New York high wind and dust storms
Every recorded high wind record since 1996 · 62 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 4,845 high wind and dust records in New York from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 161 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the October 29, 2012 high wind: 29 deaths, 4 injuries and $2.7 million in damage in 2025 dollars across 15 records. New York ranks 6th of 52 states and territories by count and 9th of 51 per square mile.
High wind and dust storms in New York, 1996 to 2026
Wind 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
- 4,8451996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 161average
- Deaths
- 65153 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $322Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2019415 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 high wind and dust records common in New York?
New York averages about 161 high wind and dust records a year since 2000, 6th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2019 (415). Per 10,000 square miles of land, New York records 1028 high wind and dust records since 1996, 9th of 51 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 York have the most high wind and dust records?
Per square mile, Queens County leads New York: 94 days with a high wind record since 1996, 864.6 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Suffolk County has the most wind records (380 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 the windy season in New York?
New York's high wind and dust records by month. The busiest month is December (814 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 766 · Feb 785 · Mar 623 · Apr 358 · May 99 · Jun 13 · Jul 16 · Aug 63 · Sep 198 · Oct 541 · Nov 569 · Dec 814 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest high wind and dust records in New York?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-10-29 | High WindNassau County · forecast zone Southern Nassau One storm episode: 15 records in 9 places; the totals are the episode's. Post Tropical Storm Sandy was the costliest natural disaster in Southeast New York. Tropical Storm Sandy formed in the Caribbean Sea on October 22. After drifting slowly southwest on October 23, Sandy turned to the north and intensified to a hurricane on October 24, just before making landfall in Jamaica. Hurricane ... | 70 kt wind | 29 | 4 | $2.7M |
| 1997-03-06 | High WindQueens County · forecast zone Queens One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. As a large and intense low pressure system moved from Kentucky east-northeast just north of New York City and across Eastern Massachusetts, it caused high winds. Winds gusted over 60 MPH at many locations. They knocked down trees and power lines on houses and streets.In Laurelton of Queens, a 75 foot tall maple tree ... | 5 | 9 | – | |
| 1996-10-19 | High WindWestchester County · forecast zone Southern Westchester One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. On Friday October 18th, a strong low pressure system developed on a cold front over the DelMarVa Peninsula. With a high pressure system in place across Northern New England, the low intensified as it moved slowly off the Southern New Jersey Coast on Saturday, the 19th.As the difference in pressures increased, strong ... | 3 | 0 | – | |
| 2002-09-11 | High WindBronx County · forecast zone Bronx One storm episode: 2 records; the totals are the episode's. A strong pressure gradient developed between Hurricane Gustav, which intensified as it moved offshore, and a high pressure system, which built southeast. High winds quickly developed behind a strong cold front that trailed from a low pressure system over Northeast New England around 10:00 am EDT.Wind speeds were ... | 1 | 7 | – | |
| 2009-02-12 | High WindRichmond County · forecast zone Richmond (Staten Is.) One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. An intense area of low pressure over the Eastern Great Lakes on the morning of February 12, tracked northeast and up into the Canadian Maritimes by evening. High winds developed near daybreak, right behind the cold front, and continued through the day. The strongest winds occurred during the morning and appeared to be ... | 50 kt wind | 1 | 6 | – |
| 2000-12-12 | High WindRockland County · forecast zone Northern Westchester One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. High winds developed rapidly in an unstable air mass following the passage of a strong cold front across the area. Several measured peak wind gusts were at least 58 mph. They were responsible for causing 1 death and at least 6 injuries, as follows: At 9:05 am, a tree fell through a car wind shield and injured 1 person ... | 50 kt wind | 1 | 6 | – |
| 2008-03-20 | Strong WindRockland County · forecast zone Northern Westchester A tree fell on a moving car traveling south on Furnace Dock Road, in Cortlandt Westchester County, killing the driver and casing minor injuries to 2 passengers. | 40 kt wind | 1 | 2 | $7K |
| 2003-11-13 | High WindOntario County · forecast zone Ontario One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. Deep low pressure tracked across southern Ontario and brought strong, damaging winds to the entire area. The winds downed trees and power lines. Over 100,000 customers were left without power. The falling trees and poles damaged homes and automobiles. Specific reports of damage were received from Shortsville, ... | 52 kt wind | 1 | 2 | – |
| 2014-07-30 | Dust DevilCalverton, Suffolk County Low level instability and convergence along a sea breeze front might have produced a dust devil that resulted in the death of 1 Sky Diver, and injured another. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-10-31 | Strong WindUlster County · forecast zone Eastern Ulster One storm episode: 18 records in 14 places; the totals are the episode's. A very potent low pressure system brought widespread strong winds to much of eastern New York on Halloween (October 31), 2025. Widespread gusts of 30 to nearly 50 mph were common especially during the evening and late evening hours. Numerous reports of downed trees were reported to NWS Albany wherein traffic patterns ... | 35 kt wind | 1 | 1 | – |
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 high wind and dust records in New York
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-12-09 | High WindJefferson County · forecast zone Jefferson One storm episode: 6 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. | 50 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $140M |
| 2002-02-01 | High WindErie County · forecast zone Erie One storm episode: 14 records in 14 places; the totals are the episode's. | 55 kt wind | 0 | 2 | $9.8M |
| 1997-03-06 | High WindSchenectady County · forecast zone Eastern Schenectady | 0 | 1 | $7.4M | |
| 2019-10-31 | High WindErie County · forecast zone Northern Erie One storm episode: 9 records in 8 places; the totals are the episode's. | 52 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $5.8M |
| 1999-09-16 | Hurricane Floyd · High WindUlster County · forecast zone Western Ulster One storm episode: 10 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $5.7M | |
| 2008-01-09 | High WindMonroe County · forecast zone Monroe One storm episode: 8 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 64 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $4.4M |
| 2017-03-08 | High WindMonroe County · forecast zone Monroe One storm episode: 7 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 62 kt wind | 0 | 8 | $4.2M |
| 2001-02-10 | High WindWayne County · forecast zone Wayne One storm episode: 9 records in 9 places; the totals are the episode's. | 64 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $4.0M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are high wind and dust records becoming more frequent in New York?
New York'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 York | United States | New York's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 564 | 14,026 | 4.0% |
| 2000s | 1,213 | 37,254 | 3.3% |
| 2010s | 1,715 | 41,748 | 4.1% |
| 2020-26 | 1,353 | 36,300 | 3.7% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent high wind and dust records in New York
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-26 | Strong WindColumbia County · forecast zone Western Columbia | 36 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $2K |
| 2026-06-18 | Strong WindWashington County · forecast zone Southern Washington | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $22K |
| 2026-06-18 | Strong WindWashington County · forecast zone Northern Washington | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $2K |
| 2026-06-18 | Strong WindSchenectady County · forecast zone Eastern Schenectady | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | $2K |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindDutchess County · forecast zone Eastern Dutchess | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindWashington County · forecast zone Southern Washington | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindUlster County · forecast zone Western Ulster | 37 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindGreene County · forecast zone Eastern Greene | 40 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindSchenectady County · forecast zone Eastern Schenectady | 45 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindWashington County · forecast zone Northern Washington | 37 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindWarren County · forecast zone Northern Warren | 42 kt wind | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-03-16 | Strong WindWarren County · forecast zone Southeast Warren | 47 kt wind | 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.
Next
- Queens County: the county's whole recordThe New York county with the most high wind and dust records per square mile
- High wind and dust storms across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
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