Lancaster

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 Fairfield County, the county that contains Lancaster.

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.

The drought index is for Fairfield County, the county that contains Lancaster.

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.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 14, 2008High Wind, Fairfield$16.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Strong winds of 40 to 50 miles per hour were sustained for several hours. A gust to 65 mph was recorded in Baltimore. Widespread damage occurred across the region, from trees being blown down on powerlines, to significant crop losses and structural damage. One person was killed by a falling limb outside of Lancaster.

2. May 8, 1996Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Three dozen families evacuated from homes around Buckeye Lake due to high water.

3. Jan 6, 1996Winter Storm, Fairfield$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Blizzard of '96 developed near the Gulf Coast and moved up the East Coast. This massive system produced the greatest total and 24 hour snowfall at Greater Cincinnati\Northern Kentucky airport. This one storm brought 14.3 inches of snowfall to the airport which normally receives 23 inches for an entire season. The heaviest snow fell near the Ohio river in the extreme south. The worst blizzard conditions occurred over West Central areas as dry and powdery snow was blown around by high winds causing whiteouts. Some areas had more than 30 continuous hours of snowfall, and many people in Southern Ohio felt this was the worst winter storm since the Blizzard of '78. In Fayette…

4. Apr 5, 2023Tornado$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The first sign of tornadic damage was observed along Election House Road NW, where an outbuilding lost several metal panels from the roof. These panels were found embedded within the trees of the neighboring property across the road. Additional tree damage and light structure damage was observed there. The tornado then crossed Rainbow Drive NW, with a clear path of tree damage observed on both sides of the road. Damage of similar intensity was found on the west and east sides of Lancaster Kirkersville Rd NW. The tornado then crossed Coonpath Road NW, between Stringtown Road NW and Lancaster Kirkersville Rd NW. Additional minor structure damage was observed at several properties…

5. Apr 5, 2023Tornado$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tree and light structure damage was first observed at a property to the west of Lancaster Thornville Road NE, shortly after entering the town of Pleasantville. Due to the expansive fields southwest of town, this is believed to be the starting point for this brief and weak tornado. The tornado cut a path across South Main Street, through the southern portions of the town. Along South Main Street, lofted metal roof panels were observed scattered in nearby powerlines and trees. Farther to the east, between South Main Street and Lincoln Avenue, numerous trees were either snapped or uprooted. Light structure damage was also observed on Pleasant Court. The tornado entered nearby fields…

6. May 3, 2022Hail$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous houses in the Lancaster area had siding and roof damage caused by the large hail.

7. Sep 23, 2000Tornado$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down in the eastern part of the county causing damage to a home and garage.

8. May 3, 2022Hail$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous houses in the Baltimore area had siding and roof damage caused by the large hail.

9. Jul 27, 2025Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flash flooding along Fetters Run near College Avenue caused damage to the roadway, as well as significant damage to the Lancaster Festival stages, equipment, and vehicles.

10. Feb 28, 2011Tornado$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The tornado touched down south of Millersport near the intersection of Millersport Road and Canal Road where tree damage was observed. The tornado then continued to the east and directly hit a farm on the north side of Canal Road. At this location, metal grain bins were tossed and rolled and trees were uprooted. A masonry wall was also flattened and numerous objects were impaled into the ground as well. A newly constructed barn had the roof removed and numerous pieces of sheet metal were strewn into adjoining fields. The tornado then continued on and hit two residences on Lake Road. A modular home had the roof completely removed and tossed and trees were uprooted. A barn was…

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

100°FJul 7, 2012

All-time low

−21°FJan 27, 2003

Warmest night

77°F3 times, most recently Jun 16, 2022

Coldest day

5°F2 times, most recently Jan 28, 2014

Wettest day

3.07 inJun 23, 2016

Hottest year

2024mean 55.5°F

Coldest year

1997mean 50.2°F

Wettest year

201153.16 in

Driest year

199926.28 in

Station Lancaster Fairfield County Airport (USW00053844), 849 ft elevation, 3.8 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1996 to October 27, 2026; 99.2% 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 Fairfield 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 USW00053844.
• 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.