Virginia natural disasters

The state's storm and disaster record · population 8,620,715 · 134 counties and county equivalents

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 57,829 storm events in Virginia since 1950, 54,822 of them since 1996 when every event type began to be recorded, and the Storm Prediction Center counts 835 tornadoes in the state since 1950. The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events (20,677). In NOAA's storm record since 1950, the deadliest tornado day in Virginia was September 30, 1959: tornadoes and the storms that came with them killed 12 people in the state; the deadliest of them in Virginia, the Albemarle County tornado, killed 11 (SPC). FEMA has made 77 declarations for Virginia since 1957, 74 for natural hazards; 58 were major disasters.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm events recorded in Virginia 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: 57,8291950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded: 2491,846 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars: $5.4Bas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes (SPC): 8351950 to 2025
FEMA declarations: 7758 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 Virginia?

By NOAA's records, Virginia's most frequent hazards are severe thunderstorm wind events (20,677), winter storm records (10,408), floods and flash floods (8,165); the deadliest are floods and flash floods (64 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.

Virginia: records by hazard to June 30, 2026
Hazard	Records	Last 10 years	Killed	Injured	Damage	Counties
Severe thunderstorm wind	20,677	7,986	36	284	$300M	133 of 134
Winter storms	10,408	3,076	31	58	$75M	133 of 134
Floods	8,165	4,171	64	19	$1.4B	134 of 134
Hail	6,183	1,019	1	7	$118M	134 of 134
Heavy rain	2,513	1,359	0	0	$7.6M	125 of 134
High wind and dust storms	2,211	637	20	198	$295M	125 of 134
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds	1,843	714	4	26	$1.8M	79 of 134
Extreme cold	1,789	611	3	0	$47M	114 of 134
Heat	1,339	386	10	159	–	93 of 134
Tornadoes	913	161	39	952	$1.2B	114 of 134
Drought	850	188	0	0	$470M	96 of 134
Lightning	536	123	19	102	$25M	104 of 134
Hurricanes and tropical storms	308	72	12	34	$1.4B	88 of 134
Wildfires	43	4	0	4	$18M	21 of 134
Landslides and avalanches	34	25	0	0	$1.1M	17 of 134
Rip currents and high surf	17	12	10	3	$118K	8 of 134

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 Virginia?

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.

Virginia: the 10 storm episodes with the most deaths
Date	Record	Character	Killed	Injured	Damage
1959-09-30	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Albemarle County, killed 11 (SPC) · TornadoAlbemarle County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (3, in 3 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F3 0.8 mi x 200 yd	12	13	$250K step
2004-08-30	Flash FloodRichmond (city) One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. Rainfall amounts between 5 and 12 inches resulted in numerous road closures due to flooding. In addition, about 20 blocks of downtown Richmond were condemned due to the floodwaters. A brick building collapsed in the city's historic and low-lying Shockoe Bottom area, and several dozen buildings had extensive water ...		8	0	$45M
2003-09-18	Hurricane Isabel · Tropical StormHenrico County and Richmond (city) · forecast zone Henrico One named storm filed by several offices: 25 records in 3 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Tropical Storm Isabel produced tropical storm force sustained winds and wind gusts over the piedmont of central and south central Virginia, as it crossed the Wakefield WFO county warning area. Isabel made landfall near Ocracoke Inlet in North Carolina, tracked northwest into central Virginia just west of Richmond, ...		7	0	$929M
2011-04-28	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Glade Spring to Chilhowie, killed 3 (SPC) · TornadoClip, Washington County One named storm filed by several offices: 13 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Favorable atmospheric conditions resulted in a deadly tornado outbreak across southwest Virginia on the 27th. The tornadoes produced from light to heavy damage to many homes and businesses across southeast Virginia. The thunderstorms produced 4 tornadoes across the area along with 4 deaths and 50 injured.	EF3 16.9 mi x 1,320 yd	5	57	$7.7M
1996-09-06	Hurricane Fran · Flash FloodCountywide, Augusta County One named storm filed by several offices: 4 records in 4 episodes, 1996-09-06 to 1996-09-08; the totals are the storm's.		5	1	$16M
2018-10-11	Tropical Storm Michael · Flash FloodKeysville, Charlotte County One storm episode: 12 records in 10 places; the totals are the episode's. Hurricane Michael made landfall along the Florida panhandle as major hurricane (Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale) on Wednesday afternoon, October 10th, 2018, then tracked northeastward with the northern portion of the storm circulation tracking across portions of Southside, Virginia Thursday afternoon, the 11th. ...		5	0	$19M
1993-08-06	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Petersburg to Hopewell, killed 4 (SPC) · TornadoPetersburg, Dinwiddie County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (18, in 16 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's. The most devastating tornado of the day touched down one mile southwest of Petersburg at approximately 1330 EDT. This tornado rapidly grew in size and strength as it moved northeast into the commercial historic district of Petersburg. Numerous homes and businesses sustained major damage. Damage estimates for the area ...	F4 12 mi x 250 yd	4	256	$147M
2016-02-24	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Waverly, killed 3 (SPC) · TornadoNewville, Sussex County One named storm filed by several offices: 17 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Scattered severe thunderstorms in advance of a cold front produced damaging winds, large hail, and six tornadoes across portions of central and eastern Virginia.	EF1 6.19 mi x 300 yd	4	40	$32M
2024-09-27	Tropical Storm Helene · High WindGrayson County · forecast zone Grayson One storm episode: 21 records in 14 places; the totals are the episode's. Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida as a powerful Category 4 hurricane late Thursday, September 26, and moved quickly northward into the southeastern states, and then turned slightly northwestward towards the southern Appalachian Mountains overnight into Friday morning, weakening as it moved over land. Helene’s ...	56 kt wind	4	6	$259M
2012-06-29	Thunderstorm WindKeene, Albemarle County One storm episode: 18 records in 10 places, 2012-06-29 to 2012-06-30; the totals are the episode's. A strong upper-level disturbance passed through the region in a northwest flow aloft. Extremely hot and humid conditions caused high amounts of instability. The upper-level disturbance triggered a line of thunderstorms that moved through the area. Due to the high instability, thunderstorms caused widespread wind ...	61 kt wind	4	6	$60K

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 Virginia

Virginia: the 8 records with the most damage since 1993, 2025 dollars
Date	Record	Character	Killed	Injured	Damage
2003-09-18	Hurricane (Typhoon)Hampton (city) and Newport News (city) · forecast zone Newport News		0	0	$252M
2003-09-18	Hurricane (Typhoon)York County and Poquoson (city) · forecast zone York		0	0	$214M
1998-02-04	Coastal FloodYork County and Poquoson (city) · forecast zone York / Poquoson		0	0	$136M
2024-09-27	Flash FloodKonnarock, Washington County		0	0	$113M
1993-08-06	TornadoPetersburg, Dinwiddie County	F4 12 mi x 250 yd	4	246	$102M
1994-08-17	TornadoMartinsville, Henry County	F2 4.25 mi x 300 yd	0	10	$100M
2004-09-17	TornadoFieldale, Henry County	F2 7.1 mi x 440 yd	0	4	$84M
1996-09-06	FloodWarren County · forecast zone Warren		0	0	$79M

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 $25M, in the dollars of the day) holds: April 1, 1973 (tornado, Fairfax County); May 8, 1984 (tornado, Petersburg (city)).

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 Virginia 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 Virginia

Billion-dollar disasters in Virginia

NOAA counted 116 weather or climate disasters from 1980-2024 that cost at least $1 billion (adjusted for inflation) and affected Virginia, led by severe storm (53). The most recent: Hurricane Helene (2024); Hurricane Debby (2024); Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather (2024).

Virginia: billion-dollar disasters by type, 1980-2024
Type	Events	Total cost (NOAA's range)
Severe Storm	53	$2.0B-$5.0B
Tropical Cyclone	23	$10.0B-$20.0B
Winter Storm	19	$2.0B-$5.0B
Drought	13	$2.0B-$5.0B
Flooding	5	$2.0B-$5.0B
Freeze	3	$5M-$100M

Every one of the 116, newest first

Hurricane Helene2024
Hurricane Debby2024
Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather2024
Central Tornado Outbreak2024
Central, Southern, Eastern Severe Weather2024
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2024
Central Tornado Outbreak and Eastern Severe Weather2024
Central, Southern, Northeastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2024
Southern Tornado Outbreak and East Coast Storm2024
Southern/Eastern/Northwestern Drought and Heat Wave2024
East Coast Storm and Flooding2023
Northeastern and Eastern Severe Weather2023
North Central and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Rockies Hail Storms and Central and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central and Eastern Tornadoes and Hail Storms2023
Central and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central Tornado Outbreak and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central and Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2022
Hurricane Ian2022
North Central and Eastern Severe Weather2022
Central Derecho2022
Southeast Tornado Outbreak2022
Southern Tornado Outbreak2022
Hurricane Ida2021
Tropical Storm Fred2021
North Central Severe Weather2021
Tropical Storm Elsa2021
Central Severe Storms2021
Southern Tornadoes and Southeast Severe Weather2021
Eastern Severe Weather2021
Northwest, Central, Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2021
Tropical Storm Eta2020
Hurricane Isaias2020
Central, Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2020
Southern Severe Weather2020
Southeast and Eastern Tornado Outbreak2020
North Central and Ohio Valley Hail Storms and Severe Weather2020
South, East and Northeast Severe Weather2020
Southeast Tornadoes and Northern Storms and Flooding2020
Hurricane Dorian2019
Southeast, Ohio Valley and Northeast Severe Weather2019
Hurricane Michael2018
Hurricane Florence2018
Central and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather2018
Central and Eastern Severe Weather2018
Southern and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather2018
Northeast Winter Storm2018
Central and Eastern Winter Storm2018
Midwest Severe Weather2017
South and Southeast Severe Weather2017
Southeast Severe Weather and Tornadoes2017
Southeast Freeze2017
Central/Southeast Tornado Outbreak2017
Hurricane Matthew2016
Rockies and Northeast Severe Weather2016
West Virginia Flooding and Ohio Valley Tornadoes2016
South/Southeast Tornadoes2016
Southeast and Eastern Tornadoes2016
South Carolina and East Coast Flooding2015
Central and Northeast Severe Weather2015
Central and Eastern Winter storm, Cold Wave2015
Rockies/Midwest/Eastern Severe Weather2014
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Tornadoes and Flooding2014
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Winter Storm2014
Hurricane Sandy2012
Plains/East/Northeast Derecho2012
U.S. Drought/Heat Wave2012
Tropical Storm Lee2011
Hurricane Irene2011
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes2011
Southeast/Ohio Valley/Midwest Tornadoes2011
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes2011
Southern Plains/Southwest Drought and Heat Wave2011
Northeast Winter Storm2010
Southeast/Ohio Valley Severe Weather2009
U.S. Drought2008
Western/Eastern Drought/Heat Wave2007
East/South Severe Weather and Flooding2007
Spring Freeze2007
Northeast Flooding2006
Southeast Severe Weather2005
Hurricane Jeanne2004
Hurricane Ivan2004
Hurricane Isabel2003
Midwest/Plains Severe Weather2003
Severe Storms and Tornadoes2002
U.S. Drought2002
Southeast Winter Storm2000
Hurricane Floyd1999
Eastern Drought/Heat Wave1999
Central and Eastern Winter Storm1999
Central and Eastern Winter Storm1999
Hurricane Bonnie1998
Southern Drought and Heat Wave1998
Northern Plains and Great Lakes Derecho, Tornadoes1998
Hurricane Fran1996
Blizzard/Floods1996
Central, Southern and Northeast Drought/Heat Wave1995
Southeast Ice Storm1994
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1994
Southeast Drought and Heat Wave1993
East Coast Blizzard and Severe Weather1993
Northeast Winter Storm1992
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1989
Hurricane Hugo1989
Southern Derecho and Severe Storms1989
Southeast Drought/Heat Wave1986
Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland Flooding1985
Hurricane Gloria1985
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1985
Tornadoes, Severe Storms, Floods1984
Freeze/Cold Wave1983
Southeast Drought1983
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 Virginia, 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 Virginia

FEMA has made 77 declarations for Virginia since 1957: 58 major disasters, 12 emergencies and 7 fire management assistance declarations. The most common incident types are severe storm (20), flood (16), hurricane (16).

1950s 1
1960s 3
1970s 10
1980s 3
1990s 13
2000s 21
2010s 16
2020s 10

The 15 most recent declarations in Virginia
Declared	Number	Type	Title	Areas named
2026-01-23	EM-3631	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	135
2025-04-04	DR-4863	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storms and Flooding	36
2024-10-01	DR-4831	Tropical Storm	Tropical Storm Helene	37
2024-09-29	EM-3621	Tropical Storm	Post-Tropical Cyclone Helene	24
2022-09-30	DR-4674	Severe Storm	Flooding and Mudslides	2
2022-03-11	DR-4644	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm	28
2021-10-26	DR-4628	Flood	Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	1
2021-05-10	DR-4602	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms	33
2020-04-02	DR-4512	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	138
2020-03-13	EM-3448	Biological	Covid-19	138
2018-12-18	DR-4411	Hurricane	Tropical Storm Michael	36
2018-10-15	DR-4401	Hurricane	Hurricane Florence	32
2018-09-11	EM-3403	Hurricane	Hurricane Florence	134
2016-11-02	DR-4291	Hurricane	Hurricane Matthew	10
2016-03-07	DR-4262	Snowstorm	Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm	30

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

Flood insurance claims in Virginia

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $763 million on 50,040 claims in 131 Virginia 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 Virginia's counties

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

Relatively High 1
Relatively Moderate 5
Relatively Low 42
Very Low 85

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