County Hazards

States › West Virginia › 1998

West Virginia, 1998

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

780events recorded784 in 1997
7deaths recorded16 injuries
$82Mproperty damage (estimates)$2.8M crop damage
1disaster declarations496 NFIP claims, $6.7M 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

Wind205
Heat118
Flood113
Hail112
Winter96
Cold40
Drought38
Other34
Tornado17
Lightning7

Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 1998 was 780 against 784 in 1997.

Counties with the most recorded events

CountyEvents in 1998
Marshall County27
Braxton County21
Berkeley County20
Harrison County20
Jefferson County20
Raleigh County20
Kanawha County19
Monongalia County19
Preston County18
McDowell County17
Mason County17
Randolph County17
Tyler County17
Wood County17
Cabell County16
Fayette County16
Jackson County16
Nicholas County16
Doddridge County15
Hampshire County15
Lewis County15
Morgan County15
Putnam County15
Ritchie County15
Webster County15

Notable events

DateCountyEvent typeMagnitudeProperty damageDeathsInjuries
27 Jan 1998RaleighHeavy Snow—$5,000,0002—
28 Jun 1998KanawhaFlash Flood—$5,000,0002—
3 Feb 1998MercerHeavy Rain—$80,0002—
27 Jan 1998MonroeHeavy Snow—$30,00011
2 Jun 1998HampshireTornadoF1$100,000—5
3 Feb 1998RaleighWinter Storm—$3,500,000—4
27 Jan 1998McDowellHeavy Snow—$2,000,000—1
24 May 1998HarrisonTornadoF1$600,000—1
19 Jun 1998LewisFlash Flood—$600,000—1
2 Jun 1998MasonTornadoF1$75,000—1
27 Jun 1998GilmerThunderstorm Wind—$10,000—1
13 Jun 1998BraxtonThunderstorm Wind—$5,000—1
30 Jun 1998WetzelFlash Flood—$10,000,000——
2 Jun 1998PrestonTornadoF2$5,000,000——
2 Jun 1998KanawhaHail2.00 in$6,000,000——
28 Jun 1998MarionFlash Flood—$5,000,000——
28 Jun 1998WoodFlash Flood—$4,000,000——
28 Jun 1998JacksonFlash Flood—$4,000,000——
27 Jan 1998FayetteHeavy Snow—$3,000,000——
2 Jun 1998KanawhaThunderstorm Wind—$3,000,000——
2 Jun 1998KanawhaHail1.50 in$2,000,000——
3 Feb 1998FayetteWinter Storm—$1,500,000——
27 Jan 1998NicholasHeavy Snow—$1,000,000——
27 Jan 1998WyomingHeavy Snow—$1,000,000——
2 Jun 1998KanawhaHail1.75 in$1,000,000——
6 Feb 1998MercerHeavy Snow—$900,000——
16 Jun 1998BraxtonHail1.75 in$800,000——
16 Jun 1998HarrisonHail2.75 in$750,000——
28 Jun 1998LewisFlash Flood—$750,000——
28 Jun 1998RoaneFlash Flood—$750,000——
26 Jun 1998RitchieFlash Flood—$550,000——
16 Jun 1998BraxtonHail1.75 in$500,000——
24 May 1998MercerLightning—$500,000——
28 Jun 1998PleasantsFlash Flood—$500,000——
28 Jun 1998RitchieFlash Flood—$500,000——
27 Jun 1998WoodThunderstorm Wind72 mph$450,000——
6 Feb 1998GreenbrierHeavy Snow—$400,000——
24 May 1998CabellFlash Flood—$275,000——
27 Jan 1998WebsterHeavy Snow—$250,000——
24 May 1998CabellHail1.25 in$250,000——

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
1 Jul 1998DR-1229Major disasterSevere StormSevere Storms And Flooding21

Flood insurance claims with a 1998 date of loss

496 NFIP claims, 421 of them paid, for $6,735,120.

Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (29 Sep 2026); OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 (8 Sep 2026). Built 30 Sep 2026.