Knox County, Maine

What hazards hit Knox County most?

The most frequent records are winter storm records: 166 since 1996. 51% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The rank column places the county among Maine'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 Knox County had?

NOAA records 1 tornado in Knox County from 1969 to 1969, 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 1 tornado whose track touched Knox County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 1, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Maine.

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 Knox County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the January 13, 2024 coastal flood ($4.7 million in damage in 2025 dollars).

The astronomical tide in Portland was 11.2 feet (MLLW) at 1205 pm. Flood stage is 12 feet (MLLW). The gale to storm force onshore winds produced a storm surge of 3.37 feet in Portland Harbor. The resulting storm tide topped out at 14.57 feet (MLLW) in the Forest City with the tide remaining above flood stage for two hours and 38 minutes. The storm created significant damage to waterfront areas of Knox County due to both inundation flooding and over wash from large coastal swells that overtopped dunes and seawalls. Flooding was up to one foot deep in businesses around Camden Harbor with significant flooding of the Camden Yacht Club where roads were closed due to flooding up to one foot deep. Significant debris in piles was reported near and along the shoreline in Saint George from damage. In Rockland, the boat launch was damaged at Harbor Park. …
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1158762)

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 Knox 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?

51% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The two busiest months are in violet.

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

Federal disaster declarations for Knox County

FEMA's register lists 31 declarations that include Knox County: 24 major disasters, 7 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (12) 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 Knox County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 53 flood or flash flood records for Knox County from 1996 to 2024, on 33 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Knox County ranks 1346th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $1.9 million on 92 claims filed in Knox County; the most in one year was 26 in 2024. 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 Knox County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Knox County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $11.7 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 Knox County

1. Hancock County 824
2. Waldo County 717
3. Lincoln County 433
4. Knox County 396

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 MaineEvery Maine tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Winter storms in MaineThe state's winter storm records, by county, year and month
• The Maine recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Knox CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Knox County's FEMA declarations (CSV)31 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis