States › Massachusetts › 1981
Massachusetts, 1981
The year's recorded storm events, federal disaster declarations and flood insurance claims.
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.
Events by hazard
Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 1981 was 19 against 6 in 1980.
Counties with the most recorded events
| County | Events in 1981 |
|---|---|
| Worcester County | 6 |
| Franklin County | 3 |
| Barnstable County | 2 |
| Middlesex County | 2 |
| Berkshire County | 1 |
| Dukes County | 1 |
| Essex County | 1 |
| Hampden County | 1 |
| Plymouth County | 1 |
| Suffolk County | 1 |
Notable events
| Date | County | Event type | Magnitude | Property damage | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Jun 1981 | Worcester | Tornado | F3 | $25,000 | — | 3 |
Up to 40 events with deaths, injuries, damage of $50,000 or more, or a tornado rating, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage.
Federal disaster declarations in 1981
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Dec 1981 | DR-650 | Major disaster | Fire | Urban Fire | 1 |
Flood insurance claims with a 1981 date of loss
199 NFIP claims, 122 of them paid, for $380,322.
Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (1 Oct 2026); OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 (8 Sep 2026). Built 1 Oct 2026.