Texas winter storms
Every recorded winter storm record since 1996 · 254 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 8,005 winter storm records in Texas from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 271 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the February 11, 2021 winter weather: 13 deaths, 103 injuries and $3.2 million in damage in 2025 dollars across 7 records. Texas ranks 15th of 51 states and territories by count and 41st of 50 per square mile.
Winter storms in Texas, 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
- 8,0051996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 271average
- Deaths
- 1951,668 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $741Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2015783 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 Texas?
Texas averages about 271 winter storm records a year since 2000, 15th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2015 (783). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Texas records 306 winter storm records since 1996, 41st 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 Texas have the most winter storm records?
Per square mile, Rockwall County leads Texas: 26 days with a winter storm record since 1996, 204.4 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Dallam County has the most winter storm records (99 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 Texas?
58% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The busiest month is January (2,424 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 2,424 · Feb 2,213 · Mar 618 · Apr 172 · May 4 · Jun 0 · Jul 4 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 95 · Nov 651 · Dec 1,824 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest winter storm records in Texas?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-02-11 | Winter WeatherTarrant County · forecast zone Tarrant One storm episode: 7 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. February 9th, 2021 was the beginning of what would become a historic winter weather event across the state of Texas, with multiple rounds of winter precipitation and deadly cold temperatures. The prolonged event began with freezing drizzle that contributed to several vehicle accidents in the region. Most notable of ... | 13 | 103 | $3.2M | |
| 2013-12-05 | Winter StormDallas County · forecast zone Dallas One storm episode: 22 records in 22 places, 2013-12-05 to 2013-12-06; the totals are the episode's. A winter storm affected much of North and Central Texas for an extended period from December 5th through the 10th. A combination of freezing rain, sleet, and a little snow began falling during the day on the 5th and continued through the morning hours of the 6th. As the ice and sleet settled on the 6th, a thick layer ... | 8 | 376 | $55M | |
| 2006-12-29 | Ice StormRandall County · forecast zone Randall One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A strong and vigorous upper low moved across the Rockies and produced heavy snow and blizzard conditions along with freezing rain to the western and central Texas panhandle. Five people were killed as a result of the winter storm and about one thousand seven hundred and seventy customers were without electricity in ... | 6 | 5 | $146K | |
| 2009-12-24 | Winter WeatherCollin County · forecast zone Collin One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. A powerful upper level system dipped into north Texas bringing near blizzard conditions to the northwest portions of north Texas. Wind gusts up to 50 mph were reported during the afternoon hours across much of the western half of north Texas. Most of the snowfall fell west of a line from Bonham to Waco to Lampasas. ... | 6 | 0 | $894K | |
| 1998-12-22 | Ice StormMcLennan County · forecast zone McLennan A strong arctic cold front moved through North Texas on the 21st, bringing freezing temperatures to all of North Texas by the morning of the 22nd. Southwest winds aloft produced overrunning conditions, resulting in cloudy skies and a mixture of freezing rain, sleet, and snow. The precipitation began in the western ... | 6 | 0 | – | |
| 2005-12-18 | Winter WeatherPotter County · forecast zone Potter One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. A cold and moist airmass across the Texas panhandle resulted in an extended period of light freezing rain and freezing drizzle and dangerous driving conditions. Department of Public Safety officials cited weather as the primary cause of numerous accidents...which resulted in at least fifteen injuries and five ... | 5 | 15 | $184K | |
| 2015-01-13 | Winter WeatherIrion County · forecast zone Irion One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Freezing temperatures and a brief period of freezing rain caused patchy ice to form on area bridges and roads during the morning hours. This resulted in two fatalities near Barnhart. | 4 | 2 | – | |
| 2023-01-31 | Winter WeatherTerry County · forecast zone Terry One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Several consecutive days of wintry precipitation occurred from late January through early February. Temperatures tumbled 30-40 degrees behind an arctic cold front from the 28th into the 29th. Even colder air settled into the region on the night of the 29th and morning of the 30th, as temperatures dipped into the teens ... | 4 | 0 | – | |
| 2000-01-25 | Winter StormTarrant County · forecast zone Tarrant One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. An arctic cold front moved through North Texas on January 24th, bringing much colder weather to the region. On January 25th, an upper level storm moved southeast across Oklahoma and the northeast Red River counties of North Texas, dropping up to an inch of sleet and snow at Paris. A second and stronger upper level ... | 4 | 0 | – | |
| 2013-04-02 | Winter WeatherPotter County · forecast zone Potter One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. During the early morning hours of the 2nd, patchy drizzle developed across the Texas Panhandle. With at or slightly below freezing surface temperatures the drizzle froze on elevated surfaces such as bridges and overpasses. Less than a tenth of an inch of ice accumulations were reported in Hartley, Dallam, Moore, and ... | 3 | 3 | $89K |
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 Texas
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-12-12 | Ice StormRed River County · forecast zone Red River | 0 | 0 | $211M | |
| 2023-02-01 | Winter StormTravis County · forecast zone Travis One storm episode: 7 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $81M | |
| 2010-02-11 | Heavy SnowKaufman County · forecast zone Kaufman One storm episode: 16 records in 16 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 8 | $57M | |
| 2013-12-05 | Winter StormDallas County · forecast zone Dallas One storm episode: 22 records in 22 places, 2013-12-05 to 2013-12-06; the totals are the episode's. | 8 | 376 | $55M | |
| 2000-12-24 | Ice StormRed River County · forecast zone Red River | 0 | 0 | $54M | |
| 2015-12-26 | BlizzardLubbock County · forecast zone Lubbock One storm episode: 8 records in 8 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2 | 0 | $40M | |
| 1997-01-12 | Ice StormOrange County · forecast zone Orange One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 20 | $33M | |
| 2003-02-24 | Winter StormAnderson County · forecast zone Anderson | 0 | 0 | $24M |
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 Texas?
Texas'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 | Texas | United States | Texas's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 753 | 32,893 | 2.3% |
| 2000s | 2,353 | 88,805 | 2.6% |
| 2010s | 3,098 | 103,626 | 3.0% |
| 2020-26 | 1,801 | 62,015 | 2.9% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent winter storm records in Texas
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-25 | SleetVictoria County · forecast zone Victoria | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherSan Patricio County · forecast zone Coastal San Patricio County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherNueces County · forecast zone Inland Nueces County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherVictoria County · forecast zone Victoria | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherNueces County · forecast zone Inland Nueces County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherPolk County · forecast zone Polk | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherTrinity County · forecast zone Trinity | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2026-01-25 | Winter WeatherMadison County · forecast zone Madison | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Winter StormBosque County · forecast zone Bosque | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Winter StormRobertson County · forecast zone Robertson | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Winter StormLeon County · forecast zone Leon | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Winter StormFalls County · forecast zone Falls | 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 Texas
FEMA has declared 5 disasters in Texas 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); 4 were major disasters, the latest on April 21, 2023.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-04-21 | DR-4705 | Severe Winter Storm | 23 |
| 2021-02-19 | DR-4586 | Severe Winter Storms | 254 |
| 2021-02-14 | EM-3554 | Severe Winter Storm | 254 |
| 2016-02-09 | DR-4255 | Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 51 |
| 2001-01-08 | DR-1356 | Severe Winter Ice Storm | 46 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Rockwall County: the county's whole recordThe Texas 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 TexasTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
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- Drought in Texas18,588 records