bowbells. The tornado formed and soon after knocked over a grain bin and sheared off the top half of pine trees. The tornado then tracked to the northeast for a couple of miles before dissipating before reaching the river. This tornado continued into Ward County. Based on the damage done this tornado was rated EF-1, and from that wind speeds were estimated to be around 95 mph.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1357754)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Burke County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

68% of its hail reports since 1975 fell in July and August. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Burke County

FEMA's register lists 22 declarations that include Burke County: 19 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (9) and severe storm (8).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Burke County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 3 flood or flash flood records for Burke County from 2011 to 2023, on 3 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Burke County ranks 2685th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $4,585 on 3 claims filed in Burke County; the most in one year was 2 in 1979. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Burke County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Burke County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $2.0 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Burke County

1. Ward County 817
2. Williams County 681
3. Mountrail County 630
4. Burke County 419
5. Renville County 384
6. Divide County 372

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in North DakotaEvery North Dakota tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Hail in North DakotaThe state's hail reports, by county, year and month
• The North Dakota recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Burke CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Burke County's FEMA declarations (CSV)22 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis