Morgan County, Missouri

County storm and disaster record · FIPS 29141 · population 20,975 · 598 sq mi

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 655 records for Morgan County, Missouri from 1950 through June 30, 2026, on 411 days; the most frequent are hail reports (196 records). The deadliest single record is the January 29, 2023 winter weather, filed for the forecast zone Morgan, which covers the county: 1 death and 1 injury. FEMA has issued 28 declarations naming the county since 1973, 26 of them for natural hazards; the latest for a natural hazard was “Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding” on September 1, 2026.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm records filed for the county each year (2026 to June 30, 2026). Before 1996 NOAA recorded only tornadoes (from 1950), thunderstorm wind and hail (from 1955).

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $100,000
  • $100,000 or more
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more, or a death
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
  • 1955: wind and hail recorded from 1955
  • 1996: all 48 event types from 1996
Storm records
655on 411 days, 1950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded
28 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$26Mas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes
31strongest F2
FEMA declarations
28latest 2026

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026 (file revision 20260918); damage converted to 2025 dollars with the BLS CPI-U. Search the record at NCEI. BLS consumer price index.

What hazards hit Morgan County most?

The most frequent records are hail reports: 196 since 1959. 48% of its hail reports since 1959 fell in April and May. The rank column places the county among Missouri's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Morgan County: records by hazard, 1950 to June 30, 2026
HazardRecordsDaysFirst, lastKilledInjuredDamageRank in state
Hail 196 116 1959-2026 0 0 $854K 33 of 114
Severe thunderstorm wind 182 128 1955-2026 0 0 $3.4M 44 of 114
Floods 135 101 1996-2026 1 0 $6.6M 27 of 114
Winter storms 50 50 1997-2026 1 1 $353K 64 of 114
Tornadoes 31 19 1950-2026 0 7 $8.4M 62 of 114
Drought 20 20 1999-2024 0 0 $3.8M 63 of 114
Extreme cold 10 10 2000-2025 0 0 $2.1M 48 of 114
Heat 9 9 1999-2012 0 0 – 94 of 114
Heavy rain 8 7 2013-2020 0 0 – 36 of 114
High wind and dust storms 5 4 2001-2025 0 0 $19K 64 of 114
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds 5 5 2009-2025 0 0 – 14 of 114
Lightning 2 2 2001-2026 0 0 $75K 42 of 114
Wildfires 2 2 2000-2006 0 0 $93K 19 of 114

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 Morgan County had?

NOAA records 31 tornadoes in Morgan County from 1950 to 2026, the strongest rated F2, 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 27 tornadoes whose track touched Morgan County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 31: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Missouri.

Every tornado record filed for Morgan County (31)
Every tornado recorded in Morgan County, newest first
DatePlaceCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-04-17 Barnett, Morgan County EF0 1.28 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $10K
2026-04-17 Zwanzig, Morgan County EF1 7.26 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $50K
2026-04-17 Zwanzig, Morgan County EF0 1.29 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2025-04-20 Aikinsville, Morgan County EF0 0.69 mi x 75 yd 0 0 $20K
2024-04-27 Florence, Morgan County EF0 3.51 mi x 50 yd 0 0 –
2017-05-27 Gravois Mills Airport, Morgan County EF1 0.13 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $60K
2017-05-27 Gravois Mills Airport, Morgan County EF1 0.06 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $30K
2017-03-06 Rocky Mt, Morgan County EF0 0.33 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $120K
2013-05-20 Gravois Mills, Morgan County EF0 0.74 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $63K
2006-03-12 Syracuse, Morgan County F1 1 mi x 250 yd 0 0 $15K
2006-03-12 Florence, Morgan County F0 6 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2006-03-12 Gravois Mills, Morgan County F2 6 mi x 100 yd 0 5 $1.2M
2003-05-06 Gravois Mills, Morgan County F0 10 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2003-05-06 Gravois Mills, Morgan County F0 4 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2003-05-06 Gravois Mills, Morgan County F0 1 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2001-10-23 Rocky Mt, Morgan County F0 0.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
1995-04-16 Gravois Mills, Morgan County F1 0.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $339K
1982-05-14 Morgan County F1 1 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $3K step
1982-05-14 Morgan County F0 0.3 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $30 step
1982-05-14 Morgan County F1 0.3 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $3K step
1982-05-14 Morgan County F1 1 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250 step
1982-05-14 Morgan County F0 0.3 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $30 step
1982-03-15 Morgan County F2 5 mi x 600 yd 0 0 $250K step
1978-04-06 Morgan County 0 0 $25K step
1961-03-05 Morgan County F2 0 0 $250K step
1961-03-05 Morgan County F2 9.6 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250K step
1955-09-21 Morgan County F1 4.7 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $3K step
1954-05-31 Morgan County F2 6.8 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $25K step
1954-05-28 Morgan County F2 2.3 mi x 100 yd 0 2 $25K step
1954-04-30 Morgan County F2 3.6 mi x 400 yd 0 0 $30 step
1950-07-19 Morgan County F1 1.5 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $250 step

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, 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 Morgan County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the April 27, 2026 hail ($150,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

Hail up to 3 inches in diameter was reported in a mainly rural area. A home and several barns had roof damage and a few vehicles were damaged.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1331709)
The 12 most recent records kept for Morgan County
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-05-19 FloodFlorence, Morgan County 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailGravois Mills, Morgan County 1.50 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailZwanzig, Morgan County 1.25 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-27 HailGlensted, Morgan County 3.00 in hail 0 0 $150K
2026-04-27 HailSyracuse, Morgan County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-27 HailSyracuse, Morgan County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-18 FloodFlorence, Morgan County 0 0 –
2026-04-17 Thunderstorm WindStover, Morgan County 50 kt wind 0 0 $30K
2026-04-17 Thunderstorm WindGravois Mills Airport, Morgan County 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-04-17 Thunderstorm WindRocky Mt, Morgan County 52 kt wind 0 0 $50K
2026-04-17 Thunderstorm WindMarvin, Morgan County 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-04-17 TornadoBarnett, Morgan County EF0 1.28 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $10K

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

Records with deaths or injuries in Morgan County, most deaths first
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2023-01-29 Winter WeatherMorgan County · forecast zone Morgan A prolonged period of precipitation fell across the county, beginning during the early morning hours of January 29th as freezing drizzle and lingering into the very early morning of January 30th. There was an estimated light glaze of ice across the county. Roads became covered and slick with numerous schools also ... 1 1 –
1996-07-29 Flash FloodFlorence, Morgan County A woman was killed while attempting to cross a low water water bridge over Haw Creek in her vehicle. 1 0 $9K
2006-03-12 TornadoGravois Mills, Morgan County A tornado initially touched down southwest of Gravois Mills and tracked through the city. 20 homes were destroyed while another 10 were damaged. This tornado was spawned from the same cyclic supercell that produced tornadoes back in Hickory, Polk, Dade, and Barton counties. F2 6 mi x 100 yd 0 5 $1.2M
1954-05-28 TornadoMorgan County F2 2.3 mi x 100 yd 0 2 $25K step

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.

The costliest records in Morgan County since 1993, damage in 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1998-07-26 FloodMorgan County · forecast zone Morgan 0 0 $5.6M
2012-08-01 DroughtMorgan County · forecast zone Morgan 0 0 $2.8M
2007-04-07 Frost/FreezeMorgan County · forecast zone Morgan 0 0 $2.1M
2006-03-12 TornadoGravois Mills, Morgan County F2 6 mi x 100 yd 0 5 $1.2M
1994-04-15 Thunderstorm WindVersailles, Morgan County 0 0 $996K
2015-12-27 FloodGravois Mills, Morgan County 0 0 $623K
2022-10-01 DroughtMorgan County · forecast zone Morgan 0 0 $585K
1995-04-16 TornadoGravois Mills, Morgan County F1 0.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $339K

Before 1993 NOAA filed damage by category, not amount, so the list above starts in 1993. The highest category filed here before then (entered as $250K, in the dollars of the day) holds: March 5, 1961 (tornado, Morgan County); March 5, 1961 (tornado, Morgan County); March 15, 1982 (tornado, Morgan County).

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 Morgan 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).

Morgan County: records per decade (the 2020s to June 30, 2026)
Hazard1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020-26
Hail1001626864423
Severe thunderstorm wind3391519505528
Floods––––14445621
Winter storms––––318821
Tornadoes52161745
Drought––––13412

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

What time of year?

48% of its hail reports since 1959 fell in April and May. The two busiest months are in violet.

The values, month by month

Jan 34 · Feb 32 · Mar 65 · Apr 106 · May 129 · Jun 85 · Jul 71 · Aug 45 · Sep 38 · Oct 19 · Nov 15 · Dec 16 (records).

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

Federal disaster declarations for Morgan County

FEMA's register lists 28 declarations that include Morgan County: 21 major disasters, 7 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (15) and flood (5).

Declarations including Morgan County, newest first
DeclaredNumberTypeTitle
2026-09-01DR-4939Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2026-08-03DR-4929Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2023-09-21DR-4741Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2020-03-26DR-4490BiologicalCovid-19 Pandemic
2020-03-13EM-3482BiologicalCovid-19
2017-06-02DR-4317FloodSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds and Flooding
2016-01-21DR-4250FloodSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2016-01-02EM-3374FloodSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2015-08-07DR-4238Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2011-03-23DR-1961Severe StormSevere Winter Storm and Snowstorm
2011-02-03EM-3317Severe StormSevere Winter Storm
2009-01-30EM-3303Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storm
2008-06-25DR-1773Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2008-03-19DR-1749Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2007-12-27DR-1736Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2007-12-12EM-3281Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2007-06-11DR-1708Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2006-03-16DR-1631Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding
2005-09-10EM-3232HurricaneHurricane Katrina Evacuation
2003-05-06DR-1463Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2002-02-06DR-1403Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Ice Storm
1998-10-14DR-1253Severe StormSevere Storms, Flooding and Tornadoes
1995-06-02DR-1054Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Hail, Flooding
1994-04-21DR-1023Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding
1993-07-09DR-995FloodSevere Storms & Flooding
1986-10-14DR-779FloodSevere Storms & Flooding
1976-09-24EM-3017DroughtDrought
1973-04-19DR-372Severe StormHeavy Rains, Tornadoes & Flooding

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 Morgan County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 135 flood or flash flood records for Morgan County from 1996 to 2026, on 101 days, with 1 death. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Morgan County ranks 2212th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $162,000 on 15 claims filed in Morgan County; the most in one year was 6 in 2015. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

The values, year by year

2009: 2 · 2013: 4 · 2015: 6 · 2018: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2021: 1; the other years: 0.

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 Morgan County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Morgan County Relatively Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $21.7 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.

National Risk Index ratings for Morgan County (December 2025 release), by FEMA's rating, then score
HazardRisk ratingExpected annual lossModeled frequency
Ice StormRelatively High$763Kabout once a year (modeled)
Heat WaveRelatively Moderate$1.5M13 modeled event-days a year
Riverine FloodingRelatively Moderate$14M3.3 a year (modeled)
Winter WeatherRelatively Moderate$125K12 a year (modeled)
TornadoRelatively Moderate$2.4Monce in about 3 years (modeled)
Cold WaveRelatively Moderate$1.6M2.6 a year (modeled)
DroughtRelatively Moderate$235K10 modeled event-days a year
LightningRelatively Moderate$245K52 a year (modeled)

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

Counties that share a border with Morgan County

  1. Camden County 753
  2. Benton County 672
  3. Morgan County 655
  4. Pettis County 595
  5. Miller County 586
  6. Cooper County 544
  7. Moniteau County 372

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

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