States › Florida › Palm Beach County

Palm Beach County, Florida

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 12099 · 1,497,987 residents (2021) · 1,964 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 172Tornado · 198Flood · 107Wind · 308Winter · 0

Palm Beach County within Florida. Dots: HailTornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

The NCEI record lists 1,026 events for Palm Beach County, Florida, between 1950 and 2026; damaging wind account for the largest share.

That is 52.2 events per 100 square miles, below the Florida figure of 73.8, and 6.8 per 10,000 residents against 18.2 statewide.

22 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 14 deaths and 177 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $274M and crop damage at $66M.

FEMA has designated the county in 41 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Hurricane Milton (major disaster, 11 Oct 2024).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 10,758 claims since 1978, of which 4,689 were paid, totalling $72M (about $15K per paid claim). FEMA counts 69,154 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively High" and its expected annual loss as "Relatively High" ($519M a year across 18 hazards).

110 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 24 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

22events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

1,026events since 195014 deaths, 177 injuries recorded

41disaster declarationslast 11 Oct 2024

10,758NFIP flood claims$72M paid

Compared with Florida and the United States

Measure	Palm Beach County	Florida	US
Recorded events since 1950	1,026	39,578	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	52.2	73.8	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	6.8	18.2	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	22	1,307	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	14	890	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$274M	$80B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	7.2	20.6	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$15K	$62K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	1.5	18.3	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Tornado: 15Wind: 3

Hail: 7Tornado: 21Wind: 11

Hail: 9Tornado: 24Wind: 21

Hail: 7Tornado: 25Wind: 17

Hail: 17Tornado: 28Flood: 5Wind: 49Tropical: 1Wildfire: 1Lightning: 18Other: 35

Hail: 45Tornado: 33Flood: 8Wind: 68Wildfire: 3Lightning: 38Other: 55

Hail: 44Tornado: 34Flood: 26Wind: 71Lightning: 26Other: 44

Hail: 43Tornado: 18Flood: 68Wind: 68Lightning: 1Other: 19

181950s391960s541970s491980s1541990s2502000s2452010s2172020s

Recorded events in Palm Beach County by decade and hazard group. HailTornadoFloodWindTropicalWildfireLightningOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 558 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 311 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Wind308

Tornado198

Hail172

Other153

Flood107

Lightning83

Wildfire4

Tropical1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	308	1	2.0%	detail
■ Tornado	198	1	5.2%	detail
■ Hail	172	—	3.0%	detail
■ Other	153	—	5.3%
■ Flood	107	2	3.2%	detail
■ Lightning	83	10	4.7%
■ Wildfire	4	—	0.8%
■ Tropical	1	—	0.0%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
9 Jan 2014	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$500K	—	2	—	County
19 Oct 1958	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$250K	—	1	24	County
30 Jul 2019	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	5	County
14 Jul 1987	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	63 mph	—	—	1	2	County
10 Jul 2018	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	1	County
12 Jul 1997	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
29 Jun 1999	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
5 Aug 2002	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
9 Aug 2003	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
9 Aug 2003	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
26 Apr 2006	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
30 Jul 2007	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
15 Apr 2016	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
7 Aug 2003	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$80M	—	—	28	County
14 Oct 1964	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	22	County
9 Oct 2024	Tornado	Tornado	EF3	$81M	—	—	7	County
15 Oct 1999	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$60M	$65M	—	—	County
4 Jul 1996	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	—	9	County
31 Dec 1986	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	7	County
22 Apr 1958	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$25K	—	—	3	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
11 Oct 2024	DR-4834	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Milton	Individual assistance, Public assistance
7 Oct 2024	EM-3622	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Milton	Public assistance
13 Dec 2022	DR-4680	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Nicole	Public assistance
8 Nov 2022	EM-3587	Emergency	Tropical Storm	Tropical Storm Nicole	Public assistance
29 Sep 2022	DR-4673	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Ian	Individual assistance, Public assistance
24 Sep 2022	EM-3584	Emergency	Hurricane	Tropical Storm Ian	Public assistance
1 Aug 2020	EM-3533	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Isaias	Public assistance
25 Mar 2020	DR-4486	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3432	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
21 Oct 2019	DR-4468	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Dorian	Public assistance
30 Aug 2019	EM-3419	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Dorian	Public assistance
10 Sep 2017	DR-4337	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Irma	Individual assistance, Public assistance
5 Sep 2017	EM-3385	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Irma	Public assistance
8 Oct 2016	DR-4283	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Matthew	Public assistance
6 Oct 2016	EM-3377	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Matthew	Public assistance
18 Oct 2012	DR-4084	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Isaac	Public assistance
24 Aug 2008	DR-1785	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Tropical Storm Fay	Public assistance
21 Aug 2008	EM-3288	Emergency	Severe Storm	Tropical Storm Fay	Public assistance
24 Oct 2005	DR-1609	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Wilma	Individual assistance, Public assistance
5 Sep 2005	EM-3220	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina Evacuation	Public assistance
26 Sep 2004	DR-1561	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Jeanne	Individual assistance, Public assistance
16 Sep 2004	DR-1551	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Ivan	Individual assistance
4 Sep 2004	DR-1545	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Frances	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Aug 2004	DR-1539	Major disaster	Hurricane	Tropical Storm Bonnie And Hurricane Charley	Public assistance
5 Feb 2001	DR-1359	Major disaster	Freezing	Severe Freeze	Individual assistance
20 Oct 1999	DR-1306	Major disaster	Hurricane	Fl-Hurricane Irene-Dr-Req	Individual assistance, Public assistance
15 Oct 1999	EM-3150	Emergency	Hurricane	Tropical Storm Irene - Florida	Public assistance
22 Sep 1999	DR-1300	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations	Public assistance
14 Sep 1999	EM-3143	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Floyd Emergency Declarations	Public assistance
27 Apr 1999	EM-3139	Emergency	Fire	Fl-Fires 04/15/99	Public assistance
18 Apr 1999	FM-2256	Fire management assistance	Fire	Fl-Fires 04/13/99	Public assistance
6 Nov 1998	DR-1259	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Tropical Storm Mitch	Individual assistance
25 Sep 1998	EM-3131	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Grorges	Public assistance
18 Jun 1998	DR-1223	Major disaster	Fire	Extreme Fire Hazard	Public assistance
27 Oct 1995	DR-1074	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
15 Jan 1990	DR-851	Major disaster	Freezing	Severe Freeze	Individual assistance
18 Mar 1985	DR-732	Major disaster	Freezing	Severe Freeze	Individual assistance
6 May 1980	EM-3079	Emergency	Human Cause	Undocumented Aliens	Public assistance
31 Jan 1977	DR-526	Major disaster	Freezing	Severe Winter Weather	Individual assistance
15 Mar 1971	DR-304	Major disaster	Freezing	Freeze	Individual assistance, Public assistance
14 Sep 1965	DR-209	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Betsy	Individual assistance, Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Palm Beach County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 197810,758

Paid claims4,689

Total paid$72M

Average paid claim$15K

Repetitive-loss properties32723 severe

Residential policies in force69,15413.0% of 530,976 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2026	10	2	$68,097	$34,048
2025	99	48	$6,857,416	$142,863
2024	51	12	$534,719	$44,560
2023	23	3	$47,824	$15,941
2022	63	14	$979,326	$69,952
2021	49	3	$130,288	$43,429
2020	131	66	$1,008,574	$15,281
2019	63	17	$1,128,034	$66,355
2018	54	16	$255,369	$15,961
2017	516	129	$4,620,165	$35,815
2016	116	54	$1,403,644	$25,993
2015	72	22	$450,143	$20,461
2014	369	232	$5,133,302	$22,126
2013	115	45	$1,018,786	$22,640
2012	423	170	$2,825,288	$16,619
2011	89	31	$893,161	$28,812
2010	41	10	$168,390	$16,839
2009	98	27	$267,858	$9,921
2008	128	28	$247,613	$8,843
2007	55	13	$180,344	$13,873
2006	124	73	$1,818,626	$24,913
2005	814	93	$1,425,701	$15,330
2004	1,926	821	$16,538,336	$20,144
2003	41	5	$58,131	$11,626
2002	53	14	$51,278	$3,663

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskRelatively Highscore 99.2 of 100

Expected annual loss$519MRelatively High

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Moderate

Community resilienceRelatively Low

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Hurricane	Very High	$286,922,267
Inland flooding	Relatively High	$178,899,133
Heat wave	Relatively High	$12,766,632
Lightning	Very High	$8,938,828
Tornado	Relatively High	$8,589,809
Coastal flooding	Relatively High	$7,538,748
Cold wave	Relatively High	$7,239,647
Wildfire	Relatively Moderate	$3,242,115
Strong wind	Relatively High	$2,138,594
Drought	Relatively High	$1,952,651
Hail	Relatively Low	$175,537
Earthquake	Very Low	$172,891
Landslide	Relatively Low	$10,250

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

Tracks within 100 miles110

Tracks within 50 miles51

Hurricane strength within 50 miles24

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Alex	2022	38 mi	46 mph
Ian	2022	83 mi	144 mph
Nicole	2022	60 mi	75 mph
Isaias	2020	59 mi	69 mph
Sally	2020	82 mi	40 mph
Irma	2017	78 mi	115 mph
Julia	2016	95 mi	40 mph
Matthew	2016	86 mi	132 mph
Arthur	2014	97 mi	40 mph
Bonnie	2010	88 mi	40 mph
Nicole	2010	97 mi	46 mph
Fay	2008	47 mi	69 mph
Ernesto	2006	37 mi	46 mph
Katrina	2005	50 mi	81 mph
Tammy	2005	64 mi	40 mph
Wilma	2005	46 mi	121 mph
Frances	2004	41 mi	109 mph
Jeanne	2004	41 mi	121 mph
Harvey	1999	83 mi	58 mph
Irene	1999	29 mi	75 mph
Mitch	1998	53 mi	63 mph
Erin	1995	73 mi	86 mph
Jerry	1995	29 mi	40 mph
Gordon	1994	66 mi	63 mph
Andrew	1992	80 mi	167 mph

HURDAT2 best-track positions at tropical-storm strength (34 kt) or more, measured from the county's Census centre point; through the 2025 season. Distance from a track is not the same as the extent of the storm's wind, rain or surge.

ZIP codes with flood claims

33480 1,356
33428 559
33433 504
33435 450
33410 405
33458 398
33445 395
33462 386
33483 380
33404 351
33487 285
33418 273
33408 272
33469 269
33477 259
33426 252
33432 238
33414 237
33461 231
33437 192
33406 189
33436 188
33446 184
33401 178
33411 178
33460 175
33467 171
33496 139
33405 137
33409 129
33431 128
33484 127
33444 124
33486 119
33403 107
33470 107
33498 103
33407 84
33463 79
33434 78
33478 77
33472 75
33415 66
33417 54
33449 40
33412 37
33476 16
33413 11
33430 11
33473 10
33400 9
33402 5

ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Palm Beach County, FL?

NCEI records 172 hail events in Palm Beach County since 1950, in 50 different years; that is about 2.2 recorded events a year. 25 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Palm Beach County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 198 tornadoes in Palm Beach County since 1950, 13 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 1.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Palm Beach County?

11 Oct 2024: Hurricane Milton, a major disaster declaration for hurricane. The county appears in 41 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Palm Beach County, and how much was paid?

10,758 NFIP claims since 1978, 4,689 of them paid, for $72M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Palm Beach County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively High" for overall risk, "Relatively High" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Moderate" for social vulnerability and "Relatively Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Palm Beach County compare with the rest of Florida?

52.2 recorded events per 100 square miles against 73.8 statewide, and 7.2 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 20.6. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.