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Heavy rain in the United States, by state

The national record since 1996 · Heavy Rain

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 31,603 heavy rain records in the United States from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 1,104 a year since 2000. Iowa records the most (3,554), Hawaii the most per square mile. The deadliest storm in NOAA's record since 1996 is the April 19, 1997 heavy rain in Federated States of Micronesia: 19 deaths, 8 injuries and $3.7 million in damage in 2025 dollars.

What is a heavy rain? How the National Weather Service files it

Unusually large amount of rain which does not cause a Flash Flood or Flood event, but causes damage, e.g., roof collapse or other human/economic impact. Heavy Rain will no longer be acceptable as a means to record low-impact or isolated flood events.
National Weather Service Instruction 10-1605, Storm Data Preparation (July 26, 2021), Appendix A, entry 21

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

Heavy rain, 1996 to 2026

Records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 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
31,6031996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
1,104average
Deaths
248recorded
Damage, 2025 dollars
$2.5BStorm Events, as filed

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Which states have the most heavy rain records?

By count Iowa (3,554), Virginia (2,513), Hawaii (2,157) lead. Per 10,000 square miles Hawaii (3358), Puerto Rico (2246), Delaware (1842) lead; large states collect more records by covering more ground.

By count since 1996

  1. Iowa 3,554
  2. Virginia 2,513
  3. Hawaii 2,157
  4. California 2,046
  5. Florida 1,794
  6. Kansas 1,562
  7. New Jersey 1,160
  8. Missouri 1,045
  9. Texas 844
  10. North Carolina 821
  11. Colorado 792
  12. Puerto Rico 769
  13. Kentucky 744
  14. Maryland 744
  15. Arizona 702

Per 10,000 square miles

  1. Hawaii 3358
  2. Puerto Rico 2246
  3. Delaware 1842
  4. New Jersey 1577
  5. Rhode Island 1228
  6. Maryland 766
  7. Virginia 637
  8. Iowa 636
  9. Massachusetts 350
  10. Florida 334
  11. Connecticut 260
  12. West Virginia 210
  13. Kansas 191
  14. Kentucky 188
  15. North Carolina 169

Source: Land area: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles are not ranked per square mile.

Alabama: 49 per 10,000 sq miAlaska: 0.6 per 10,000 sq miArizona: 62 per 10,000 sq miArkansas: 93 per 10,000 sq miCalifornia: 131 per 10,000 sq miColorado: 76 per 10,000 sq miConnecticut: 260 per 10,000 sq miDelaware: 1,842 per 10,000 sq miFlorida: 334 per 10,000 sq miGeorgia: 118 per 10,000 sq miHawaii: 3,358 per 10,000 sq miIdaho: 32 per 10,000 sq miIllinois: 110 per 10,000 sq miIndiana: 74 per 10,000 sq miIowa: 636 per 10,000 sq miKansas: 191 per 10,000 sq miKentucky: 188 per 10,000 sq miLouisiana: 32 per 10,000 sq miMaine: 12 per 10,000 sq miMaryland: 766 per 10,000 sq miMassachusetts: 350 per 10,000 sq miMichigan: 29 per 10,000 sq miMinnesota: 84 per 10,000 sq miMississippi: 19 per 10,000 sq miMissouri: 152 per 10,000 sq miMontana: 32 per 10,000 sq miNebraska: 89 per 10,000 sq miNevada: 24 per 10,000 sq miNew Hampshire: 35 per 10,000 sq miNew Jersey: 1,577 per 10,000 sq miNew Mexico: 12 per 10,000 sq miNew York: 93 per 10,000 sq miNorth Carolina: 169 per 10,000 sq miNorth Dakota: 16 per 10,000 sq miOhio: 71 per 10,000 sq miOklahoma: 16 per 10,000 sq miOregon: 34 per 10,000 sq miPennsylvania: 127 per 10,000 sq miRhode Island: 1,228 per 10,000 sq miSouth Carolina: 94 per 10,000 sq miSouth Dakota: 11 per 10,000 sq miTennessee: 46 per 10,000 sq miTexas: 32 per 10,000 sq miUtah: 16 per 10,000 sq miVermont: 75 per 10,000 sq miVirginia: 637 per 10,000 sq miWashington: 36 per 10,000 sq miWest Virginia: 210 per 10,000 sq miWisconsin: 105 per 10,000 sq miWyoming: 5.4 per 10,000 sq mi
  • 0.6-29
  • 29-62
  • 62-105
  • 105-260
  • 260+
Heavy rain per 10,000 square miles by state since 1996. Each class holds about a fifth of the states; Alaska and Hawaii are drawn as insets, not to scale.

Every state

When is the rainy season?

Heavy rain by month, nationally. The busiest month is July.

The values, month by month

Jan 1,294 · Feb 1,385 · Mar 1,743 · Apr 1,469 · May 2,946 · Jun 3,945 · Jul 4,980 · Aug 4,693 · Sep 3,944 · Oct 2,163 · Nov 1,471 · Dec 1,570 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

The deadliest heavy rain records on record

The 10 storms with the most deaths since 1996, by state
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1997-04-19 Heavy RainPohnpei, FM Typhoon Isa (02W) was within the Guam Area of Responsibility from the 9th until the 21st. It was first reported as a tropical disturbance on the 9th. It became a tropical storm on the 12th. On the 12th it was near Pohnpei. Peak wind gust observed across the island were 60 mph. There were no report of death or injury. ... 19 8 $3.7M
2011-03-26 Heavy RainVerbena, Chilton County, AL Heavy rain reduced visibility and caused slick roadways along Interstate 65 near the Chilton and Autauga county line. As traffic moved slowly due to the thunderstorm and high volume of spring break travelers, a vehicle traveling south hydroplaned and crossed the median, hitting northbound traffic. The accident ... 5 4 $39K
2014-12-06 Heavy RainHemlock, Jackson County, WV A SUV traveling northbound on Interstate 77 lost control on wet pavement and veered into the median. This occurred at mile marker 143 between Ripley and Ravenswood. The vehicle crashed through a cable median and into the southbound traffic. A pickup truck traveling south hit the broadside of the SUV causing it to ... 5 2 $37K
2015-05-23 Heavy RainRichland Hills, Tarrant County, TX One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places, 2015-05-23 to 2015-05-24; the totals are the episode's. For several days, a stalled cold front, combined with abundant moisture from the Gulf of Mexico combined to produce widespread rain and thunderstorms in Texas. Several rounds of strong to severe thunderstorms occurred during a four day period, producing flash flooding, and numerous reports of large hail. Tornadoes ... 5 2 –
2021-07-07 Heavy RainFogarty, Logan County, IL As a result of heavy rainfall, a vehicle skidded off the northbound lane of I-55 south of Lincoln in Logan County and was struck by a semi travelling in the southbound lane at about 10:11pm CDT. Four of the five passengers in the vehicle were killed, while the other passenger sustained critical injuries. 4 1 –
1996-02-08 Heavy Rain2ne Petroleum, Ritchie County, WV A tragedy unfolded on a family farm along Goose Creek, thatdevastated a close-knit rural community. A 67 year oldgrandfather crossed his concrete low water bridge just aftersunset in a pickup truck. He was getting his 17 year oldgranddaughter from her home, so he could take her to his house on the other side of the ... 4 0 $9K
2013-10-14 Heavy RainTiffin, Eastland County, TX One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. A 43 year old male was killed in Wise County when a semi jackknifed on a wet road and hit the oncoming car the male was driving. A 26 year old male was killed in Falls County when his car lost control on a curve in a heavy downpour and slid into an oncoming tractor-trailor. A 65 year old female was killed in Tarrant ... 4 0 $171K
2000-02-10 Heavy RainLake Arrowhead, San Bernardino County, CA One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. The wettest rain storm in 16 months caused mudslides and flooding in Orange and San Bernardino Counties. Highways and city streets were flooded for 30 minutes to three hours and contributed directly to several fatal accidents. High winds blew down power lines in the Apple Valley area. The combination of rain soaked ... 3 8 $1.2M
2012-06-24 Tropical Storm Debby · Heavy RainEloise, Polk County, FL One storm episode: 3 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Tropical Storm Debby lingered for several days over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico and caused high winds and heavy rain before making landfall near Steinhatchee, FL on the 26th. A tropical storm warning was in effect for Levy, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, and Sarastota counties from 10 AM ... 3 4 –
2009-11-20 Heavy RainLavon, Collin County, TX A car hydroplanned on SH 78 just south of SH 205 causing the head-on collision of two cars. The collision resulted in the death of three adults and injured three others; including a toddler. The injuries to all three were nonlife-threatening and mostly consisted of broken bones. 3 3 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed, summed over each storm in each state (one episode, or a named storm filed by several offices); names from FEMA declaration titles.

The costliest heavy rain records since 1993

The 8 most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1998-05-01 Heavy RainCountywide, San Joaquin County, CA 0 0 $362M
2005-01-07 Heavy RainCountywide, Ventura County, CA One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $317M
2005-01-07 Heavy RainDevore, San Bernardino County, CA One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $199M
1998-05-01 Heavy RainHanford, Kings County, CA One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $198M
2005-02-18 Heavy RainChino, San Bernardino County, CA One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $151M
2007-12-02 Heavy RainPort Orchard, Kitsap County, WA One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places, 2007-12-02 to 2007-12-03; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $98M
1998-02-01 Heavy RainBakersfield, Kern County, CA One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $74M
2006-04-02 Heavy RainCountywide, Madera County, CA One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $67M

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

What the record files under heavy rain

NOAA event types in this group
Event typeRecordsYearsKilledDamage
Heavy Rain31,6031996-2026248$2.5B

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, event types as defined in NWS Instruction 10-1605.

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