Boston

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.

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 Suffolk County, the county that contains Boston.

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 Suffolk County, the county that contains Boston.

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.

High tide flooding

Tide gauges in Suffolk County.

1. High tide flooding days are days on which a NOAA tide gauge recorded water at or above NOAA's minor flood threshold, set from the gauge's tide range, counted by meteorological year (May to April). These are the counts in NOAA's annual high tide flooding reports; they are not National Weather Service flood stages. Years with less than 80 percent of data are left out.

NOAA CO-OPS high tide flooding counts, through April 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

The drought index is for Suffolk County, the county that contains Boston.

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.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the city centre.
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Tsunamis

Tsunami records for Suffolk County.

1. Places where NOAA's Global Historical Tsunami Database records a tsunami's water arriving, with the greatest height it reached above sea level at the time. Only tsunamis NOAA rates probable or definite are counted. Heights from eyewitness accounts and tide gauges are mixed, and older events are less completely recorded.

NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Mar 5, 2001Flood, Suffolk$15.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A major winter storm impacted the Bay State with near blizzard conditions, high winds, and coastal flooding. The slow-moving storm, which tracked south of New England, dumped over two feet of snow across the interior, knocked out power to about 80,000 customers, and shut down businesses and schools for several days. There were also many reports of downed trees and wires during the height of the storm, along with reports of lightning and thunder. Hundreds of flights at Logan International Airport were canceled, as were flights at other nearby airports. In magnitude, it was the worst storm to affect the state since 1992, and a state of emergency was in effect for three days. After…

2. Mar 14, 2010Flood$10.7 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rains resulted in flooding across much of Boston. This flooding resulted in damage to the collections at both the Bostonian Society and the Massachusetts Historical Society. In addition, several roads in Dorchester and Revere were closed. A portion of the MBTA Green line was closed between Fenway Park and Kenmore for several hours on Monday due to a flooded tunnel. A portion of the MBTA Red line was closed between Ashmont and Fields Corner because of flooded tracks. Passengers were transported by bus.

3. Oct 21, 1996Flash Flood$10.0 million
4. Jan 7, 1996Heavy Snow, Suffolk$7.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An intense East Coast low pressure system moved northeast from eastern Georgia passing along the coast of the Carolinas and then close to 40 degrees North and 70 degrees West. This storm was one of the most significant winter storms to hit southern New England in the past 20 years and was named "The Blizzard of '96" as it dumped record snowfalls from the mid-Atlantic states to southern New England. Technically, this storm only reached a true blizzard by National Weather Service criteria for a few hours in a small section of eastern Massachusetts around South Weymouth during the early morning hours on January 8th. Very heavy snowfall, which was measured in feet, was the main effect…

5. Jun 27, 2008Lightning$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lightning struck the penthouse of a seven story building on Beacon Street in the Back Bay section of Boston, setting it on fire. Four firefighters were sent to the hospital with minor burns and heat exhaustion.

6. Jul 28, 2014Tornado$4.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado touched down in Chelsea, where a window was blown out on Dudley Street. However, the overwhelming majority of damage occurred in Revere. Most of the damage was rated EF-1, but EF-2 rated damage did occur near Revere Beach Parkway. ||From Chelsea, the tornado moved across the Chelsea River, directly across the Paul Cronin Memorial Skating Rink. Portions of the rink's roof were blown northeastward across Route 16. Numerous houses on Revere Beach Parkway were damaged, with one roof blown completely off. In that same area, large oak trees were snapped in half. Numerous trees were downed, some of which were lifted up and then deposited on top of houses immediately behind…

7. Aug 28, 2011Tropical Storm, Suffolk$3.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Two trees were downed onto a house in West Roxbury. Numerous trees, branches, and wires were downed in Boston, including on Sierra Road, Centre, Corey, West Belden, Beacon, Arlington, Washington, and Faraday Streets, and Oak Place. At least one of these trees was downed onto a house, resulting in damage. An awning was blown off a building on West Street. A light pole was downed onto a truck in Boston. A wall collapsed at a building on Marginal Street in Chelsea. This wall took down the main structural beams and the building was subsequently condemned and demolished. A tree was downed in Roslindale, near the Needham line.||The Automated Surface Observing System at Logan…

8. Oct 29, 2012High Wind, Suffolk$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Automated Surface Observing System at Logan International Airport in East Boston (KBOS) recorded sustained winds of 41 mph and gusts to 62 mph. In Boston, a tree was downed into a house on Waldemar Avenue. Trees were downed on the Arborway, and Ashley, St. Botolph and Garrison Streets. Trees were downed onto two houses on Dow Road. A tree was downed onto a house at the intersection of Everett and Harvester Streets. A billboard was blown off its support structure. A couple of windows were blown out of a building at Clarendon and Stuart Streets. The siding of a house on Harrison Street was blown off. A tree was downed onto a car on Queensberry Street. In Brighton, a large tree…

9. Oct 29, 2012Coastal Flood, Suffolk$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   In Winthrop, minor coastal flooding occurred with the morning high tide with rocks from the seawall being pushed onto Winthrop Shore Drive. Shirley Street and other adjacent streets were flooded with one and a half feet of storm surge. In addition, four boats broke loose from their moorings. In Boston, minor coastal flooding closed the ramp for Morissey Boulevard (exit 14) off of Interstate 93. Minor coastal flooding also occurred at Columbia Point over the Harborwalk. The Savin Hill beach was washed over the seawall.

10. Apr 1, 1997Heavy Snow, Suffolk / Also Part Of Norfolk$2.5 million
    National Weather Service narrative

    A low pressure system which formed off the New Jersey coast during the early morning hours of March 31st intensified rapidly as it moved to a position 60 miles south of Newport, Rhode Island. This system retreated to the south during the early morning hours of April 1st, pulling in cold air from the north. The center then moved slowly eastward. Heavy snow and strong winds produced blizzard or near-blizzard conditions across most of Massachusetts, with the exception of the Islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. Northeast winds gusting to 30 to 50 mph were reported. Snowfall totals of 20 to 30 inches were common from a Plymouth to Taunton line northwestward to the Berkshires.…

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

103°FJul 22, 2011

All-time low

−14°FFeb 15, 1943

Warmest night

83°F2 times, most recently Jul 21, 2019

Coldest day

6°F2 times, most recently Jan 8, 1968

Wettest day

7.06 inAug 19, 1955

Snowiest day

23.6 in2 times, most recently Jan 29, 2022

Hottest year

2021mean 54.6°F

Coldest year

1940mean 48.5°F

Wettest year

195462.32 in

Driest year

196523.71 in

Snowiest season

110.6 in2014-15

Station Boston (USW00014739), 11 ft elevation, 1.6 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1936 to October 27, 2026; 100.0% 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 Suffolk 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 USW00014739.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Tide gauges NOAA CO-OPS high tide flooding counts, 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.
• Tsunamis NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database.
• 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.