States › Pennsylvania › Dauphin County

Dauphin County, Pennsylvania

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

FIPS 42043 · 287,400 residents (2021) · 525 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 90Tornado · 19Flood · 78Wind · 422Winter · 71

Dauphin County within Pennsylvania. 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 706 events for Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, between 1950 and 2026; damaging wind account for the largest share.

That is 134.5 events per 100 square miles, in line with the Pennsylvania figure of 121.6, and 24.6 per 10,000 residents against 42.0 statewide.

29 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 8 deaths and 26 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $160M and crop damage at $721K.

FEMA has designated the county in 22 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Remnants Of Hurricane Ida (major disaster, 10 Sep 2021).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 5,248 claims since 1978, of which 4,360 were paid, totalling $86M (about $20K per paid claim). FEMA counts 1,130 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Moderate" and its expected annual loss as "Relatively Moderate" ($100M a year across 18 hazards).

25 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 1 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

29events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

706events since 19508 deaths, 26 injuries recorded

22disaster declarationslast 10 Sep 2021

5,248NFIP flood claims$86M paid

Compared with Pennsylvania and the United States

Measure	Dauphin County	Pennsylvania	US
Recorded events since 1950	706	54,427	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	134.5	121.6	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	24.6	42.0	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	29	2,028	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	8	901	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$160M	$5.3B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	18.3	5.9	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$20K	$23K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	19.0	25.9	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

Hail: 1Tornado: 3

Hail: 2Tornado: 1Wind: 7

Hail: 1Tornado: 2Wind: 12

Hail: 11Wind: 21

Hail: 9Tornado: 3Flood: 9Wind: 69Winter: 10Heat: 1Drought: 4

Hail: 27Tornado: 4Flood: 37Wind: 70Winter: 27Tropical: 1Heat: 4Cold: 2Other: 3

Hail: 22Tornado: 4Flood: 24Wind: 125Winter: 20Heat: 4Cold: 1

Hail: 17Tornado: 2Flood: 8Wind: 118Winter: 14Heat: 3Cold: 1Lightning: 1Other: 1

41950s101960s151970s321980s1051990s1752000s2002010s1652020s

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

Trend: 427 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 220 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

Wind422

Hail90

Flood78

Winter71

Tornado19

Heat12

Cold4

Drought4

Other4

Tropical1

Lightning1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	422	1	1.6%	detail
■ Hail	90	—	1.6%	detail
■ Flood	78	5	1.1%	detail
■ Winter	71	1	0.8%	detail
■ Tornado	19	1	1.7%	detail
■ Heat	12	—	1.1%
■ Cold	4	—	0.4%
■ Drought	4	—	0.5%
■ Other	4	—	0.6%
■ Tropical	1	—	1.1%
■ Lightning	1	—	0.2%

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
7 Sep 2011	Flood	Flood	—	$150M	$700K	4	—	County
28 Aug 2011	Strong Wind	Wind	51 mph	$25K	—	1	1	Forecast zone
1 Dec 2006	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$2.0M	—	1	—	County
22 Jan 2016	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
23 Jul 2018	Flood	Flood	—	—	—	1	—	County
18 Oct 1967	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	11	County
5 Apr 1952	Tornado	Tornado	F0	$250K	—	—	6	County
7 Sep 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	59 mph	—	—	—	4	County
5 Apr 1977	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$2.5M	—	—	1	County
30 Aug 1984	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	1	County
12 Jul 1987	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	1	County
6 Jul 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	1	County
16 Jul 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	79 mph	$1.0M	—	—	—	County
15 Jul 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	$500K	—	—	—	County
1 Jun 2007	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$500K	—	—	—	County
26 Mar 1970	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	—	County
17 Jul 1992	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	—	County
4 Aug 2004	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$200K	—	—	—	County
1 Dec 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	81 mph	$200K	—	—	—	County
14 Jun 2026	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	100 mph	$150K	—	—	—	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
10 Sep 2021	DR-4618	Major disaster	Hurricane	Remnants Of Hurricane Ida	Public assistance
30 Mar 2020	DR-4506	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3441	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
23 Mar 2016	DR-4267	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm	Public assistance
10 Jan 2013	DR-4099	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Sandy	Public assistance
29 Oct 2012	EM-3356	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Sandy	Public assistance
12 Sep 2011	DR-4030	Major disaster	Flood	Tropical Storm Lee	Individual assistance, Public assistance
8 Sep 2011	EM-3340	Emergency	Flood	Remnants Of Tropical Storm Lee	Public assistance
16 Apr 2010	DR-1898	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorms	Public assistance
30 Jun 2006	DR-1649	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides	Individual assistance
10 Sep 2005	EM-3235	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina	Public assistance
19 Sep 2004	DR-1557	Major disaster	Hurricane	Tropical Depression Ivan	Individual assistance, Public assistance
19 Sep 2004	DR-1555	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding Associated With Tropical Depression Frances	—
14 Mar 2003	EM-3180	Emergency	Severe Storm	Snow	Public assistance
22 Sep 1999	DR-1298	Major disaster	Flood	Tropical Depression Dennis Pa	Individual assistance
21 Jan 1996	DR-1093	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Jan 1996	DR-1085	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Blizzard Of 96	Public assistance
10 Mar 1994	DR-1015	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storms	Public assistance
16 Mar 1993	EM-3105	Emergency	Snowstorm	Severe Snowfall & Winter Storm	Public assistance
20 Oct 1976	DR-523	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
26 Sep 1975	DR-485	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, Heavy Rains & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Jun 1972	DR-340	Major disaster	Flood	Tropical Storm Agnes	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 Dauphin County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 19785,248

Paid claims4,360

Total paid$86M

Average paid claim$20K

Repetitive-loss properties77451 severe

Residential policies in force1,1301.2% of 96,874 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2026	3	0	$0	—
2025	1	0	$0	—
2024	2	2	$13,842	$6,921
2022	6	2	$12,762	$6,381
2021	37	28	$330,724	$11,812
2020	2	2	$13,564	$6,782
2019	5	4	$74,017	$18,504
2018	116	97	$2,219,575	$22,882
2017	43	28	$342,115	$12,218
2016	3	1	$11,091	$11,091
2015	2	0	$0	—
2014	2	1	$9,083	$9,083
2013	18	14	$136,452	$9,747
2012	6	2	$17,924	$8,962
2011	1,836	1,639	$51,864,212	$31,644
2010	17	11	$191,095	$17,372
2009	3	2	$14,482	$7,241
2008	15	14	$292,686	$20,906
2007	5	4	$25,952	$6,488
2006	100	92	$2,107,692	$22,910
2005	15	8	$38,806	$4,851
2004	964	870	$14,519,214	$16,689
2003	14	10	$35,027	$3,503
2002	1	0	$0	—
2000	5	1	$504	$504

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 Moderatescore 91.1 of 100

Expected annual loss$100MRelatively Moderate

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Low

Community resilienceVery High

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively High	$74,998,403
Hurricane	Relatively Moderate	$6,928,176
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$4,026,243
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$3,582,197
Heat wave	Relatively Moderate	$2,767,559
Strong wind	Relatively High	$2,612,754
Cold wave	Relatively Moderate	$1,970,724
Winter weather	Very High	$1,411,017
Lightning	Relatively High	$1,118,949
Drought	Relatively Low	$141,412
Ice storm	Relatively Low	$93,874
Hail	Very Low	$88,690
Landslide	Relatively Low	$29,216
Wildfire	Very Low	$24,581
Avalanche	Very Low	$287

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 miles25

Tracks within 50 miles10

Hurricane strength within 50 miles1

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Ida	2021	76 mi	40 mph
Isaias	2020	95 mi	63 mph
Sandy	2012	47 mi	63 mph
Ernesto	2006	36 mi	40 mph
Danielle	1992	73 mi	40 mph
David	1979	79 mi	46 mph
Connie	1955	32 mi	58 mph
Diane	1955	56 mi	40 mph
Hazel	1954	26 mi	81 mph
Able	1952	65 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1949	29 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1943	63 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1934	85 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1933	17 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1929	44 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1928	81 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	57 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1903	83 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1899	57 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	44 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	70 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1888	20 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1885	38 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1878	100 mi	92 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1876	74 mi	58 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

17110 1,422
17057 918
17104 623
17111 341
17018 303
17034 251
17036 211
17113 176
17102 149
17112 142
17033 141
17101 125
17048 96
17061 84
17103 63
17109 48
17032 45
17017 27
17105 16
17108 14
17100 7

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 Dauphin County, PA?

NCEI records 90 hail events in Dauphin County since 1950, in 28 different years; that is about 1.2 recorded events a year. 11 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Dauphin County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 19 tornadoes in Dauphin County since 1950, 4 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 1.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Dauphin County?

10 Sep 2021: Remnants Of Hurricane Ida, a major disaster declaration for hurricane. The county appears in 22 declarations since 1953.

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

5,248 NFIP claims since 1978, 4,360 of them paid, for $86M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

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

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

How does Dauphin County compare with the rest of Pennsylvania?

134.5 recorded events per 100 square miles against 121.6 statewide, and 18.3 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 5.9. 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.