Storm hazard · NOAA Storm Events Database
Heavy Rain in the United States
National statistics for heavy rain events from the NOAA Storm Events Database (2015–2025): how often they occur, where they hit hardest, and the human and property toll.
- 16,110
- Events recorded
- 80
- Fatalities
- $149.9M
- Property damage
- 51
- States affected
How dangerous are Heavy Rain events in the U.S.?
NOAA's Storm Events Database has catalogued 16,110 heavy rain events across 51 states and territories between 2015 and 2025. The cumulative human toll is 80 fatalities and 173 injuries, and the financial footprint reaches $220.9M in combined property ($149.9M) and crop ($70.9M) damage. On a per-fatality basis this places heavy rain events at a high severity tier relative to other tracked hazard types in the NOAA catalog.
Geographic exposure skews toward a small cluster of frequently-hit states. The three states absorbing the largest share of events are IA (2,554 events, 0 fatalities), VA (1,630 events, 0 fatalities), CA (1,536 events, 6 fatalities), a mix of underlying hazard climatology and how many people live in the exposed corridor. At the other end, states such as OK, VI, VT report far fewer events, a meaningfully lower-frequency pattern there, though local vigilance still matters.
Annual totals swing noticeably from year to year. The peak year on record was 2022, logging 2,094 events and $5.6M in property damage in a single calendar year. The most recent year in the dataset is 2025 with 1,264 events recorded. Across the full 11-year window, annual event counts reflect seasonal climate cycles and, for some years, longer climate-driven shifts in frequency.
How to interpret this data
NOAA storm event data is filed by local National Weather Service forecast offices, so reporting intensity can vary by jurisdiction and should be interpreted alongside FEMA disaster declarations for a fuller picture.
For household and business preparedness, this state-and-year view should be paired with local-level FEMA National Risk Index ratings, flood-zone maps where applicable, and up-to-date NWS watch/warning information, population exposure and asset value matter as much as raw event frequency for estimating real-world risk.
Heavy Rain by State
| # | State | Events | Fatalities | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iowa IA | 2,554 | 0 | $292.0K |
| 2 | Virginia VA | 1,630 | 0 | $2.5M |
| 3 | California CA | 1,536 | 6 | $87.8M |
| 4 | Hawaii HI | 1,103 | 4 | $0 |
| 5 | Kansas KS | 1,069 | 1 | $57.0K |
| 6 | Florida FL | 1,059 | 2 | $200.0K |
| 7 | Missouri MO | 838 | 0 | $115.0K |
| 8 | Colorado CO | 600 | 0 | $67.0K |
| 9 | North Carolina NC | 423 | 2 | $88.5K |
| 10 | Minnesota MN | 328 | 2 | $293.0K |
| 11 | New Jersey NJ | 284 | 0 | $0 |
| 12 | Nebraska NE | 284 | 0 | $0 |
| 13 | Arkansas AR | 270 | 2 | $1.0M |
| 14 | Montana MT | 266 | 0 | $51.0K |
| 15 | Illinois IL | 263 | 4 | $540.0K |
| 16 | Arizona AZ | 260 | 2 | $2.0M |
| 17 | Wisconsin WI | 247 | 2 | $645.5K |
| 18 | Nevada NV | 245 | 7 | $882.0K |
| 19 | Maryland MD | 235 | 0 | $0 |
| 20 | Delaware DE | 230 | 0 | $0 |
| 21 | Kentucky KY | 228 | 1 | $851.0K |
| 22 | Texas TX | 221 | 13 | $96.0K |
| 23 | Pennsylvania PA | 216 | 0 | $0 |
| 24 | Georgia GA | 204 | 3 | $307.0K |
| 25 | New York NY | 156 | 0 | $16.0K |
| 26 | Tennessee TN | 136 | 7 | $61.0K |
| 27 | Idaho ID | 124 | 0 | $1.6M |
| 28 | South Carolina SC | 122 | 4 | $1.0M |
| 29 | West Virginia WV | 93 | 3 | $111.0K |
| 30 | Oregon OR | 88 | 3 | $5.9M |
| 31 | American Samoa AS | 85 | 0 | $2.5M |
| 32 | Puerto Rico PR | 82 | 0 | $49.0K |
| 33 | Indiana IN | 74 | 0 | $0 |
| 34 | Alabama AL | 74 | 0 | $1.0K |
| 35 | Washington WA | 72 | 2 | $40.6M |
| 36 | New Mexico NM | 65 | 5 | $0 |
| 37 | Ohio OH | 64 | 1 | $23.0K |
| 38 | Louisiana LA | 48 | 1 | $0 |
| 39 | Michigan MI | 44 | 1 | $70.0K |
| 40 | South Dakota SD | 41 | 1 | $0 |
| 41 | Mississippi MS | 40 | 0 | $154.0K |
| 42 | Utah UT | 39 | 0 | $22.0K |
| 43 | North Dakota ND | 19 | 0 | $0 |
| 44 | Rhode Island RI | 18 | 0 | $0 |
| 45 | Massachusetts MA | 11 | 0 | $50.0K |
| 46 | Connecticut CT | 6 | 0 | $0 |
| 47 | Wyoming WY | 4 | 0 | $10.0K |
| 48 | Alaska AK | 4 | 1 | $0 |
| 49 | Oklahoma OK | 4 | 0 | $0 |
| 50 | U.S. Virgin Islands VI | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| 51 | Vermont VT | 2 | 0 | $0 |
Heavy Rain by Year
| Year | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,264 | 12 | 54 | $1.8M |
| 2024 | 918 | 3 | 2 | $528.0K |
| 2023 | 875 | 3 | 1 | $372.0K |
| 2022 | 2,094 | 6 | 4 | $5.6M |
| 2021 | 1,362 | 9 | 7 | $1.7M |
| 2020 | 1,450 | 2 | 2 | $1.9M |
| 2019 | 1,441 | 6 | 1 | $1.0M |
| 2018 | 1,924 | 11 | 19 | $3.2M |
| 2017 | 1,469 | 5 | 1 | $118.0M |
| 2016 | 1,795 | 8 | 9 | $4.4M |
| 2015 | 1,518 | 15 | 73 | $11.4M |
Related Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many heavy rain events have occurred in the US?
Which states are most affected by heavy rain events?
How much damage do heavy rain events cause?
What year had the most heavy rain events?
How dangerous are heavy rain events?
Which states have the fewest heavy rain events?
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (2015-2025) NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (2015-2025) For informational purposes only
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Every figure on PlainHazard is rendered directly from FEMA federal disaster data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on FEMA federal disaster data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or national statistics report, or report a data error.