Iowa natural disasters

The state's storm and disaster record · population 3,189,039 · 99 counties and county equivalents

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 69,606 storm events in Iowa since 1950, 61,831 of them since 1996 when every event type began to be recorded, and the Storm Prediction Center counts 3,099 tornadoes in the state since 1950. The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events (17,986). In NOAA's storm record since 1950, the deadliest tornado day in Iowa was May 15, 1968: tornadoes and the storms that came with them killed 18 people in the state; the deadliest of them in Iowa, the Charles City tornado, killed 13 (SPC). FEMA has made 79 declarations for Iowa since 1953, 76 for natural hazards; 73 were major disasters.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm events recorded in Iowa 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 $1 million
$1 million or more
$10 million or more
$100 million or more, or 10 deaths
$1 billion or more, or 100 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 events recorded: 69,6061950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded: 2233,433 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars: $16.4Bas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes (SPC): 3,0991950 to 2025
FEMA declarations: 7973 major disasters

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026 (file revision 20260918); tornado count: NOAA Storm Prediction Center, 1950-2025; damage in 2025 dollars (BLS CPI-U). Search the record at NCEI.

What natural disasters happen in Iowa?

By NOAA's records, Iowa's most frequent hazards are severe thunderstorm wind events (17,986), hail reports (15,950), winter storm records (10,746); the deadliest are tornadoes (100 deaths). Each hazard is counted over the years NOAA has recorded it everywhere: tornadoes since 1950, hail and thunderstorm wind since 1955, everything else since 1996. Open a hazard for its years, months, counties and worst events.

Iowa: records by hazard to June 30, 2026
Hazard	Records	Last 10 years	Killed	Injured	Damage	Counties
Severe thunderstorm wind	17,986	4,409	21	549	$894M	99 of 99
Hail	15,950	3,439	4	134	$890M	99 of 99
Winter storms	10,746	2,812	47	99	$217M	99 of 99
Floods	7,383	1,713	18	137	$5.2B	99 of 99
Heavy rain	3,554	1,507	0	0	$2.4M	96 of 99
Tornadoes	3,501	759	100	2,341	$8.1B	99 of 99
High wind and dust storms	2,870	622	4	34	$123M	99 of 99
Extreme cold	2,748	1,100	7	0	$143M	99 of 99
Drought	2,602	1,575	0	0	$754M	99 of 99
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds	990	323	11	36	$612K	96 of 99
Heat	888	351	4	50	$9.4M	99 of 99
Lightning	366	49	7	46	$32M	88 of 99
Wildfires	22	6	0	7	$2.1M	14 of 99

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: every record counted once in the state; "last 10 years" is 2017-2026 (2026 to June 30, 2026).

What were the deadliest disasters in Iowa?

The storms with the most deaths since 1950, from the National Weather Service's own entries. NOAA files one storm as several records when it crosses forecast zones and counties or changes type, and groups them under one episode; each row here is an episode, with its totals and the narrative of its deadliest record. Before 1996 tornado records carry no episode and stand alone. The narrative says what happened: some deaths the National Weather Service files under a weather type had another cause beside the weather.

Iowa: the 10 storm episodes with the most deaths
Date	Record	Character	Killed	Injured	Damage
1968-05-15	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Charles City, killed 13 (SPC) · TornadoFloyd County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (8, in 6 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F5 24.7 mi x 600 yd	18	619	$25M step
2008-05-25	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Parkersburg, killed 9 (SPC) · TornadoAplington, Butler County One storm episode: 21 records in 12 places; the totals are the episode's. A very intense upper low was located over the southwest U.S. and lifted northeast during the weekend of the 24th into the morning of the 26th. The seasons first strong push of deep moisture moved into Iowa on the 25th with surface temperatures warming into the mid 80s and dew points surging into the upper 60s to low ...	EF5 15.64 mi x 1,235 yd	9	70	$139M
2022-03-05	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Des Moines, killed 6 (SPC) · TornadoMacksburg, Madison County One storm episode: 26 records in 12 places; the totals are the episode's. On March 5, 2022 a total of 15 tornadoes occurred across the state of Iowa as a warm front lifted across the area. Supercells initially developed across southwest Iowa in the vicinity of the triple point of the surface low with strong, rotating updrafts. Longevity was initially lacking with the storms, producing ...	EF4 24.86 mi x 900 yd	7	6	$225M
1966-10-14	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Belmond, killed 6 (SPC) · TornadoWright County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (11, in 9 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F5 9.7 mi x 1,000 yd	6	172	$25M step
1978-09-16	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Melbourne to Oakland Acres, killed 6 (SPC) · TornadoPoweshiek County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (5, in 4 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F3 4.1 mi x 200 yd	6	46	$2.5M step
1979-06-28	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Manson, killed 3 (SPC) · TornadoCalhoun County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (14, in 9 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F4 10.8 mi x 333 yd	5	70	$25M step
2024-05-21	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Nodaway to Greenfield, killed 5 (SPC) · TornadoFisk, Adair County One storm episode: 14 records in 9 places; the totals are the episode's. PLEASE NOTE, for hail, wind, heavy rain and flooding, please see separate Storm Data entry for May 20-22. Numerous tornadoes occurred on this day with numerous injuries and four fatalities at Greenfield in Adair County. Multiple rounds of thunderstorms brought torrential rainfall, damaging winds, hail and destructive ...	EF4 15.74 mi x 1,100 yd	5	39	$40M
2008-06-11	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Little Sioux to Moorhead, killed 4 (SPC) · TornadoBlencoe, Monona County One storm episode: 7 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. A very strong and unseasonably cold upper level low pressure system that was tracking across the northern plains brought a strong low level jet to the region during the early morning hours of June 11th. The warm and unstable air that worked north into the region helped spawn early morning severe thunderstorms across ...	EF3 7.49 mi x 440 yd	4	48	–
1991-05-17	HailGreene County Every hail record filed in the state that day (2, in 2 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	1.75 in hail	4	0	–
1984-06-07	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Eddyville, killed 2 in the state (3 on its whole track, SPC) · TornadoKeokuk County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (37, in 27 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F4 29 mi x 250 yd	3	91	$25M 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.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed in this state, summed over the records of each episode (EPISODE_ID); a forecast-zone record counts the zone's deaths once. A tornado's whole-track deaths (SPC), on the state's tornado page, can be higher when the track crossed a state line. Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest records in Iowa

Iowa: the 8 records with the most damage since 1993, 2025 dollars
Date	Record	Character	Injured	Damage
2008-06-01	FloodCenter Pt, Linn County		0	$1.0B
2008-06-01	FloodMinerva, Marshall County		0	$343M
2008-06-01	FloodKent County Park, Johnson County		0	$315M
2018-07-19	TornadoMarietta, Marshall County	EF3 8.41 mi x 1,200 yd	23	$235M
2018-07-19	TornadoPella, Marion County	EF3 5.11 mi x 800 yd	13	$141M
2012-07-01	DroughtKossuth County · forecast zone Kossuth		0	$116M
2019-04-01	FloodBartlett, Fremont County		0	$115M
2009-08-09	HailEldora, Hardin County	3.00 in hail	22	$103M

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 $250M, in the dollars of the day) holds: July 28, 1986 (tornado, Woodbury County); July 28, 1986 (tornado, Monona County).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars with the BLS CPI-U. BLS consumer price index.

Which counties in Iowa have the most records?

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950 attributed to each county (forecast-zone records count on every county the zone covers).

Every county in Iowa

Billion-dollar disasters in Iowa

NOAA counted 86 weather or climate disasters from 1980-2024 that cost at least $1 billion (adjusted for inflation) and affected Iowa, led by severe storm (57). The most recent: Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather (2024); Central and Northeast Severe Weather (2024); Upper Midwest Flooding (2024).

Iowa: billion-dollar disasters by type, 1980-2024
Type	Events	Total cost (NOAA's range)
Severe Storm	57	$20.0B-$50.0B
Drought	16	$10.0B-$20.0B
Flooding	8	$20.0B-$50.0B
Winter Storm	3	$100M-$250M
Freeze	2	$5M-$100M

Every one of the 86, newest first

Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather2024
Central and Northeast Severe Weather2024
Upper Midwest Flooding2024
Central and Eastern Severe Weather2024
Central, Southern, Eastern Severe Weather2024
Central and Southern Tornado Outbreak2024
Southern/Eastern/Northwestern Drought and Heat Wave2024
Northeastern Flooding and North Central Severe Weather2023
Central Severe Weather2023
Rockies Hail Storms and Central and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central Severe Weather2023
Central Severe Weather2023
Central and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Southern/Midwestern Drought and Heatwave2023
Central Tornado Outbreak and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central and Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2022
Central Severe Weather2022
Southern Severe Weather2022
Western/Central Drought and Heat Wave2022
Midwest Derecho and Tornado Outbreak2021
Central Severe Storms2021
Ohio Valley Hail Storms2021
Western Drought and Heat Wave2021
Central Severe Weather - Derecho2020
Central Severe Weather2020
Western/Central Drought and Heat Wave2020
North Central and Ohio Valley Hail Storms and Severe Weather2020
Rockies, Central and Northeast Tornadoes and Severe Weather2019
Central Severe Weather2019
Mississippi River, Midwest and Southern Flooding2019
Missouri River and North Central Flooding2019
Central and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather2018
Central and Eastern Severe Weather2018
Central and Northeast Severe Weather2018
Midwest Severe Weather2017
Midwest Severe Weather2017
North Central Severe Weather and Tornadoes2017
Midwest Tornado Outbreak2017
Central/Southeast Tornado Outbreak2017
Central and Northeast Severe Weather2015
Southern Plains Tornadoes2015
Midwest/Ohio Valley Severe Weather2015
Rockies/Central Plains Severe Weather2014
Rockies/Midwest/Eastern Severe Weather2014
Central Severe Weather2014
Midwest/Plains/East Tornadoes2013
Western/Plains Drought/Heat Wave2013
Midwest Tornadoes2012
U.S. Drought/Heat Wave2012
Midwest/Southeast Severe Weather2011
Rockies and Midwest Derecho2011
Missouri River flooding2011
Southeast/Midwest Tornadoes2011
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes and Derecho2011
Mississippi River flooding2011
Southern Plains/Southwest Drought and Heat Wave2011
Midwest/Northeast Severe Storms and Flooding2010
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes2009
Midwest/Mid-Atlantic Severe Weather2008
Midwest Tornadoes and Severe Weather2008
Midwest Flooding2008
Spring Freeze2007
Midwest Tornadoes2006
Midwest/Plains/Southeast Drought2006
Midwest Drought2005
Severe Storms, Hail, Tornadoes2004
Midwest/Plains Severe Weather2003
Severe Storms/Tornadoes2003
Western/Central Drought/Heat Wave2003
North Central Severe Weather2001
Midwest/Ohio Valley Hail and Tornadoes2001
Western/Central/Southeast Drought/Heat Wave2000
Central and Eastern Severe Storms and Flooding1998
Northern Plains and Great Lakes Derecho, Tornadoes1998
Midwest/Plains Tornadoes1994
Northern Plains and Ohio Valley Severe Weather1993
Midwest Flooding1993
U.S. Drought1991
Northern Plains Drought1989
U.S. Drought/Heat Wave1988
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1985
Freeze/Cold Wave1983
Severe Storms1982
Midwest/Plains/Southeast Tornadoes1982
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Winter Storm, Cold Wave1982
Central/Eastern Drought/Heat Wave1980

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters, state summary for Iowa, 1980-2024 (NCEI's last update; the product is archived). A disaster that affected several states counts in each. NCEI billion-dollar disasters.

Federal disaster declarations in Iowa

FEMA has made 79 declarations for Iowa since 1953: 73 major disasters, 6 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. The most common incident types are severe storm (34), flood (30), tornado (5).

1950s 3
1960s 7
1970s 7
1980s 3
1990s 13
2000s 11
2010s 23
2020s 12

The 15 most recent declarations in Iowa
Declared	Number	Type	Title	Areas named
2026-09-01	DR-4942	Severe Storm	Severe Storms and Flooding	4
2025-05-21	DR-4870	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	4
2024-06-24	DR-4796	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes	29
2024-05-24	DR-4784	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding	29
2024-05-14	DR-4779	Tornado	Severe Storms and Tornadoes	9
2023-08-25	DR-4732	Flood	Flooding	7
2022-02-23	DR-4642	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes	25
2020-09-10	DR-4561	Severe Storm	Severe Storms and Straight-Line Winds	1
2020-08-17	DR-4557	Severe Storm	Severe Storms	23
2020-03-23	DR-4483	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	101
2020-03-13	EM-3524	Biological	Covid-19	1
2020-03-13	EM-3480	Biological	Covid-19	101
2019-04-29	DR-4430	Flood	Severe Storms and Flooding	1
2019-03-23	DR-4421	Flood	Severe Storms and Flooding	80
2018-09-12	DR-4392	Severe Storm	Severe Storm and Tornadoes	4

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.

Flood insurance claims in Iowa

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $357 million on 14,688 claims in 90 Iowa counties. Claims count insured losses only.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk across Iowa's counties

How FEMA's National Risk Index rates Iowa's counties overall: a model of expected future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of events.

Relatively Moderate 5
Relatively Low 30
Very Low 64

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.