States › Utah › Salt Lake County
Salt Lake County, Utah
Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.
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 523 events for Salt Lake County, Utah, between 1950 and 2026; damaging wind account for the largest share.
That is 70.5 events per 100 square miles, above the Utah figure of 14.7, and 4.4 per 10,000 residents against 36.2 statewide.
24 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 5 deaths and 106 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $215M and crop damage at $581K.
FEMA has designated the county in 12 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Parleys Canyon Fire (fire management assistance, 14 Aug 2021).
National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 406 claims since 1978, of which 225 were paid, totalling $1.7M (about $8K per paid claim). FEMA counts 813 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" ($622M a year across 18 hazards).
Compared with Utah and the United States
| Measure | Salt Lake County | Utah | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded events since 1950 | 523 | 12,095 | 1,977,440 |
| Events per 100 square miles | 70.5 | 14.7 | 56.0 |
| Events per 10,000 residents | 4.4 | 36.2 | 59.6 |
| Events in the last 12 months | 24 | 430 | 62,008 |
| Deaths recorded by NCEI | 5 | 257 | 26,435 |
| Property damage (NCEI estimates) | $215M | $1.1B | $575B |
| NFIP claims per 1,000 residents | 0.3 | 0.4 | 8.1 |
| Average paid NFIP claim | $8K | $12K | $43K |
| Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years | 6.8 | 6.7 | 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
Trend: 289 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 151 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Jul 2002 | Lightning | Lightning | — | — | — | 2 | — | County |
| 11 Aug 1999 | Tornado | Tornado | F2 | $170M | $500K | 1 | 80 | County |
| 24 May 2000 | Lightning | Lightning | — | — | — | 1 | 6 | County |
| 10 Jul 1998 | Lightning | Lightning | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | County |
| 5 Jul 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 67 mph | $50K | $800 | — | 8 | County |
| 26 Jul 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 58 mph | $50K | — | — | 2 | County |
| 7 Aug 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 64 mph | $5K | — | — | 2 | County |
| 3 Aug 2023 | Flash Flood | Flood | — | $16M | — | — | — | County |
| 12 Jun 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 74 mph | $500K | $50K | — | 1 | County |
| 16 Jul 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 64 mph | $100K | — | — | 1 | County |
| 13 Apr 2023 | Debris Flow | Other | — | $50K | — | — | 1 | County |
| 26 Aug 1998 | Lightning | Lightning | — | $10K | — | — | 1 | County |
| 10 Aug 1988 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 0 mph | — | — | — | 1 | County |
| 24 May 2000 | Lightning | Lightning | — | — | — | — | 1 | County |
| 26 Jul 2017 | Flash Flood | Flood | — | $8.8M | — | — | — | County |
| 5 Oct 1994 | Hail | Hail | 1.00 in | $5.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 1 Aug 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 86 mph | $2.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 9 Jun 1998 | Heavy Rain | Other | — | $1.5M | $10K | — | — | County |
| 5 Jun 2010 | Flood | Flood | — | $1.5M | — | — | — | County |
| 15 May 1997 | Flash Flood | Flood | — | $1.2M | — | — | — | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Aug 2021 | FM-5408 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Parleys Canyon Fire | Public assistance |
| 12 Jan 2021 | DR-4578 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Straight-Line Winds | Public assistance |
| 9 Jul 2020 | DR-4548 | Major disaster | Earthquake | Earthquake And Aftershocks | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 4 Apr 2020 | DR-4525 | Major disaster | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 13 Mar 2020 | EM-3478 | Emergency | Biological | Covid-19 | Public assistance |
| 29 Jun 2012 | FM-2991 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Rose Crest Fire | Public assistance |
| 8 Aug 2011 | DR-4011 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding | Public assistance |
| 19 Sep 2010 | FM-2859 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Machine Gun Fire | Public assistance |
| 5 Sep 2005 | EM-3223 | Emergency | Coastal Storm | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Public assistance |
| 16 Aug 1999 | DR-1285 | Major disaster | Tornado | Tornado, Severe Thunderstorms, And Hail | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 17 Aug 1984 | DR-720 | Major disaster | Flood | Severe Storms, Mudslides, Landslides & Flooding | Public assistance |
| 30 Apr 1983 | DR-680 | Major disaster | Flood | Severe Storms, Landslides & 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
| Year of loss | Claims | Paid claims | Amount paid | Average paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 1 | $16,765 | $16,765 |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2024 | 6 | 1 | $4,365 | $4,365 |
| 2023 | 18 | 12 | $95,399 | $7,950 |
| 2022 | 3 | 1 | $20,628 | $20,628 |
| 2021 | 6 | 2 | $7,659 | $3,830 |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2019 | 3 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2017 | 8 | 4 | $32,402 | $8,100 |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2015 | 6 | 2 | $2,730 | $1,365 |
| 2014 | 4 | 3 | $110,259 | $36,753 |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2012 | 2 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2011 | 14 | 8 | $41,780 | $5,222 |
| 2010 | 4 | 2 | $102,681 | $51,340 |
| 2009 | 3 | 1 | $41,707 | $41,707 |
| 2007 | 3 | 2 | $26,329 | $13,165 |
| 2006 | 6 | 3 | $33,670 | $11,223 |
| 2005 | 2 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2004 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2003 | 2 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2001 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 1998 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
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
| Hazard (NRI) | Risk rating | Expected annual loss |
|---|---|---|
| Earthquake | $487,568,473 | |
| Inland flooding | $79,338,744 | |
| Wildfire | $25,182,533 | |
| Avalanche | $11,702,352 | |
| Heat wave | $6,254,619 | |
| Tornado | $3,814,137 | |
| Lightning | $2,529,575 | |
| Winter weather | $2,331,145 | |
| Strong wind | $1,362,073 | |
| Hail | $754,300 | |
| Cold wave | $696,391 | |
| Drought | $143,709 | |
| Landslide | $52,983 | |
| Ice storm | $12,007 | |
| Volcanic activity | $281 |
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
No HURDAT2 track at tropical-storm strength passes within 100 miles of the county's centre point (through the 2025 season).
ZIP codes with flood claims
- 84107 95
- 84116 58
- 84104 27
- 84106 23
- 84105 21
- 84121 19
- 84065 13
- 84111 13
- 84020 12
- 84117 12
- 84108 11
- 84123 11
- 84101 10
- 84124 9
- 84095 8
- 84115 8
- 84093 7
- 84044 6
- 84119 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 Salt Lake County, UT?
NCEI records 121 hail events in Salt Lake County since 1950, in 47 different years; that is about 1.6 recorded events a year. 7 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.
Has Salt Lake County had a tornado?
Yes. NCEI records 14 tornadoes in Salt Lake County since 1950, 2 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 1.
When was the last federal disaster declaration for Salt Lake County?
14 Aug 2021: Parleys Canyon Fire, a fire management assistance declaration for fire. The county appears in 12 declarations since 1953.
How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Salt Lake County, and how much was paid?
406 NFIP claims since 1978, 225 of them paid, for $1.7M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.
Is Salt Lake 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, "Very Low" for social vulnerability and "Relatively High" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.
How does Salt Lake County compare with the rest of Utah?
70.5 recorded events per 100 square miles against 14.7 statewide, and 0.3 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 0.4. 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.