Wayne County, Iowa

What hazards hit Wayne County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 93 since 1963. 47% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1963 fell in June and July. 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 Wayne County had?

NOAA records 33 tornadoes in Wayne County from 1953 to 2024, the strongest rated F4, with 0 deaths and 7 injuries recorded in the county. That is 45th of 99 Iowa counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. 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 33 tornadoes whose track touched Wayne County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 33, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 3 people, 0 of them in Wayne 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 Wayne County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the April 30, 2024 tornado ($235,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

This tornado began northwest of the intersection of Raccoon Road and 150th street. The tornado almost immediately impacted a large implement shed and an older wooden barn. The shed was completely destroyed and thrown northeast across 150th street into an adjacent farm field. The barn collapsed downward and shifted to the southeast. The tornado continued northeast through mostly empty cropland and rolling terrain. Some damage was done toward the end of the path near the intersection of Timber Road and 165th street with downed trees and minor outbuilding damage.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1170120)

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 Wayne 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?

47% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1963 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

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

Federal disaster declarations for Wayne County

FEMA's register lists 15 declarations that include Wayne County: 13 major disasters, 2 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (6) and flood (5).

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 Wayne County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Wayne County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $5.9 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 Wayne County

1. Appanoose County 563
2. Clarke County 549
3. Wayne County 493
4. Lucas County 490
5. Decatur County 476
6. Monroe County 405
7. Mercer County, MO 287
8. Putnam County, MO 265

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
• Severe thunderstorm wind in IowaThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, 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 Wayne CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Wayne County's FEMA declarations (CSV)15 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis