County Hazards

States › Oklahoma

Oklahoma

The recorded hazard history of every county in Oklahoma: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, and National Flood Insurance Program claims since 1978.

Oklahoma has 82,919 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950 across 77 counties, led by hail: 120.9 per 100 square miles against 56.0 nationally.

NCEI attributes 705 deaths and 8,371 injuries to those events, with property damage estimated at $9.6B. By events per 100 square miles the leading counties are Tulsa, Oklahoma and Cleveland.

FEMA lists 259 disaster declarations touching the state since 1953, most recently Train Trestle Fire (13 Aug 2026). NFIP policyholders filed 12,998 flood claims since 1978, $261M paid; 6,994 residential policies are in force.

2,570events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026
82,919events since 1950120.9 per 100 sq mi (US 56.0)
259disaster declarations since 1953last 13 Aug 2026
12,998NFIP flood claims$261M paid

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. Storm records through 30 Jun 2026; declarations refreshed 29 Sep 2026; claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Compared with the United States

MeasureOklahomaUS
Recorded events since 195082,9191,977,440
Events per 100 square miles120.956.0
Events per 10,000 residents208.059.6
Deaths recorded by NCEI70526,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)$9.6B$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents3.38.1
Average paid NFIP claim$24K$43K
Residential flood policies in force6,9943,139,862

Hazard mix

Hail31,601
Wind24,413
Drought6,658
Tornado5,054
Heat4,699
Flood4,346
Winter3,990
Cold639
Wildfire604
Lightning377
Fog314
Other223
Tropical1
HazardEventsShare of USDeaths
■ Hail31,6017.4%—
■ Wind24,4133.5%23
■ Drought6,6587.8%—
■ Tornado5,0546.2%364
■ Heat4,6998.3%106
■ Flood4,3462.4%91
■ Winter3,9901.4%78
■ Cold6391.2%9
■ Wildfire6046.3%18
■ Lightning3772.1%13
■ Fog3141.7%2
■ Other2230.5%1
■ Tropical10.0%—

Events by decade

Hail: 266Tornado: 579Wind: 262
Hail: 999Tornado: 615Wind: 557
Hail: 692Tornado: 476Wind: 713
Hail: 3655Tornado: 522Wind: 1918
Hail: 8798Tornado: 723Flood: 657Wind: 5501Winter: 574Heat: 86Cold: 105Drought: 16Lightning: 188Fog: 85Other: 34
Hail: 8092Tornado: 530Flood: 1289Wind: 6276Winter: 1550Tropical: 1Heat: 310Cold: 8Drought: 1137Wildfire: 91Lightning: 148Fog: 206Other: 148
Hail: 5030Tornado: 972Flood: 1708Wind: 5145Winter: 1226Heat: 534Cold: 83Drought: 3239Wildfire: 233Lightning: 29Fog: 21Other: 28
Hail: 4069Tornado: 637Flood: 692Wind: 4041Winter: 640Heat: 3769Cold: 443Drought: 2266Wildfire: 280Lightning: 12Fog: 2Other: 13
1,1071950s2,1711960s1,8811970s6,0951980s16,7671990s19,7862000s18,2482010s16,8642020s
Recorded events in Oklahoma by decade and hazard group, including events recorded by forecast zone. HailTornadoFloodWindWinterTropicalHeatColdDroughtWildfireLightningFogOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Counties by events per 100 square miles

CountyEventsLast 12 moPer 100 sq miPer 10k residentsDominantTornadoesHailDeclarationsNFIP claimsNRI risk
Tulsa County2,68173470.239.8Hail981,110403,822Relatively High
Oklahoma County2,884106406.836.1Hail1411,273521,715Relatively High
Cleveland County1,86357345.762.6Hail11386643400Relatively Moderate
Washington County84019202.2159.2Hail3528533372Relatively Low
McClain County1,04733183.5240.6Hail844184449Relatively Low
Jackson County1,45735181.5588.0Hail83608307Relatively Moderate
Kay County1,62771176.9372.0Hail10356836346Relatively Low
Canadian County1,57866176.097.6Hail11072640232Relatively Moderate
Marshall County63622171.2407.8Hail37216188Relatively Low
Murray County71129170.8518.3Hail46224267Very Low
Rogers County1,14540169.4118.4Wind8337831247Relatively Low
Ottawa County79519168.9262.0Hail46233341,161Relatively Low
Payne County1,14350166.9139.4Hail5941239100Relatively Moderate
Comanche County1,74265162.9142.7Hail6578636835Relatively Moderate
Wagoner County87520155.7104.1Wind6327434341Relatively Low
Stephens County1,34135154.1310.9Hail705983591Relatively Low
Mayes County99920152.4255.1Hail9334331122Relatively Low
Logan County1,11644150.1219.3Hail6242747460Relatively Low
Garfield County1,57465148.7254.2Hail806252581Relatively Moderate
Tillman County1,29546148.71,830.1Hail91455365Very Low
Harmon County79823148.53,300.2Hail382862027Very Low
Pontotoc County1,04345144.8273.3Hail734012422Relatively Low
Pawnee County80714142.0512.7Hail34278366Relatively Low
Carter County1,16632141.8241.5Hail655153384Relatively Low
Grady County1,54655140.5278.5Hail9665337229Relatively Low
Okmulgee County95517136.9259.2Hail6033640111Relatively Low
Kiowa County1,38046136.01,640.9Hail956243622Very Low
Love County69827135.8683.2Hail35265261Very Low
Muskogee County1,10115135.8166.4Wind6436734260Relatively Moderate
McIntosh County83917135.7436.0Hail61321313Relatively Low
Greer County84438132.01,538.2Hail46334224Very Low
Creek County1,25126131.7173.7Hail7851247259Relatively Moderate
Cotton County81126128.21,479.9Hail453013717Very Low
Garvin County1,02435127.7396.8Hail694013365Relatively Low
Sequoyah County86019127.7217.7Hail603023146Relatively Low
Beckham County1,13861126.2516.2Hail75453288Relatively Low
Caddo County1,61231126.2611.3Hail1307134444Relatively Low
Cherokee County92725123.7194.6Wind5227628106Relatively Low
Pottawatomie County96136122.0131.6Hail9536044153Relatively Moderate
Kingfisher County1,08834121.1715.6Hail8340135288Relatively Low
Okfuskee County7348118.7655.5Hail59277402Very Low
Seminole County74536117.7316.1Hail612713344Relatively Low
Custer County1,13740115.0403.7Wind733853219Relatively Low
Nowata County64911114.7697.6Wind431583113Very Low
Lincoln County1,08137113.5319.5Hail964464527Relatively Low
Johnston County72835113.2706.7Hail46243214Very Low
Woodward County1,36450109.8675.1Hail655173146Very Low
Washita County1,10033109.71,007.8Hail54450375Very Low
Jefferson County83030109.41,526.3Hail42304306Very Low
Alfalfa County94336108.81,651.5Hail533433037Very Low
Adair County6229108.4320.4Hail441962925Relatively Low
Noble County78534107.3718.0Hail48236294Relatively Low
Delaware County78212106.0190.7Wind6626133115Relatively Moderate
Haskell County5965103.3513.7Hail33201346Very Low
Coal County5092798.5964.7Hail31150272Very Low
Craig County7331396.3519.3Wind512243146Relatively Low
Grant County9605495.92,323.9Hail80380329Very Low
Bryan County8632795.4183.2Hail402832526Relatively Low
Dewey County9514195.12,153.0Hail54336350Very Low
Major County8904293.21,160.7Hail543283318Very Low
Le Flore County1,4592691.8301.0Hail785513243Relatively Moderate
Woods County1,1793691.61,373.6Wind573932511Very Low
Blaine County8293089.3968.2Hail48312337Very Low
Pittsburg County1,1251386.2257.8Hail874333326Relatively Low
Harper County8933886.02,808.2Hail32368192Relatively Low
Roger Mills County9702885.02,864.7Hail57448320Very Low
Ellis County1,0212182.92,714.0Hail82424293Very Low
Latimer County592682.0628.0Hail31194303Very Low
Texas County1,6533081.0792.2Wind76571213Relatively Low
Hughes County6382079.3475.9Hail41220272Very Low
Osage County1,7404277.5380.1Hail1186724296Relatively Low
Choctaw County5781975.0404.0Hail31200226Relatively Low
Atoka County7233974.1504.7Hail54259287Very Low
Beaver County1,3403573.82,690.8Hail78594281Very Low
McCurtain County1,2363666.8400.2Hail714392254Relatively Low
Pushmataha County7381352.9682.4Hail48298291Very Low
Cimarron County9552152.04,248.2Wind56286180Relatively Low

Events are county-recorded plus zone-recorded events whose zone is named for the county. NRI risk is FEMA's National Risk Index overall rating (December 2025).

Counties by flood claims per 100 policies in force

CountyClaims, last 10 yearsPolicies in forceClaims per 100 policiesClaims since 1978Paid
Muskogee County10913183.2260$16M
Ottawa County7218938.11,161$31M
Washington County3818121.0372$8.6M
Wagoner County4022218.0341$9.7M
Comanche County7743517.7835$23M
Tulsa County2621,55316.93,822$71M
Rogers County3825215.1247$6.0M
Canadian County2821912.8232$3.6M
Pottawatomie County101158.7153$2.4M
Payne County101178.5100$1.2M
Oklahoma County951,2517.61,715$25M
Cleveland County406096.6400$7.3M
Creek County61015.9259$3.0M

Counties with at least 100 residential policies in force. Claims by year of loss in the ten years to 2026, divided by residential policies in force as of 3 Aug 2026; a rough ratio, since policies in force today differ from those in force when the losses occurred.

Federal disaster declarations by year

195319902026
Declarations touching Oklahoma by year declared, 1953 to 2026; each disaster number counted once.
Incident typeDeclarations
Fire139
Severe Storm51
Flood23
Biological17
Tornado13
Severe Ice Storm12
Human Cause2
Snowstorm1
Hurricane1

Most recent declarations (each disaster number once, with the number of counties designated):

DeclaredNumberTypeIncidentTitleCounties
13 Aug 2026FM-5669Fire management assistanceFireTrain Trestle Fire2
22 Mar 2026FM-5628Fire management assistanceFireJumping Juniper Fire1
22 Mar 2026FM-5627Fire management assistanceFireDibble Creek Fire1
19 Mar 2026FM-5626Fire management assistanceFireBuck Horn Fire1
15 Mar 2026FM-5624Fire management assistanceFire1170 Road Fire1
19 Feb 2026FM-5621Fire management assistanceFireRattlesnake Fire2
19 Feb 2026FM-5620Fire management assistanceFireHospital Road Fire1
17 Feb 2026FM-5618Fire management assistanceFire43 Fire1
17 Feb 2026FM-5617Fire management assistanceFireRanger Road Fire1
17 Feb 2026FM-5616Fire management assistanceFireStevens Fire2
19 Dec 2025FM-5615Fire management assistanceFireSunny Fire1
21 May 2025DR-4866Major disasterFireWildfires And Straight-Line Winds7
19 Mar 2025FM-5572Fire management assistanceFire328 Fire1
18 Mar 2025DR-4862Major disasterSevere StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding8
15 Mar 2025FM-5569Fire management assistanceFireNorge Fire1

Flood insurance claims by year

197820022026
NFIP claims in Oklahoma by year of loss, 1978 to 2026.

12,998 claims, 10,676 paid, $261M in total; 949 repetitive-loss and 173 severe repetitive-loss properties. ZIP codes in Oklahoma with flood claims (222).

Year by year

Each year's events, declarations and claims: 2026 · 2025 · 2024 · 2023 · 2022 · 2021 · 2020 · 2019 · 2018 · 2017 · 2016 · 2015 · 2014 · 2013 · 2012 · 2011 · 2010 · 2009 · 2008 · 2007 · 2006 · 2005 · 2004 · 2003 · 2002 · 2001 · 2000 · 1999 · 1998 · 1997 · and earlier years back to 1950

Questions and answers

Which Oklahoma counties have the most recorded tornadoes?

Oklahoma (141), Caddo (130) and Osage (118), by NCEI count since 1950. Larger counties record more events; the state table also ranks by events per 100 square miles.

Which Oklahoma counties have the most flood insurance claims?

Tulsa (3,822), Oklahoma (1,715) and Ottawa (1,161) since 1978, in the OpenFEMA NFIP claims file.

How many federal disaster declarations has Oklahoma had?

259 declarations since 1953 (major disaster, emergency and fire management assistance declarations combined), 10 of them in 2026 so far.

How does Oklahoma compare with the national rate?

120.9 recorded events per 100 square miles against 56.0 nationally; 3.3 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 8.1.

Provenance

NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 refreshed 29 Sep 2026; OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026); FEMA National Risk Index December 2025; US Census Bureau 2021 population and area. Built 30 Sep 2026. Methodology.