PlainHazard

Nebraska heat

Every recorded heat record since 1996 · 77 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 751 heat records in Nebraska from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 51 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the July 19, 1999 heat in Wayne County: 2 deaths and $5.8 million in damage in 2025 dollars. Nebraska ranks 25th of 51 states and territories by count and 33rd of 50 per square mile.

Heat in Nebraska, 1996 to 2026

Heat records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • 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
Records
7511996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
51average
Deaths
6135 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$16Mas filed
Busiest year
2011169 records

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

Are heat records common in Nebraska?

Nebraska averages about 51 heat records a year since 2000, 25th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2011 (169). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Nebraska records 98 heat records since 1996, 33rd of 50 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. New Jersey 2320
  2. 2. Delaware 1555
  3. 3. Maryland 1330
  4. 4. Oklahoma 685
  5. 5. Illinois 590
  6. 6. Mississippi 584
  7. 7. Louisiana 576
  8. 8. Missouri 547
  9. 9. Tennessee 540
  10. 10. Puerto Rico 537
  11. 33. Nebraska 98

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in Nebraska have the most heat records?

Per square mile, Sarpy County leads Nebraska: 28 days with a heat record since 1996, 117.6 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Otoe County has the most heat records (64 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Sarpy County 117.6 (28)
  2. Dakota County 98.4 (26)
  3. Douglas County 85.7 (28)
  4. Washington County 69.2 (42)
  5. Johnson County 66.5 (25)
  6. Nemaha County 63.8 (27)
  7. Pawnee County 60.3 (26)
  8. Dixon County 56.8 (28)
  9. Cass County 52.1 (29)
  10. Richardson County 48.9 (27)
  11. Otoe County 47.1 (64)
  12. Burt County 46.8 (23)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is the heat season in Nebraska?

83% of its heat records since 1996 fell in July and August. The busiest month is July (409 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 0 · Feb 0 · Mar 0 · Apr 0 · May 0 · Jun 124 · Jul 409 · Aug 215 · Sep 3 · Oct 0 · Nov 0 · Dec 0 (records).

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

What were the deadliest heat records in Nebraska?

Nebraska: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1999-07-19 HeatWayne County · forecast zone Wayne From July 19th through the 30th high temperatures over eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa reached 90 degrees or better all but a day or two, and even then highs were well into the 80s. In addition, overnight lows stayed mostly above 70 degrees. The high temperatures were accompanied by high humidities which caused ... 2 0 $5.8M
2012-06-27 HeatDouglas County and Washington County · forecast zone Douglas One of the first prolonged heat-wave episodes of the season sent around 45 people to local hospitals in the Omaha area due to heat exhaustion. The heat was also apparently responsible for one death as a Council Bluffs Iowa man was found dead after crashing his vehicle into a construction zone and then attempting to ... 1 45 –
1999-07-28 HeatDakota County · forecast zone Dakota Excessive heat occurred ..with heat indices above 120 degrees. Several cattle were lost, and a 68 year old woman died in an uncooled apartment in South Sioux City. 1 0 –
2023-08-19 Excessive HeatDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas For 7 days, the high temperature in Omaha was above 93. The highest observed temperature was 104 on August 24. The peak heat index reached at least 105 each day. The highest calculated heat index was a 117 on August 22. 1 0 –
2001-07-28 HeatDodge County · forecast zone Dodge A heat wave of which lasted over 1 week affected much of eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa from late July into early August. The heat was finally broken by a cold front that pushed afternoon temperatures down into the 80s on 8/09/01. During the heat wave, high temperatures were consistently in the mid to upper 90s ... 1 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest heat records in Nebraska

Nebraska: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1999-07-19 HeatWayne County · forecast zone Wayne 2 0 $5.8M
2005-07-22 HeatDouglas County and Washington County · forecast zone Douglas 0 0 $4.5M
2009-06-22 HeatHamilton County · forecast zone Hamilton One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $3.4M
2013-07-09 HeatPolk County · forecast zone Polk One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $2.5M

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

Are heat records becoming more frequent in Nebraska?

Nebraska's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

Heat: Nebraska and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadeNebraskaUnited StatesNebraska's share
1996-99324,3550.7%
2000s869,1630.9%
2010s39816,4452.4%
2020-2623526,7960.9%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent heat records in Nebraska

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-29 Excessive HeatDakota County · forecast zone Dakota 0 0 –
2026-06-29 HeatDixon County · forecast zone Dixon 0 0 –
2026-06-28 HeatRichardson County · forecast zone Richardson 0 0 –
2026-06-28 HeatGage County · forecast zone Gage 0 0 –
2026-06-28 HeatLancaster County · forecast zone Lancaster 0 0 –
2026-06-28 HeatSarpy County · forecast zone Sarpy 0 0 –
2026-06-28 HeatDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas 0 0 –
2025-08-15 Excessive HeatDixon County · forecast zone Dixon 0 0 –
2025-08-15 Excessive HeatDakota County · forecast zone Dakota 0 0 –
2025-08-08 Excessive HeatDakota County · forecast zone Dakota 0 0 –
2025-08-08 HeatDixon County · forecast zone Dixon 0 0 –
2025-07-29 Excessive HeatOtoe County · forecast zone Otoe 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

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