Washington winter storms

Every recorded winter storm record since 1996 · 39 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 4,060 winter storm records in Washington from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 146 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the May 29, 2002 blizzard in King County and 2 more: 3 deaths and 1 injury. Washington ranks 33rd of 51 states and territories by count and 33rd of 50 per square mile.

Winter storms in Washington, 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: 4,0601996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000: 146average
Deaths: 53225 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars: $148Mas filed
Busiest year: 2017336 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 Washington?

Washington averages about 146 winter storm records a year since 2000, 33rd of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2017 (336). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Washington records 611 winter storm records since 1996, 33rd 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 Washington have the most winter storm records?

Per square mile, Clark County leads Washington: 138 days with a winter storm record since 1996, 219.6 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Spokane County has the most winter storm records (940 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).

Clark County 219.6 (198)
Spokane County 193.9 (940)
Wahkiakum County 190.2 (76)
Pend Oreille County 179.3 (527)
Columbia County 166.9 (157)
Cowlitz County 140.2 (255)
Kitsap County 129.1 (71)
Walla Walla County 126.8 (192)
Asotin County 121.1 (104)
San Juan County 120.7 (21)
Island County 115.1 (26)
Skamania County 114.6 (308)

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 Washington?

58% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in December and January. The busiest month is January (1,208 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 1,208 · Feb 762 · Mar 303 · Apr 83 · May 14 · Jun 3 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 15 · Oct 91 · Nov 433 · Dec 1,148 (records).

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

What were the deadliest winter storm records in Washington?

Washington: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
Date	Record	Killed	Injured	Damage
2002-05-29	BlizzardKing County and 2 more · forecast zone E King/E Pierce/E Lewis 3 climbers lost their lives near the top of Mt Rainier when high winds destroyed their tents and collapsed their snow caves.	3	1	–
2023-12-04	Winter WeatherAdams County and Grant County · forecast zone Moses Lake Area One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. A series of shortwaves tracked across Eastern Washington bringing several days of light to moderate snow fall. Snowfall was heaviest in mountains with amounts ranging from 10 to 20 inches. The low lands excluding Okanogan Valley received amounts ranging from 3 to 8 inches. Okanogan Valley and Okanogan Highlands were ...	3	0	$5K
2010-11-22	Winter WeatherPierce County · forecast zone Tacoma Area One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. One to 4 inches of snow fell over most western Washington lowland locations. The late afternoon commute took hours for some and one man was killed outside his car on Interstate 5 in Tacoma.	2	12	–
2012-12-17	Winter WeatherChelan County and Okanogan County · forecast zone East Slopes Northern Cascades Roads that were closed due to downed trees included: Cedar Brae, River Road, Shugart Flats, Chiwawa Loop, Baraburn, Cottonwood, and Highway 2 along a 35 mile stretch between Stevens Pass and Leavenworth. The highway is one of two primary east-west routes through the mountains open during the winter. About 7,000 to ...	2	10	$7.2M
2014-02-21	Winter WeatherSpokane County and Whitman County · forecast zone Washington Palouse Two passengers were killed and two others were injured when a car lost control on icy roads and ran head on into a semi-truck. One passenger was ejected from the car.	2	2	$25K
2014-02-19	Winter WeatherChelan County and Okanogan County · forecast zone East Slopes Northern Cascades Two men were found dead near a wrecked Jeep off a snowy Forest Service road in the Derby Canyon area. Reports state the two men were going for a drive in an all-wheel-drive jeep along primitive roads that had snow two feet deep in places. The vehicle was found on Thursday about 75 yards down a steep embankment off the ...	2	0	–
2010-11-21	Heavy SnowYakima County · forecast zone Yakima Valley An Arctic cold front combined with Pacific moisture to produce widespread heavy snowfall and very cold temperatures. Snow and ice created dangerous driving conditions which led to numerous accidents. Two fatalities occurred near Tieton on November 22. Snowfall amounts in inches included Thorp (6), 5 miles north ...	2	0	–
2022-11-22	Winter WeatherChelan County · forecast zone Central Chelan County One storm episode: 2 records; the totals are the episode's. A cold front swung through the region on the evening of the 22nd through the morning of the 23rd. It brought another round of widespread snow. It moved through quickly bringing most locations 1 to 3 inches. Localized heavy amounts of 6 and 7 inches were reported in the Cascades and Northwest Washington. Pockets of ...	2	0	$10K
2019-02-04	Heavy SnowYakima County · forecast zone Yakima Valley One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A pair of storm systems brought significant snow to all elevations on the 3rd and 4th of February. Wraparound moisture from the first system brought 8 to 12 inches of snow to the Blue Mountains. Initial precipitation with the second system combined with lingering wraparound moisture brought between 3 and 13 inches to ...	2	0	–
2005-05-21	Winter StormKing County and 2 more · forecast zone E King/E Pierce/E Lewis Two men died near the 8000 ft level while climbing up Mt Rainier.	2	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 Washington

Washington: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
Date	Record	Killed	Injured	Damage
1996-12-28	Heavy SnowYakima County · forecast zone Yakima Valley	0	0	$56M
2006-11-26	Heavy SnowIsland County and Jefferson County · forecast zone Admiralty Inlet Area One storm episode: 10 records in 10 places, 2006-11-26 to 2006-11-27; the totals are the episode's.	0	0	$15M
2009-01-04	Heavy SnowLincoln County and Spokane County · forecast zone Spokane Area	0	0	$14M
1996-11-19	Ice StormAdams County and Grant County · forecast zone Moses Lake Area	1	0	$13M
2012-01-19	Ice StormKing County and 2 more · forecast zone East Puget Sound Lowlands One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's.	1	2	$8.9M
2008-12-21	Heavy SnowSnohomish County · forecast zone Everett And Vicinity One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's.	0	2	$8.0M
2012-12-17	Winter WeatherChelan County and Okanogan County · forecast zone East Slopes Northern Cascades	2	10	$7.2M
2008-12-20	Winter StormClark County · forecast zone Greater Vancouver Area One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's.	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 winter storm records becoming more frequent in Washington?

Washington'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.

Winter storms: Washington and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
Decade	Washington	United States	Washington's share
1996-99	237	32,893	0.7%
2000s	1,011	88,805	1.1%
2010s	1,827	103,626	1.8%
2020-26	985	62,015	1.6%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent winter storm records in Washington

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
Date	Record	Damage
2026-04-14	Heavy SnowKittitas County and Yakima County · forecast zone Upper Slopes Of The Est Washington Cascade Crest	–
2026-04-14	Heavy SnowColumbia County and Walla Walla County · forecast zone Northwest Blue Mountains	–
2026-03-11	Heavy SnowChelan County · forecast zone Western Chelan County	–
2026-03-11	BlizzardChelan County · forecast zone Western Chelan County	$5K
2026-03-11	Heavy SnowOkanogan County · forecast zone Western Okanogan County	–
2026-03-11	Heavy SnowChelan County · forecast zone Central Chelan County	–
2026-03-11	Heavy SnowColumbia County and Walla Walla County · forecast zone Northwest Blue Mountains	–
2026-03-11	Heavy SnowKittitas County and 2 more · forecast zone Lower Slopes Of The Est Washington Cascade Crest	–
2026-03-10	Heavy SnowKittitas County and Yakima County · forecast zone Upper Slopes Of The Est Washington Cascade Crest	–
2026-02-19	Heavy SnowPend Oreille County and 2 more · forecast zone Northeast Mountains	–
2026-02-17	Heavy SnowSpokane County and Whitman County · forecast zone Washington Palouse	–
2026-02-16	Heavy SnowFerry County and Okanogan County · forecast zone Okanogan Highlands	–

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 Washington

FEMA has declared 18 disasters in Washington 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); 18 were major disasters, the latest on April 28, 2024.

The 12 most recent
Declared	Number	Title	Areas named
2024-04-28	DR-4775	Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	17
2023-01-12	DR-4682	Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	9
2022-03-29	DR-4650	Severe Winter Storms, Snowstorms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding	24
2021-04-08	DR-4593	Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	18
2019-03-04	DR-4418	Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides, Tornado	8
2017-04-21	DR-4309	Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides	15
2016-02-02	DR-4253	Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides, and A T	10
2012-03-05	DR-4056	Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	11
2011-03-25	DR-1963	Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides	7
2009-03-02	DR-1825	Severe Winter Storm and Record and Near Record Snow	34
2009-01-30	DR-1817	Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, Mudslides, and Flooding	23
2007-02-14	DR-1682	Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, and Mudslides	19

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