New Hampshire winter storms
Every recorded winter storm record since 1996 · 10 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 2,612 winter storm records in New Hampshire from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 84 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the December 27, 2007 winter weather in Cheshire County: 1 death, 3 injuries and $43,000 in damage in 2025 dollars. New Hampshire ranks 39th of 51 states and territories by count and 9th of 50 per square mile.
Winter storms in New Hampshire, 1996 to 2026
Winter storm 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
- 2,6121996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 84average
- Deaths
- 721 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $109Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2001205 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 winter storm records common in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire averages about 84 winter storm records a year since 2000, 39th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2001 (205). Per 10,000 square miles of land, New Hampshire records 2917 winter storm records since 1996, 9th of 50 states and territories by that measure.
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 New Hampshire have the most winter storm records?
Per square mile, Strafford County leads New Hampshire: 185 days with a winter storm record since 1996, 503.5 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Carroll County has the most winter storm records (408 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).
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 winter storm season in New Hampshire?
49% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The busiest month is January (664 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 664 · Feb 620 · Mar 495 · Apr 147 · May 23 · Jun 1 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 38 · Nov 124 · Dec 500 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest winter storm records in New Hampshire?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-12-27 | Winter WeatherCheshire County · forecast zone Cheshire A wintry mix of precipitation resulting in slick roads was a contributing factor in a traffic accident resulting in one fatality and three injuries (all indirect) in Cheshire County. | 1 | 3 | $43K | |
| 2026-04-20 | Winter WeatherGrafton County · forecast zone Northern Grafton A cold front swung through the region late on April 19th, causing temperatures to rapidly drop through the day on Sunday. Rain quickly changed to snow above 4,000 ft elevation, and strong winds caused wind chills to drop below freezing by the afternoon on the 19th. A man was caught unprepared for the conditions on ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1996-12-07 | Heavy SnowHillsborough County · forecast zone Hillsborough One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A low pressure system centered over Georgia at 7 AM on December 7th moved rapidly northeast across North Carolina. The intensifying system then moved about parallel to the Mid-Atlantic coast with its center reaching Plymouth County in southeastern Massachusetts during the early morning hours of December 8th, before ... | 1 | 0 | $2.8M | |
| 2024-01-07 | Winter StormGrafton County · forecast zone Northern Grafton Light to moderate snow began late in the evening on the 6th. A mesoscale snowband lifted north but never quite made it into the White Mountains. The result was only occasionally heavy snowfall. Snow ended quickly once surface winds veered to northwesterly. Snowfall totals ranged from 7 to 11 inches. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2022-11-20 | Winter WeatherGrafton County · forecast zone Northern Grafton A hiker planned to summit Mount Lafayette in the White Mountains on November 19-20th. The hiker didn't return to the trailhead as planned on Sunday and because of the harsh winter conditions a search party was immediately initiated that evening. Because of the harsh winter conditions bringing low visibility, blowing ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2022-06-18 | Winter WeatherCoos County · forecast zone Southern Coos A man who was attempting to hike in the high alpine zone of the Presidential Mountain range was unprepared for the extreme late season cold weather in June to include single digit wind chill values. The individual became cold, wet and unable to continue on the evening of June 18th. He was able to call for help, but ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2007-12-16 | Heavy SnowHillsborough County · forecast zone Eastern Hillsborough Two low pressure systems merged into a storm over eastern Massachusetts and produced strong winds and heavy snow across New Hampshire. One indirect fatality occurred when a car collided with a snow removal machine in Nashua. The driver of the car died from injuries sustained in the crash. | 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 winter storm records in New Hampshire
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-12-11 | Ice StormHillsborough County · forecast zone Eastern Hillsborough One storm episode: 3 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $49M | |
| 1998-01-07 | Ice StormCarroll County · forecast zone Northern Carroll One storm episode: 10 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 1 | $35M | |
| 2001-03-05 | Heavy SnowHillsborough County · forecast zone Hillsborough | 0 | 0 | $8.3M | |
| 2008-12-11 | Ice StormRockingham County · forecast zone Interior Rockingham One storm episode: 6 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $6.7M | |
| 1996-12-07 | Heavy SnowHillsborough County · forecast zone Hillsborough One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 0 | $2.8M | |
| 1998-01-07 | Ice StormCheshire County · forecast zone Cheshire | 0 | 0 | $1.8M | |
| 2001-03-09 | Heavy SnowCheshire County · forecast zone Cheshire | 0 | 0 | $833K | |
| 1996-01-12 | Heavy SnowStrafford County · forecast zone Strafford | 0 | 1 | $753K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are winter storm records becoming more frequent in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire'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.
| Decade | New Hampshire | United States | New Hampshire's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 415 | 32,893 | 1.3% |
| 2000s | 1,127 | 88,805 | 1.3% |
| 2010s | 699 | 103,626 | 0.7% |
| 2020-26 | 371 | 62,015 | 0.6% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent winter storm records in New Hampshire
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-20 | Winter WeatherGrafton County · forecast zone Northern Grafton | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | Winter StormHillsborough County · forecast zone Western And Central Hillsborough | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | Winter StormHillsborough County · forecast zone Eastern Hillsborough | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | Winter StormRockingham County · forecast zone Interior Rockingham | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | Winter StormStrafford County · forecast zone Strafford | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | BlizzardStrafford County · forecast zone Strafford | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | BlizzardRockingham County · forecast zone Interior Rockingham | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-23 | BlizzardRockingham County · forecast zone Coastal Rockingham | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-02-20 | Winter StormSullivan County · forecast zone Sullivan | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter StormCoos County · forecast zone Northern Coos | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter StormCoos County · forecast zone Southern Coos | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter StormCarroll County · forecast zone Northern Carroll | 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.
Federal disaster declarations for winter storm records in New Hampshire
FEMA has declared 17 disasters in New Hampshire for winter storm, counting its incident type and declarations that name snow or winter storm or ice storm or blizzard in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 9 were major disasters, the latest on July 10, 2024.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-07-10 | DR-4799 | Severe Winter Storm and Flooding | 5 |
| 2018-06-08 | DR-4371 | Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm | 3 |
| 2017-06-01 | DR-4316 | Severe Winter Storm | 2 |
| 2015-03-25 | DR-4209 | Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm | 3 |
| 2013-03-19 | DR-4105 | Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm | 8 |
| 2011-12-05 | DR-4049 | Severe Storm and Snowstorm | 2 |
| 2010-03-29 | DR-1892 | Severe Winter Storm | 6 |
| 2009-01-02 | DR-1812 | Severe Winter Storm | 10 |
| 2008-12-13 | EM-3297 | Severe Winter Storm | 10 |
| 2005-04-28 | EM-3211 | Record Snow | 5 |
| 2005-03-30 | EM-3208 | Record Snow | 5 |
| 2005-03-30 | EM-3207 | Record and/Or Near Record Snow | 9 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Strafford County: the county's whole recordThe New Hampshire county with the most winter storm records per square mile
- Winter storms across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in New HampshireTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in New Hampshire2,368 records
- Floods in New Hampshire1,048 records
- Hail in New Hampshire960 records