County Hazards

States › Massachusetts › 1998

Massachusetts, 1998

The year's recorded storm events, federal disaster declarations and flood insurance claims.

659events recorded561 in 1997
5deaths recorded19 injuries
$25Mproperty damage (estimates)
1disaster declarations650 NFIP claims, $5.0M paid
← 19971999 →

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

Wind359
Other93
Flood70
Hail55
Winter48
Lightning18
Heat16

Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 1998 was 659 against 561 in 1997.

Counties with the most recorded events

CountyEvents in 1998
Worcester County35
Middlesex County34
Barnstable County33
Berkshire County25
Bristol County23
Norfolk County23
Hampden County20
Dukes County19
Essex County19
Nantucket County19
Franklin County18
Suffolk County14
Hampshire County11
Plymouth County11

Notable events

DateCountyEvent typeMagnitudeProperty damageDeathsInjuries
31 May 1998WorcesterThunderstorm Wind70 mph$15,0002—
12 Mar 1998Forecast zoneWinter Weather——2—
26 Nov 1998Forecast zoneStrong Wind——1—
23 Jul 1998MiddlesexLightning—$70,000—11
1 Dec 1998Forecast zoneStrong Wind—$10,000—3
31 May 1998MiddlesexThunderstorm Wind69 mph$10,000—1
27 Jun 1998Forecast zoneStrong Wind—$2,000—1
24 Feb 1998Forecast zoneStrong Wind—$1,250—1
18 Jun 1998WorcesterLightning———1
23 Jul 1998MiddlesexLightning———1
31 May 1998WorcesterThunderstorm Wind92 mph$10,000,000——
13 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998Forecast zoneFlood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998SuffolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998EssexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998EssexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998WorcesterFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998NorfolkFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
13 Jun 1998BristolFlash Flood—$570,000——
14 Jun 1998BristolFlash Flood—$570,000——
14 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
14 Jun 1998MiddlesexFlash Flood—$570,000——
14 Jun 1998EssexFlash Flood—$570,000——
14 Jun 1998EssexFlash Flood—$570,000——
9 Mar 1998Forecast zoneFlood—$300,000——
1 Oct 1998Forecast zoneStrong Wind—$250,000——
29 Jan 1998Forecast zoneCoastal Flood—$200,000——
20 Jul 1998NorfolkLightning—$100,000——
20 Jun 1998FranklinFlash Flood—$75,000——
1 Jun 1998NorfolkLightning—$60,000——

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 1998

DeclaredNumberTypeIncidentTitleCounties
23 Jun 1998DR-1224Major disasterFloodHeavy Rains And Flooding7

Flood insurance claims with a 1998 date of loss

650 NFIP claims, 423 of them paid, for $5,021,015.

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.