Roger Mills County, Oklahoma

County storm and disaster record · FIPS 40129 · population 3,442 · 1,141 sq mi

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 970 records for Roger Mills County, Oklahoma from 1950 through June 30, 2026, on 559 days; the most frequent are hail reports (448 records). The deadliest single record is the May 25, 1955 tornado: 2 deaths and 8 injuries. FEMA has issued 32 declarations naming the county since 1990, 30 of them for natural hazards; the latest for a natural hazard was “840 Road Fire” on March 14, 2025.

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
970on 559 days, 1950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded
523 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$40Mas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes
57strongest F4
FEMA declarations
32latest 2025

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 Roger Mills County most?

The most frequent records are hail reports: 448 since 1955. 55% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in April and May. The rank column places the county among Oklahoma's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Roger Mills County: records by hazard, 1950 to June 30, 2026
HazardRecordsDaysFirst, lastKilledInjuredDamageRank in state
Hail 448 226 1955-2026 0 0 $57K 59 of 77
Severe thunderstorm wind 183 122 1956-2026 0 0 $950K 72 of 77
Drought 125 125 2000-2026 0 0 $14M 34 of 77
Tornadoes 57 40 1952-2026 3 21 $20M 67 of 77
Winter storms 52 49 1996-2026 1 1 $4.3M 66 of 77
High wind and dust storms 48 32 1996-2026 0 0 $16K 22 of 77
Heat 16 16 2001-2026 0 0 – 74 of 77
Extreme cold 13 13 1996-2025 0 0 – 33 of 77
Wildfires 12 11 2018-2025 1 1 $181K 27 of 77
Floods 10 10 2001-2022 0 0 $187K 73 of 77
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds 3 3 1999-2001 0 0 – 49 of 77
Heavy rain 2 2 2007-2008 0 0 – 24 of 77
Lightning 1 1 2002-2002 0 0 $7K 67 of 77

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 Roger Mills County had?

NOAA records 57 tornadoes in Roger Mills County from 1952 to 2026, the strongest rated F4, with 3 deaths and 21 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 58 tornadoes whose track touched Roger Mills County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 57: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 3 people.

The deadliest and strongest tornadoes that touched Roger Mills County, whole tracks
DateTornadoRatingPathKilled
1955-05-25 15:17, as SPC files itSweetwaterCrossed OK, TXF445.1 mi2
2023-02-26 19:13, as SPC files itCheyenne to StrongEF27 mi1
2007-05-05 19:12, as SPC files itSweetwaterEF35.2 mi0
1977-05-16 17:24, as SPC files itUnnamedF318.2 mi0

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Oklahoma.

Every tornado record filed for Roger Mills County (57)
Every tornado recorded in Roger Mills County, newest first
DatePlaceCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-03-05 Berlin, Roger Mills County EFU 1 mi x 200 yd 0 0 –
2025-06-17 Crawford, Roger Mills County EFU 0.1 mi x 30 yd 0 0 –
2025-06-17 Durham, Roger Mills County EF2 8.2 mi x 1,200 yd 0 0 $30K
2024-05-19 Strong City, Roger Mills County EF0 1.92 mi x 30 yd 0 0 $9K
2024-05-19 Strong City, Roger Mills County EF0 0.5 mi x 30 yd 0 0 $5K
2024-05-19 Roll, Roger Mills County EF0 0.2 mi x 30 yd 0 0 $5K
2024-04-27 Hammon, Roger Mills County EF0 0.1 mi x 10 yd 0 0 –
2024-04-27 Strong City, Roger Mills County EF1 0.7 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $5K
2023-06-15 Durham, Roger Mills County EFU 1 mi x 50 yd 0 0 –
2023-02-26 Cheyenne, Roger Mills County EF2 7 mi x 500 yd 1 3 $242K
2021-10-26 Angora, Roger Mills County EFU 0.2 mi x 50 yd 0 0 –
2017-05-16 Roll, Roger Mills County EF1 0.75 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $1K
2017-05-16 Reydon, Roger Mills County EF2 10.25 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $48K
2016-05-16 Durham, Roger Mills County EF1 0.4 mi x 50 yd 0 0 –
2015-05-16 Angora, Roger Mills County EF1 3.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2015-05-09 Hammon, Roger Mills County EF0 1.7 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2010-03-08 Hammon, Roger Mills County EF2 6.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $1.4M
2009-04-26 Crawford, Roger Mills County EF0 1.8 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2009-04-26 Crawford, Roger Mills County EF0 3.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2007-05-05 Roll, Roger Mills County EF1 0.75 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $7K
2007-05-05 Roll, Roger Mills County EF1 7.5 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $7K
2007-05-05 Dempsey, Roger Mills County EF1 8.5 mi x 300 yd 0 0 –
2007-05-05 Crawford, Roger Mills County EF0 1 mi x 200 yd 0 0 –
2007-05-05 Sweetwater, Roger Mills County EF3 5.2 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $213K
2007-05-05 Crawford, Roger Mills County EF0 0.3 mi x 40 yd 0 0 –
2007-05-05 Reydon, Roger Mills County EF0 0.8 mi x 100 yd 0 0 –
2003-05-15 Sweetwater, Roger Mills County F1 5.5 mi x 880 yd 0 0 $104K
2003-04-15 Angora, Roger Mills County F1 0.1 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $16K
2003-04-15 Strong City, Roger Mills County F0 0.5 mi x 50 yd 0 0 –
2003-04-15 Reydon, Roger Mills County F1 10 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $80K
2001-10-09 Berlin, Roger Mills County F0 2.5 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $167
1995-06-08 Reydon, Roger Mills County F2 5 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $968K
1989-06-06 Roger Mills County F0 15 mi x 20 yd 0 0 –
1987-03-22 Roger Mills County F0 0.2 mi x 10 yd 0 0 –
1984-04-20 Roger Mills County F0 0.1 mi x 33 yd 0 0 $30 step
1983-06-13 Roger Mills County F0 0.1 mi x 10 yd 0 0 $30 step
1982-05-27 Roger Mills County F2 0.5 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250K step
1982-05-11 Roger Mills County F1 11 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $25K step
1980-05-28 Roger Mills County F1 0 0 $3K step
1980-05-28 Roger Mills County F2 13.2 mi x 200 yd 0 1 $2.5M step
1977-05-16 Roger Mills County F0 0 0 –
1977-05-16 Roger Mills County F3 7.9 mi x 33 yd 0 0 $250K step
1973-11-20 Roger Mills County F1 0.5 mi x 30 yd 0 7 $250K step
1968-06-09 Roger Mills County F2 0 2 $25K step
1965-09-20 Roger Mills County F0 5.1 mi x 33 yd 0 0 –
1965-05-24 Roger Mills County F0 0 0 –
1964-05-05 Roger Mills County F2 11.6 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $25K step
1964-05-05 Roger Mills County F2 3.6 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $30 step
1961-05-04 Roger Mills County F2 23.5 mi x 200 yd 0 0 $25K step
1959-05-25 Roger Mills County F2 3.8 mi x 440 yd 0 0 $3K step
1956-04-08 Roger Mills County F1 0 0 $30 step
1955-05-25 Roger Mills County F4 10.6 mi x 400 yd 2 8 $250K step
1954-04-29 Roger Mills County F2 33.3 mi x 33 yd 0 0 $25K step
1953-06-06 Roger Mills County F0 0 0 $250 step
1952-06-15 Roger Mills County F1 0 0 $3K step
1952-06-01 Roger Mills County F1 0 0 $3K step
1952-04-20 Roger Mills County F0 0 0 –

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 Roger Mills County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the July 8, 2025 thunderstorm wind ($100,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

A crane was blown over, landing on a nearby parked vehicle. The location is approximate, and the event time is estimated from radar observations.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1281478)
The 12 most recent records kept for Roger Mills County
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-29 Thunderstorm WindCheyenne, Roger Mills County 54 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-23 HailStrong City, Roger Mills County 0.75 in hail 0 0 –
2026-06-17 HeatRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 –
2026-06-13 Thunderstorm WindCheyenne, Roger Mills County 50 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-08 HeatRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 –
2026-05-23 HailDurham, Roger Mills County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-05-01 DroughtRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 –
2026-04-17 HailCheyenne, Roger Mills County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-17 HailCheyenne, Roger Mills County 0.88 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-01 DroughtRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 –
2026-03-30 Thunderstorm WindCheyenne, Roger Mills County 53 kt wind 0 0 –

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 Roger Mills County, most deaths first
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1955-05-25 TornadoRoger Mills County F4 10.6 mi x 400 yd 2 8 $250K step
2023-02-26 TornadoCheyenne, Roger Mills County A tornado touched down just south of State Highway 47 and just southwest of the Cheyenne cemetery. The tornado initially moved east-southeast, then turned northeast moving through the northwestern portion of Cheyenne including a portion of the Washita Battlefield. A number of mobile homes were destroyed both west of ... EF2 7 mi x 500 yd 1 3 $242K
2018-04-12 WildfireRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills Several major wildfires were sparked on the 12th. Most significantly (in terms of size/extent) were the Rhea fire (mainly Dewey county, but also affecting Woodward and Custer counties), burning 286,196 acres, causing 1 fatality and 3 injuries (including a burnover of a truck), and destroying 50 structures before it ... 1 1 –
2011-01-19 Winter WeatherRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills Around 3 inches of snow accumulated 10 miles north-northeast of Durham. Lighter amounts were reported across the central and southern portions of the county. Several accidents occurred as a result of slipper roadways. Unfortunately, one of the accidents resulted in a fatality. The automobile collision occurred around ... 1 0 –
1973-11-20 TornadoRoger Mills County F1 0.5 mi x 30 yd 0 7 $250K step
1968-06-09 TornadoRoger Mills County F2 0 2 $25K step
2003-12-12 Winter StormRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills Freezing rain, sleet, and snow fell across portions of west central and central Oklahoma causing dangerous driving conditions across the area. Many traffic accidents were reported, especially along Interstate 40. Freezing rain which caused icy roads fell for several hours on Dec. 12th before the precipitation ... 0 1 –
1980-05-28 TornadoRoger Mills County F2 13.2 mi x 200 yd 0 1 $2.5M 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 Roger Mills County since 1993, damage in 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2015-12-27 Winter StormRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 $2.0M
2015-12-27 Winter StormRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 $1.4M
2010-03-08 TornadoHammon, Roger Mills County EF2 6.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $1.4M
1995-06-08 TornadoReydon, Roger Mills County F2 5 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $968K
2002-05-16 Thunderstorm WindNorth Portion, Roger Mills County 0 0 $410K
2015-11-27 Ice StormRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 $398K
2017-01-14 Ice StormRoger Mills County · forecast zone Roger Mills 0 0 $388K
2007-05-05 TornadoSweetwater, Roger Mills County EF3 5.2 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $213K

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 $2.5M, in the dollars of the day) holds: May 28, 1980 (tornado, Roger Mills 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 Roger Mills 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).

Roger Mills County: records per decade (the 2020s to June 30, 2026)
Hazard1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020-26
Hail5106801071068351
Severe thunderstorm wind2111247514128
Drought––––02065 z40
Tornadoes8638114611
Winter storms––––724165
High wind and dust storms––––417621 z

Drought in the 2010s: 65 records against 20 in the decade before, 65 of them forecast-zone records. High wind and dust storms in the 2020-26: 21 records against 6 in the decade before, 21 of them forecast-zone records. Cells marked z rose mostly through zone records. The local National Weather Service office files these once per forecast zone, so a change in how it draws its zones or splits a storm into records moves this count as much as the weather does; read it beside the Roger Mills County days with a record above.

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

What time of year?

55% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in April and May. The two busiest months are in violet.

The values, month by month

Jan 44 · Feb 35 · Mar 91 · Apr 147 · May 262 · Jun 158 · Jul 49 · Aug 55 · Sep 60 · Oct 21 · Nov 21 · Dec 27 (records).

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

Federal disaster declarations for Roger Mills County

FEMA's register lists 32 declarations that include Roger Mills County: 24 major disasters, 7 emergencies and one fire management assistance declaration. Most were for severe storm (14) and severe ice storm (10).

Declarations including Roger Mills County, newest first
DeclaredNumberTypeTitle
2025-03-14FM-5557Fire840 Road Fire
2024-06-14DR-4791Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2021-02-24DR-4587Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2021-02-17EM-3555Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storm
2020-12-21DR-4575Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storm
2020-04-05DR-4530BiologicalCovid-19 Pandemic
2020-03-13EM-3462BiologicalCovid-19
2019-06-01DR-4438Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2018-06-25DR-4373FireWildfires
2017-07-25DR-4324TornadoSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2017-02-10DR-4299Severe StormSevere Winter Storm
2016-02-10DR-4256Severe StormSevere Winter Storms and Flooding
2015-12-29DR-4247Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms and Flooding
2015-05-26DR-4222Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding
2013-04-08DR-4109Severe StormSevere Winter Storm and Snowstorm
2011-02-02EM-3316Severe StormSevere Winter Storm
2010-03-05DR-1883Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storm
2010-02-25DR-1876Severe StormSevere Winter Storm
2010-01-30EM-3308Severe StormSevere Winter Storm
2008-07-09DR-1775Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2007-12-10EM-3280Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2007-06-07DR-1707Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding
2007-01-14EM-3272Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms and Flooding
2006-01-10DR-1623FireExtreme Wildfire Threat
2005-09-05EM-3219HurricaneHurricane Katrina Evacuation
2003-05-10DR-1465Severe StormSevere Storms and Tornadoes
2003-02-04DR-1452Severe Ice StormSevere Ice Storm
2002-02-01DR-1401Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Ice Storm
2001-06-29DR-1384Severe StormSevere Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes
2001-01-05DR-1355Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Ice Storm
1995-06-26DR-1058TornadoTornadoes, Severe Storms and Flooding
1990-05-18DR-866Severe StormSevere Storms, 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.

FEMA's modeled risk for Roger Mills County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Roger Mills County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $4.8 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 Roger Mills County (December 2025 release), by FEMA's rating, then score
HazardRisk ratingExpected annual lossModeled frequency
DroughtRelatively High$1.4M98 modeled event-days a year
WildfireRelatively Moderate$723Konce in about 74 years (modeled)
Ice StormRelatively Moderate$159Kabout once a year (modeled)
Strong WindRelatively Moderate$487K3.5 a year (modeled)
LandslideRelatively Low$4Konce in about 2 years (modeled)
Winter WeatherRelatively Low$43K9 a year (modeled)
HailRelatively Low$168K7.8 a year (modeled)
Cold WaveRelatively Low$393K2.7 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 Roger Mills County

  1. Beckham County 1,138
  2. Custer County 1,137
  3. Ellis County 1,021
  4. Roger Mills County 970
  5. Dewey County 951
  6. Wheeler County, TX 775
  7. Hemphill County, TX 648

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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