Jackson County, Iowa

What hazards hit Jackson County most?

The most frequent records are winter storm records: 276 since 1996. 64% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in December and January. The rank column places the county among Iowa'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 Jackson County had?

NOAA records 29 tornadoes in Jackson County from 1955 to 2026, the strongest rated EF2, with 0 deaths and 7 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 29 tornadoes whose track touched Jackson County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 29, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 1 person, 0 of them in Jackson County.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Iowa.

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 Jackson County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the March 31, 2023 tornado (3 injuries).

A tornado touched down just south of Bellevue, and moved northeast over the Mississippi River before dissipating. This tornado impacted an RV park and some cabins located nearby. Some structural damage was noted, with some RVs that were flipped and damaged. Several trees within the area were also impacted, with some uprooted. Three injuries were noted with this tornado in the vicinity of the RV park. This tornado continued into Jo Daviess County, Illinois, but likely dissipated over the river as no damage was observed in a wooded area adjacent to the river. Peak winds were estimated around 105 mph.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1086477)

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

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

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 Jackson 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?

64% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in December and January. The two busiest months are in violet.

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

Federal disaster declarations for Jackson County

FEMA's register lists 21 declarations that include Jackson County: 19 major disasters, 2 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (10) and flood (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 Jackson County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 59 flood or flash flood records for Jackson County from 1997 to 2026, on 49 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Jackson County ranks 1748th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $384,000 on 42 claims filed in Jackson County; the most in one year was 6 in 2001. 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 Jackson County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Jackson County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $14.1 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 Jackson County

1. Dubuque County 965
2. Clinton County 833
3. Jackson County 766
4. Jones County 739
5. Jo Daviess County, IL 686
6. Carroll County, IL 608

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 IowaEvery Iowa tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Winter storms in IowaThe state's winter storm records, by county, year and month
• The Iowa recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Jackson CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Jackson County's FEMA declarations (CSV)21 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis