PlainHazard

Sleet

NOAA Storm Events type · 872 records since 1997 · 30 states and territories

The National Weather Service defines sleet as: "Sleet accumulations meeting or exceeding locally/regionally defined warning criteria (typical value is 1/2 inch or more)." NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 872 sleet records from 1997 through June 30, 2026, the most in North Carolina (137), with 4 deaths recorded.

How the National Weather Service files sleet

Sleet accumulations meeting or exceeding locally/regionally defined warning criteria (typical value is 1/2 inch or more). The Storm Data preparer should include in the narrative the times that sleet accumulation began, met criteria, and ended.
National Weather Service Instruction 10-1605, Storm Data Preparation (July 26, 2021), Appendix A, entry 42

Source: National Weather Service Instruction 10-1605. Read the instruction (PDF).

Sleet, 1997 to 2026

Records per year (2026 to June 30, 2026).

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $10 million
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • $10 billion or more, or 1,000 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
8721997 to June 30, 2026
Deaths
419 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$6.1Mas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Counties with a record
429of 3,266

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026. Search the record at NCEI.

Where do sleet records happen?

States

  1. North Carolina 137
  2. Mississippi 105
  3. New Jersey 76
  4. Texas 70
  5. Illinois 53
  6. Missouri 49
  7. Pennsylvania 48
  8. Alabama 38
  9. Michigan 35
  10. Maine 34
  11. South Carolina 33
  12. Louisiana 33
  13. Kentucky 27
  14. Georgia 27
  15. Kansas 22

Counties

  1. Aroostook County, ME 11
  2. Piscataquis County, ME 9
  3. Mitchell County, NC 8
  4. Burke County, NC 8
  5. Avery County, NC 8
  6. Yancey County, NC 7
  7. Rutherford County, NC 7
  8. Caldwell County, NC 7
  9. Alexander County, NC 7
  10. Penobscot County, ME 7

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (forecast-zone records count on every county the zone covers).

When do sleet records happen?

68% of its sleet records since 1997 fell in January and February. The busiest month is January.

The values, month by month

Jan 339 · Feb 255 · Mar 146 · Apr 3 · May 0 · Jun 0 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 2 · Nov 13 · Dec 114 (records).

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

The deadliest sleet records

The sleet records with the most deaths
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2022-02-02 SleetKimble County, TX · forecast zone Kimble There was 0.3 to 0.5 of an inch of ice/sleet across Kimble County. Also on February 3rd around 9 PM , there was 1 death and 6 injuries due to a crash on icy road conditions, 8 miles southwest of London on US 377. 1 6 –
2008-02-21 SleetReynolds County, MO · forecast zone Reynolds Another winter storm dropped freezing rain, sleet and some light snow across Central, Southeast, and East Central Missouri starting during the early morning hours on the 21st and finally ending shortly after midnight on the 22nd. Enough freezing rain fell across Madison, St. Francois, and Ste. Genevieve counties to ... 1 1 –
2018-01-01 SleetLive Oak County, TX · forecast zone Live Oak A seven vehicle accident occurred near an icy overpass on Interstate 37 at Highway 59 in Live Oak County. A 21 year old man was killed in the accident. 1 0 $88K
2008-02-21 SleetOsage County, MO · forecast zone Osage Another winter storm dropped freezing rain, sleet and some light snow across Central, Southeast, and East Central Missouri starting during the early morning hours on the 21st and finally ending shortly after midnight on the 22nd. Enough freezing rain fell across Madison, St. Francois, and Ste. Genevieve counties to ... 1 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, deaths direct and indirect as filed.

The most recent sleet records

To June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-04-05 SleetAroostook County, ME · forecast zone Northeast Aroostook 0 0 –
2026-04-05 SleetAroostook County, ME · forecast zone Northwest Aroostook 0 0 –
2026-03-16 SleetNeshoba County, MS · forecast zone Neshoba 0 0 –
2026-03-16 SleetAdams County, MS · forecast zone Adams 0 0 –
2026-03-16 SleetHinds County, MS · forecast zone Hinds 0 0 –
2026-03-16 SleetJefferson County, MS · forecast zone Jefferson 0 0 –
2026-03-16 SleetRankin County, MS · forecast zone Rankin 0 0 –
2026-03-11 SleetAroostook County, ME · forecast zone Southeast Aroostook 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

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