States › Mississippi › Webster County

Webster County, Mississippi

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

FIPS 28155 · 9,983 residents (2021) · 421 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 66Tornado · 17Flood · 25Wind · 161Winter · 29

Webster County within Mississippi. 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 327 events for Webster County, Mississippi, between 1950 and 2026; damaging wind account for the largest share.

That is 77.6 events per 100 square miles, in line with the Mississippi figure of 89.7, and 327.6 per 10,000 residents against 142.8 statewide.

6 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 4 deaths and 33 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $15M and crop damage at $30M.

FEMA has designated the county in 22 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Winter Storm (major disaster, 6 Feb 2026).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 24 claims since 1978, of which 23 were paid, totalling $109K (about $5K per paid claim). FEMA counts 3 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Very Low" and its expected annual loss as "Very Low" ($3.9M a year across 18 hazards).

24 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 0 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

6events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

327events since 19504 deaths, 33 injuries recorded

22disaster declarationslast 6 Feb 2026

24NFIP flood claims$109K paid

Compared with Mississippi and the United States

Measure	Webster County	Mississippi	US
Recorded events since 1950	327	42,114	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	77.6	89.7	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	327.6	142.8	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	6	1,524	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	4	928	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$15M	$31B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	2.4	21.9	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$5K	$58K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	0.0	11.5	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: 1

Hail: 1Wind: 2

Hail: 1Tornado: 3Wind: 2

Hail: 3Tornado: 1Wind: 5

Hail: 17Tornado: 2Flood: 1Wind: 15Winter: 2

Hail: 25Tornado: 2Flood: 5Wind: 53Winter: 4Tropical: 2Heat: 4Drought: 6Other: 1

Hail: 17Tornado: 8Flood: 15Wind: 58Winter: 11Heat: 1Cold: 1Drought: 6Lightning: 2

Hail: 2Flood: 4Wind: 26Winter: 12Cold: 1Drought: 4Lightning: 1

11950s31960s61970s91980s371990s1022000s1192010s502020s

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

Trend: 218 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 88 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

Wind161

Hail66

Winter29

Flood25

Tornado17

Drought16

Heat5

Lightning3

Tropical2

Cold2

Other1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	161	—	0.9%	detail
■ Hail	66	—	0.8%	detail
■ Winter	29	—	1.6%	detail
■ Flood	25	—	0.7%	detail
■ Tornado	17	4	0.5%	detail
■ Drought	16	—	1.2%
■ Heat	5	—	0.2%
■ Lightning	3	—	0.8%
■ Tropical	2	—	0.4%
■ Cold	2	—	0.6%
■ Other	1	—	0.5%

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
22 Nov 1992	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	2	—	County
27 Apr 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF2	$600K	$600K	1	5	County
20 Mar 1976	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$250K	—	1	5	County
27 Apr 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF3	$3.0M	$700K	—	15	County
26 Nov 1973	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$2.5M	—	—	5	County
29 Aug 2005	Hurricane (Typhoon)	Tropical	—	$1.0M	$25M	—	—	Forecast zone
3 Apr 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	58 mph	$35K	—	—	2	County
2 May 2010	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$800K	—	—	1	County
1 Oct 2023	Drought	Drought	—	—	$1.0M	—	—	Forecast zone
1 Jun 2007	Drought	Drought	—	—	$900K	—	—	Forecast zone
23 Dec 1998	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$700K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
1 Oct 2006	Drought	Drought	—	—	$600K	—	—	Forecast zone
1 May 2007	Drought	Drought	—	—	$600K	—	—	Forecast zone
27 Feb 2009	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$500K	—	—	—	County
1 Oct 2010	Drought	Drought	—	—	$500K	—	—	Forecast zone
9 Feb 2011	Heavy Snow	Winter	—	$400K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
14 Jul 2005	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$300K	—	—	—	County
7 Apr 2006	Hail	Hail	1.50 in	$300K	—	—	—	County
3 Feb 2011	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$300K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
9 Jun 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	74 mph	$300K	—	—	—	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
6 Feb 2026	DR-4899	Major disaster	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
24 Jan 2026	EM-3640	Emergency	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
22 Oct 2021	DR-4626	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	Public assistance
28 Aug 2021	EM-3569	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	Public assistance
4 May 2021	DR-4598	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms	Public assistance
16 Apr 2020	DR-4536	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
5 Apr 2020	DR-4528	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3474	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
23 Apr 2019	DR-4429	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
22 May 2017	DR-4314	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
29 Apr 2011	DR-1972	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Associated Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
30 Aug 2008	EM-3291	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Gustav	Public assistance
29 Aug 2005	DR-1604	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina	Public assistance
10 Jul 2005	DR-1594	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Dennis	Public assistance
23 May 2003	DR-1470	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes And High Winds	Individual assistance
23 Feb 2001	DR-1360	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance
25 Jan 1999	DR-1265	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms, Ice And Freezing Rain	Public assistance
25 Nov 1992	DR-968	Major disaster	Tornado	Severe Storms, High Winds & Tornadoes	Individual assistance
17 May 1991	DR-906	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Individual assistance
3 Jan 1991	DR-888	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Individual assistance
22 Feb 1977	EM-3032	Emergency	Snowstorm	Drought & Freezing	Public assistance
27 Mar 1973	DR-368	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Heavy Rains, Tornadoes & Flooding	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 Webster County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 197824

Paid claims23

Total paid$109K

Average paid claim$5K

Repetitive-loss properties51 severe

Residential policies in force30.1% of 4,282 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
1991	1	1	$2,797	$2,797
1986	1	1	$2,032	$2,032
1984	5	5	$21,567	$4,313
1983	9	9	$47,265	$5,252
1982	6	5	$23,495	$4,699
1979	1	1	$5,960	$5,960
1978	1	1	$5,448	$5,448

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 riskVery Lowscore 12.6 of 100

Expected annual loss$3.9MVery Low

Social vulnerabilityVery High

Community resilienceRelatively Moderate

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Very Low	$1,187,389
Tornado	Relatively Low	$844,493
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$455,914
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$394,104
Heat wave	Relatively Low	$221,690
Drought	Relatively Low	$220,691
Strong wind	Relatively Low	$172,496
Hail	Relatively Low	$147,574
Lightning	Relatively Low	$120,035
Hurricane	Very Low	$90,390
Ice storm	Relatively Low	$43,505
Wildfire	Very Low	$7,004
Winter weather	Very Low	$1,561
Landslide	Very Low	$564

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 miles24

Tracks within 50 miles9

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Katrina	2005	52 mi	58 mph
Erin	1995	91 mi	40 mph
Frederic	1979	78 mi	52 mph
Camille	1969	49 mi	58 mph
Audrey	1957	77 mi	40 mph
Baker	1950	64 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1948	91 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1934	41 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1932	37 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1932	55 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1923	50 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1916	15 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1916	99 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	51 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1912	62 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1906	18 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1901	54 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	35 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1888	92 mi	69 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1881	31 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1879	46 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1860	85 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1860	42 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1855	71 mi	46 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

39744 19

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 Webster County, MS?

NCEI records 66 hail events in Webster County since 1950, in 28 different years; that is about 0.9 recorded events a year. 15 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Webster County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 17 tornadoes in Webster County since 1950, 4 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 4.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Webster County?

6 Feb 2026: Severe Winter Storm, a major disaster declaration for winter storm. The county appears in 22 declarations since 1953.

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

24 NFIP claims since 1978, 23 of them paid, for $109K in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

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

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

How does Webster County compare with the rest of Mississippi?

77.6 recorded events per 100 square miles against 89.7 statewide, and 2.4 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 21.9. 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.