Lake Wales

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 to 2025.

Every large fire

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Flood insurance figures are for Polk County, the county that contains Lake Wales.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges in Polk County, the county that contains Lake Wales.

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

The drought index is for Polk County, the county that contains Lake Wales.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Aug 13, 2004High Wind, Polk$674 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The collective effects of Hurricane Charley in southwest and west central Florida during August 13th resulted in 8 direct fatalities, 16 indirect fatalities, 792 injuries, eight tornadoes, an eight foot storm surge in Lee County, an estimated $11.2 billion in property damage (estimated to be about twice that of the insured damage), and $460 million in crop damage. The fast movement of Hurricane Charley limited rain fall totals to 4 to 6 inches along the track of the hurricane's eye wall. River flooding of one to three feet above flood stage was found on area rivers south of Interstate 4. In Hardee County there were 6 injuries, zero fatalities, and damage was estimated at $750…

2. Sep 25, 2004High Wind, Polk$250 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hurricane Jeanne followed the nearly the same path across Florida as Hurricane Frances three weeks earlier and was the unprecedented fourth hurricane to damage Florida during the 2004 hurricane season. The hurricane moved ashore along the east coast of Florida near Stuart late on September 25th with an eye 30 to 40 miles across. Jeanne took a course north of Lake Okeechobee and decreased to a tropical storm in eastern Polk County around 9 AM EDT on the 26th. The center of Jeanne curved north of Tampa Bay during the afternoon and travelled north along the coastal counties before exiting north through Levy County around 10 PM. In Highlands County there were 140 homes destroyed and…

3. Sep 5, 2004High Wind, Polk$94.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hurricane Frances made landfall just after midnight on September 5th near Vero Beach as a Category 2 storm. The hurricane continued to move slowly west northwestward across central Florida to near Bartow by 2 pm, and just northeast of Tampa by 8 pm, when it was downgraded to a tropical storm. It then emerged back into the Gulf of Mexico near Hudson shortly before midnight. Hurricane Frances took almost 24 hours to move through the Florida peninsula. Frances continued northwestward through the northern gulf of Mexico, making a second landfall on the afternoon of September 6th in the Florida big bend near Tallahassee as a tropical storm. The damage totals listed were caused by trees…

4. Sep 10, 2017Hurricane (Typhoon), Polk$69.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   In Polk County, the highest wind reported from Hurricane Irma was a gust to 75 knots at the APRS station AR663 near Bartow. Rainfall was generally around 6 inches or greater, with the highest rain total being 17.61 inches at the CWOP station E1114 in Davenport. The wind resulted in damage to numerous homes and businesses, as well as knocking over trees and power lines. Most notably, the wind removed a 7 story tall section of facade from the Winter Haven Senior Living Center. Polk County Emergency Management reported that 96 homes or businesses were destroyed by Irma, 1604 sustained major damage, 7710 had minor damage, and an additional 18537 were affected.||The total property…

5. Sep 28, 2022Tropical Storm, Polk$50.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The highest wind reported in Polk County was a gust to 78 mph in Bartow at 1:58 AM EST on September 29. Rainfall generally ranged from 6 to 12 inches, with a maximum total of 12 inches reported in Frostproof. The Peace River in Bartow reached its third highest level on record at 10.8 feet at 6 AM EST on October 2. 192 structures received major damage, 789 received minor damage, with another 1500 structures affected. There were 2 fatalities directly attributed to Hurricane Ian by the medical examiner.

6. Mar 30, 1996Hail$24.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hail, most the size of baseballs and few the size of softballs, severely damaged the roofs and knocked out windows in nearly 600 homes in Lake Wales. The local fire station reported hail covered the ground nearly six inches deep during the peak of the hailstorm which lasted 15 minutes. Most of the damage was on the north side of homes and buildings. Estimated damage to homes and businesses was nearly $15 million dollars.Hail severely damaged the surfaces and knocked out the windshields of up to 3,000 vehicles in the Lake Wales area. Hail damage to vehicles was estimated at nearly $9 million dollars.Several trees were stripped of leaves and small branches by mostly baseball sized…

7. Oct 18, 2019Tornado$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A long, continuous path of damage was found in western Polk County from a tornado, causing extensive EF-2 damage. An NWS survey and subsequent Civil Air Patrol aerial survey found numerous homes and businesses with damage to roofs, fascia, awnings, and screen enclosures, as well as fences and trees knocked down. One home was completely destroyed. Kathleen Middle School sustained significant roof damage, with rain water and sprinkler systems causing additional water damage. A camper was lifted into a residence near the middle school. The tornado crossed Interstate 4, overturning a tractor trailer. No injuries were reported.

8. Dec 27, 1997Tornado$6.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A strong F2 tornado touched down in the Lake Region mobile home park along U.S. Highway 27 and County Road 544 in Polk county. Several mobile homes sustained major to severe damage. Residents of Haines City who heard the tornado described that the sound resembled a high-pitched whine.The F2 tornado moved northeast and travelled across U.S. Highway 27 and caused significant wall and roof damage to several well built wood, mixed brick and mobile homes over mainly south and east Haines City from County Road 544 northeast to County Road 580. The Boone Middle School over eastern Haines City had heavy damage to a main building while eleven portable classrooms were destroyed or heavily…

9. Mar 9, 1998Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado (F0) touched down in rural semi-wooded swampland, seven miles southeast of Lake Wales in Southwest Polk County. Ground survey indicated that the tornado moved northeast across Lake-In-The-Water Road and caused sporadic minor damage to the roofs of a few homes and downed trees and branches in the Oakwood Drive subdivision. The tornado continued northeast, widened to 250 yards and intensified to F2 strength where it destroyed or severely damaged several structures along Doherty Drive.Two mobile homes that took a direct hit from the F2 tornado along Doherty Drive were completely disintegrated with only frame rails and tie downs intact. Meanwhile, in close proximity to the…

10. Jul 1, 2005Flood, Polk$1.6 million
    National Weather Service narrative

    June rainfall of 14 to 18 inches in eastern Polk County had increased lake water levels from Lake Wales to Frostproof. The water levels were already high after three hurricanes moved over the area in 2004. Some lake levels have risen 10 feet during the last 12 months. About 107 manufactured homes have been lost to the flooding. About 175 of the 700 homes at Saddlebag Lake were surrounded by water. The county has begun pumping operations in an attempt to lower lake levels. There are no natural outlets for most of the lakes in eastern Polk County.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

105°FJul 11, 1988

All-time low

16°F2 times, most recently Dec 20, 2000

Warmest night

88°FJun 3, 1990

Coldest day

40°F2 times, most recently Dec 24, 1989

Wettest day

12.52 inJun 24, 1945

Hottest year

2015mean 76.6°F

Coldest year

1968mean 70.8°F

Wettest year

200574.40 in

Driest year

200029.53 in

Station Mountain Lake (USC00085973), 125 ft elevation, 1.2 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1935 to August 31, 2026; 95.2% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

Declarations for Polk County.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00085973.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.