States › Pennsylvania › Monroe County

Monroe 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 42089 · 169,273 residents (2021) · 608 sq mi · dominant hazard Winter

Hail · 53Tornado · 14Flood · 84Wind · 458Winter · 485

Monroe 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.

Monroe County, Pennsylvania, has 1,331 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950, most of them winter storms and snow.

That is 218.8 events per 100 square miles, above the Pennsylvania figure of 121.6, and 78.6 per 10,000 residents against 42.0 statewide.

30 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 12 deaths and 78 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $117M and crop damage at $10.

FEMA has designated the county in 21 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Covid-19 Pandemic (major disaster, 30 Mar 2020).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 436 claims since 1978, of which 330 were paid, totalling $15M (about $45K per paid claim). FEMA counts 356 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" ($57M a year across 18 hazards).

27 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.

30events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

1,331events since 195012 deaths, 78 injuries recorded

21disaster declarationslast 30 Mar 2020

436NFIP flood claims$15M paid

Compared with Pennsylvania and the United States

Measure	Monroe County	Pennsylvania	US
Recorded events since 1950	1,331	54,427	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	218.8	121.6	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	78.6	42.0	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	30	2,028	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	12	901	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$117M	$5.3B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	2.6	5.9	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$45K	$23K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	21.3	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: 1Wind: 1

Hail: 1Wind: 2

Hail: 3Tornado: 5Wind: 1

Hail: 5Tornado: 3Wind: 10

Hail: 10Tornado: 2Flood: 10Wind: 44Winter: 44Heat: 16Cold: 4Drought: 17Lightning: 3Fog: 4Other: 15

Hail: 16Tornado: 2Flood: 26Wind: 132Winter: 198Heat: 15Cold: 22Drought: 20Wildfire: 8Lightning: 16Fog: 6Other: 16

Hail: 15Tornado: 1Flood: 30Wind: 130Winter: 170Tropical: 1Heat: 4Cold: 21Drought: 4Wildfire: 3Lightning: 10Fog: 4Other: 6

Hail: 2Flood: 18Wind: 138Winter: 73Cold: 2Lightning: 2Fog: 10Other: 8

31950s31960s91970s181980s1691990s4772000s3992010s2532020s

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

Trend: 842 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 444 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

Winter485

Wind458

Flood84

Hail53

Cold49

Other45

Drought41

Heat35

Lightning31

Fog24

Tornado14

Wildfire11

Tropical1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Winter	485	5	5.2%	detail
■ Wind	458	—	1.7%	detail
■ Flood	84	2	1.2%	detail
■ Hail	53	—	1.0%	detail
■ Cold	49	1	4.5%
■ Other	45	—	6.5%
■ Drought	41	—	5.1%
■ Heat	35	—	3.3%
■ Lightning	31	3	5.6%
■ Fog	24	—	5.0%
■ Tornado	14	—	1.3%	detail
■ Wildfire	11	—	12.9%
■ Tropical	1	1	1.1%

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
27 Jun 2006	Flood	Flood	—	$16M	—	2	—	County
5 Aug 2012	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	7	County
2 Aug 2002	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	6	County
2 Dec 2007	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	1	3	Forecast zone
14 Jun 2008	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	3	County
12 Feb 2008	Winter Storm	Winter	—	$50K	—	1	1	Forecast zone
28 Aug 2011	Tropical Storm	Tropical	—	$175K	—	1	—	Forecast zone
2 Jan 1999	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
29 Oct 2011	Heavy Snow	Winter	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
26 Dec 2013	Winter Weather	Winter	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
22 Jan 2013	Cold/Wind Chill	Cold	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
13 Jan 1999	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	—	12	Forecast zone
27 Jan 2009	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	—	5	Forecast zone
2 Apr 2005	Flood	Flood	—	$40M	—	—	—	Forecast zone
2 Mar 2009	Winter Weather	Winter	—	—	—	—	4	Forecast zone
5 Dec 2014	Winter Weather	Winter	—	—	—	—	4	Forecast zone
16 Jan 2004	Strong Wind	Wind	46 mph	$11K	—	—	3	Forecast zone
16 Aug 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	85 mph	—	—	—	3	County
19 Jan 2007	Winter Weather	Winter	—	—	—	—	3	Forecast zone
21 Feb 2008	Winter Storm	Winter	—	—	—	—	3	Forecast zone

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
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
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
8 Sep 2011	EM-3340	Emergency	Flood	Remnants Of Tropical Storm Lee	Public assistance
3 Sep 2011	DR-4025	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Irene	Individual assistance, Public assistance
29 Aug 2011	EM-3339	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Irene	Public assistance
30 Jun 2006	DR-1649	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides	Individual assistance, Public assistance
10 Sep 2005	EM-3235	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina	Public assistance
14 Apr 2005	DR-1587	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Individual assistance, 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	—
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
17 Jul 1973	DR-400	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Jun 1972	DR-340	Major disaster	Flood	Tropical Storm Agnes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
19 Aug 1969	DR-273	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
18 Aug 1965	DR-206	Major disaster	Drought	Water Shortage	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 Monroe County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 1978436

Paid claims330

Total paid$15M

Average paid claim$45K

Repetitive-loss properties417 severe

Residential policies in force3560.5% of 72,810 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2024	5	3	$26,790	$8,930
2023	5	3	$74,494	$24,831
2021	40	33	$1,510,731	$45,780
2020	21	16	$1,020,564	$63,785
2019	3	1	$8,835	$8,835
2018	1	0	$0	—
2017	1	1	$2,049	$2,049
2016	2	1	$2,420	$2,420
2015	3	0	$0	—
2014	1	0	$0	—
2013	4	2	$40,387	$20,194
2012	4	3	$25,864	$8,621
2011	25	17	$475,130	$27,949
2010	4	1	$14,316	$14,316
2009	3	2	$2,479	$1,239
2008	4	1	$10,403	$10,403
2007	3	0	$0	—
2006	71	68	$3,895,018	$57,280
2005	63	50	$2,989,556	$59,791
2004	60	53	$3,849,786	$72,637
2003	14	7	$39,748	$5,678
2002	1	1	$35,874	$35,874
2000	2	1	$2,100	$2,100
1999	1	0	$0	—
1998	1	1	$480	$480

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 85.1 of 100

Expected annual loss$57MRelatively Moderate

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Low

Community resilienceRelatively Low

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Moderate	$33,142,552
Cold wave	Relatively High	$11,759,809
Hurricane	Relatively Moderate	$2,778,563
Lightning	Very High	$2,436,822
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$2,254,970
Strong wind	Relatively Moderate	$1,345,477
Heat wave	Relatively Low	$1,167,854
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$1,008,359
Winter weather	Relatively High	$562,496
Ice storm	Relatively Moderate	$300,739
Hail	Very Low	$59,248
Wildfire	Very Low	$52,849
Landslide	Relatively Low	$6,561
Avalanche	Very Low	$109

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 miles27

Tracks within 50 miles5

Hurricane strength within 50 miles1

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Ida	2021	88 mi	40 mph
Fay	2020	80 mi	40 mph
Isaias	2020	16 mi	63 mph
Sandy	2012	92 mi	63 mph
Irene	2011	76 mi	63 mph
Hanna	2008	85 mi	52 mph
Bertha	1996	73 mi	69 mph
David	1979	59 mi	46 mph
Agnes	1972	62 mi	52 mph
Doria	1971	85 mi	52 mph
Brenda	1960	89 mi	58 mph
Diane	1955	58 mi	46 mph
Able	1952	25 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1949	69 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1934	87 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1933	93 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1929	32 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	55 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1903	9 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1899	71 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	79 mi	86 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	69 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1888	69 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1878	31 mi	81 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1874	91 mi	69 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

18341 81
18360 66
18301 38
18356 33
18320 25
18353 19
18325 18
18058 17
18327 17
18372 17
18466 16
18331 15
18330 14
18302 12
18355 11
18346 9
18610 6
18627 6
18354 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 Monroe County, PA?

NCEI records 53 hail events in Monroe County since 1950, in 26 different years; that is about 0.7 recorded events a year. 7 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Monroe County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 14 tornadoes in Monroe County since 1950, 4 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Monroe County?

30 Mar 2020: Covid-19 Pandemic, a major disaster declaration for biological. The county appears in 21 declarations since 1953.

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

436 NFIP claims since 1978, 330 of them paid, for $15M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Monroe 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 "Relatively Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Monroe County compare with the rest of Pennsylvania?

218.8 recorded events per 100 square miles against 121.6 statewide, and 2.6 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.