Sheridan

Population 20,015 (2025)

11 tornadoes have tracked within 25 miles of Sheridan since 1950, 0 of them rated EF3 or F3 or stronger; the most recent was on June 10, 2004.

Hazard fingerprint for Sheridan Tornado: 10th percentile. Tropical: 0th percentile. Wildfire: 86th percentile. Flood: 12th percentile. Hail & wind: 15th percentile. Heat: 0th percentile. Cold: 16th percentile. Winter: 94th percentile. TORTROPFIREFLOODSEVEREHEATCOLDWINTER

Hazard fingerprint Each spoke is this county’s percentile among U.S. counties where that hazard occurs. How it is computed

2026
  • Tornado damage paths within 25 miles since 195011
  • Wildfire burn scars within 25 miles since 198415

At a glance

Tornado paths within 25 miles, tropical cyclone tracks within 100 miles and wildfire perimeters within 25 miles of the city centre. Storm events, flood insurance claims and disaster declarations are for Sheridan County. Earthquakes within 50 miles, volcanoes within 100 miles and smoke days are measured from the city centre; river and tide gauges, tsunami and landslide records and the drought index are for Sheridan County.

Large wildfires within 25 mi

15

Largest: Elk, 2024

Details

Flood insurance claims

74

Sheridan County

$293,000 paid since 1978

Details

Tornadoes since 1950, within 25 mi

11

0 rated F3/EF3 or stronger

Details

Strongest tornado

F1

June 21, 1984, 2.0 mile path

Federal disaster declarations

7

Most recent: Elk Fire, 2024

Details

Record high

109°F

July 12, 2026

Details

Record low

−37°F

December 24, 1983

Details

Costliest event since 1996

$520K

Flood, May 20, 2011

Details

Tornadoes

About one every 6.9 years since 1950, none rated F3/EF3 or stronger.

Strongest

June 21, 1984

F1, 2.0 mile path

50 yards wide.

Most recent

Thursday, June 10, 2004

F0, 3.6 mile path

22 years ago.

Tornadoes by decade, within 25 miles Doppler radar era² 1950s: 0 1960s: 2 2 1970s: 2 2 1980s: 2 2 1990s: 4 4 2000s: 1 1 2010s: 0 2020s: 0 1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
Recorded tornadoes per decade. The 2020s are incomplete.
Tornadoes by month J: 0 F: 0 M: 0 A: 0 M: 2 J: 9 9 J: 0 A: 0 S: 0 O: 0 N: 0 D: 0 JFMAMJJASOND
By month of occurrence, all years.

Every recorded tornado

Tornadoes within 25 miles since 1950
Jun 10, 2004F03.610000
Jun 28, 1995F00.11000
Jun 28, 1995F00.11000
May 11, 1995F00.12300
May 11, 1995F00.11000
Jun 21, 1984F12.05000
Jun 15, 1984F11.02000
Jun 4, 1976F00.11000
Jun 4, 1976F00.11000
Jun 11, 1968F10.320000
Jun 7, 1968F10.320000
  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.

Hurricanes and tropical storms

No tropical storm or hurricane has tracked within 100 miles since records began in 1851.

Wildfire and smoke

15 large fires burned within 25 miles since 1984.

Largest

September 27, 2024

Elk Fire, 98,842 acres

11.3 miles from the city centre.

Most recent

September 27, 2024

Elk Fire

98,842 acres in total.

Acres burned by large fires within 25 miles, cumulative 1988: 1,6921991: 1,0021992: 3,6591994: 13,5211996: 3,0082001: 7,5372006: 5,5402007: 4,7672012: 5,3762015: 1,1642017: 91,3902020: 25,7952024: 106,732 271,183 acres 198519901995200020052010201520202025
Running total of acres burned (line) and each year’s acres (bars).

Every large fire

Large wildfires since 1984
Elk202411.398,842
Badger202412.37,890
Waddle Creek202020.925,795
Aberdeen 2201721.21,279
Deer Creek201720.590,111
Sheep Creek201517.61,164
Gilead201223.25,376
Little Goose200712.14,767
Owl200623.75,540
Thunder Ch20015.27,537
Stockwell199615.63,008
Barrel Spr199420.713,521
Unnamed199220.43,659
Unnamed199118.01,002
Oto198818.41,692
  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

Smokiest year

2021: 68 days

Heavy smoke on 43 days in 2021, the most of any year.

Last 10 years

28.6 days a year

Medium or heavy smoke, 2016 to 2025.

2025

22 days

Medium or heavy smoke. 23 so far in 2026.

Days with medium or heavy smoke overhead, by year 2011: 10 2012: 24 2013: 10 2014: 7 2015: 14 2016: 11 2017: 28 2018: 26 2019: 8 2020: 24 2021: 68 68 2022: 17 2023: 32 2024: 50 2025: 22 201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Days each year on which a satellite-traced plume of medium or heavy smoke covered the city centre, 2011 to 2025.
  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.

Floods and flood insurance

74 federal flood insurance claims since 1978, with $293,000 paid.

Flood insurance figures are for Sheridan County, the county that contains Sheridan.

Federal flood insurance claims by year 1978: 6 1995: 12 12 2007: 7 2015: 11 2019: 11 1978
Claims per year since 1978. Years with fewer than five claims are not shown.

Most claims in one year

1995: 12 claims

$10,000 paid.

2nd most

2019: 11 claims

$114,000 paid.

3rd most

2015: 11 claims

$84,000 paid.

Claims by ZIP code

Flood insurance claims by ZIP code
8280157$198,000
828397$69,000
828325$13,000

Flood events since 1996

  • Flood14
  • Flash Flood12
  • Heavy Rain12

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 Sheridan County, the county that contains Sheridan.

Most severe crest

May 25, 2011

Goose Creek at Sheridan, 8.09 ft

0.59 feet above the 7.5 ft flood stage; minor flooding by today’s categories.

Highest river crests above flood stage
May 25, 2011Goose Creek at Sheridan8.09+0.59Minor
Jun 11, 2013Goose Creek at Sheridan7.34−0.16Below flood stage
May 31, 2022Goose Creek at Sheridan5.87−1.63Below flood stage
Jun 12, 2024Goose Creek at Sheridan5.60−1.90Below flood stage
Jun 6, 2021Goose Creek at Sheridan4.90−2.60Below flood stage
Jun 1, 2020Goose Creek at Sheridan4.63−2.87Below flood stage

River gauges

River gauges and their highest listed crests
Goose Creek at Sheridan7.58.09 ftMay 25, 20110
  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.

Drought

In severe drought or worse for 324 of 1,581 months since 1895 (20%); the longest spell lasted 60 months.

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

324

Months in severe drought or worse since 1895

219

Months in extreme drought

20%

Share of all months, severe or worse

2

Drought reports to the Weather Service since 1996

Lowest reading

July 1901

−8.29, extreme drought

Longest severe spell

60 months

August 2000 to July 2005.

Latest month

September 2026

−5.41, extreme drought

Months in severe drought or worse, by year 1895: 0 1896: 0 1897: 2 1898: 2 1899: 0 1900: 9 1901: 12 12 1902: 12 1903: 12 1904: 2 1905: 4 1906: 0 1907: 0 1908: 0 1909: 0 1910: 2 1911: 8 1912: 0 1913: 0 1914: 2 1915: 5 1916: 0 1917: 0 1918: 0 1919: 5 1920: 0 1921: 9 1922: 3 1923: 0 1924: 0 1925: 0 1926: 0 1927: 0 1928: 0 1929: 0 1930: 0 1931: 1 1932: 0 1933: 2 1934: 12 1935: 12 1936: 12 1937: 2 1938: 0 1939: 0 1940: 0 1941: 0 1942: 0 1943: 0 1944: 0 1945: 0 1946: 0 1947: 0 1948: 0 1949: 0 1950: 0 1951: 0 1952: 0 1953: 0 1954: 2 1955: 1 1956: 0 1957: 0 1958: 0 1959: 0 1960: 9 1961: 8 1962: 0 1963: 0 1964: 0 1965: 0 1966: 10 1967: 5 1968: 0 1969: 0 1970: 0 1971: 0 1972: 0 1973: 0 1974: 0 1975: 0 1976: 0 1977: 0 1978: 0 1979: 0 1980: 0 1981: 3 1982: 0 1983: 0 1984: 0 1985: 4 1986: 0 1987: 0 1988: 5 1989: 9 1990: 0 1991: 0 1992: 1 1993: 0 1994: 0 1995: 0 1996: 0 1997: 0 1998: 0 1999: 0 2000: 5 2001: 12 2002: 12 2003: 12 2004: 12 2005: 8 2006: 9 2007: 4 2008: 0 2009: 0 2010: 0 2011: 0 2012: 7 2013: 8 2014: 0 2015: 0 2016: 10 2017: 0 2018: 0 2019: 0 2020: 2 2021: 10 2022: 11 2023: 0 2024: 1 2025: 7 18951905191519251935194519551965197519851995200520152025
Months each year with a Palmer index of −3 or lower, 1895 to 2025. Twelve means the whole year.
  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.

Earthquakes and landslides

1 earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles since 1900; the largest was magnitude 4.0 in 2009.

4

Magnitude 3+ within 50 miles since 1973

1

Magnitude 4+ within 50 miles since 1900

0

Magnitude 5+ within 50 miles since 1900

Largest within 50 miles

August 22, 2009

Magnitude 4.0

20 km SSE of Birney, Montana; 34.6 miles away, 8.6 miles deep.

Most recent, magnitude 3 or more

August 22, 2009

Magnitude 4.0

20 km SSE of Birney, Montana; 34.6 miles away.

Earthquakes of magnitude 3 or more within 50 miles, by year 1973: 0 1974: 0 1975: 0 1976: 1 1 1977: 0 1978: 0 1979: 0 1980: 0 1981: 0 1982: 0 1983: 0 1984: 0 1985: 0 1986: 0 1987: 0 1988: 0 1989: 0 1990: 0 1991: 0 1992: 0 1993: 1 1994: 0 1995: 0 1996: 0 1997: 0 1998: 1 1999: 0 2000: 0 2001: 0 2002: 0 2003: 0 2004: 0 2005: 0 2006: 0 2007: 0 2008: 0 2009: 1 2010: 0 2011: 0 2012: 0 2013: 0 2014: 0 2015: 0 2016: 0 2017: 0 2018: 0 2019: 0 2020: 0 2021: 0 2022: 0 2023: 0 2024: 0 2025: 0 19731978198319881993199820032008201320182023
Per year, 1973 to 2025.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

Earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles
Aug 22, 20094.034.68.620 km SSE of Birney, Montana
  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.

Mapped landslides

Landslides mapped in Sheridan County.

1,174

Landslides mapped, probable or better

3

With a recorded date

2

Source inventories

Mapped by WY WSGS (1,171), NASA (3).

  1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

Severe weather and other events

798 events in the National Weather Service record for Sheridan County, 739 of them since 1996.

146

Hail reports, 1 inch or larger

10

Hail, 2 inches or larger

116

Damaging gusts, 58 mph+

281

Winter weather events since 1996

0

Heat events since 1996

3

Cold events since 1996

Largest hail

June 17, 1979

3.00 inches

Strongest measured or estimated gust

July 27, 2015

96 mph

More event types since 1996

Other Storm Events types since 1996
Lightning110Jul 11, 2010
Debris flows100Jul 15, 2025
Avalanches110Feb 19, 2016

Costliest events since 1996

  1. May 20, 2011Flood$520,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Heavy rains of 3 to 5 inches in the Big Horn Mountains and Foothills caused area streams and creeks to rise and result in localized flooding. Small streams and creeks around Dayton were reported to be flooded. In addition, flooding was reported along the Tongue River and Little Goose Creek and on creeks in the Ranchester area resulting in the closing of some county roads. During the height of the heavy rainfall, Pass Creek Road, far northern Sheridan County near the Montana border, flooded and was eventually washed out. Several culverts were also reported as washed out.

  2. May 28, 2019Flood$125,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Several days of heavy rainfall over the Big Horn Mountains and adjacent foothills, as well as the lower elevations resulted in widespread flooding and major impacts along the foothills of Sheridan County. The State Engineers Office Water Division Office measured up to 4 inches of rain between May 26th and May 28th. The following are some of the multiple impacts that occurred across the area:|-Sheridan County Commissioners issued an Emergency Declaration.|- It was reported that Goose Creek saw stream levels rise 3 feet in 15 minutes in Kendrick Subdivision on the 28th. |-The Connor Battlefield State Historic site in Ranchester estimated cost of the damage to roads in that area of…

  3. Feb 7, 1996Flood, Sheridan Foothills$25,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Warm temperatures produced flooding in Sheridan County. Some basements were flooded. Some small streams ans creeks went over their banks and flooded low lying areas and some streets.

  4. Aug 19, 1998Flood$20,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The Little Goose Creek flooded a small subdivision when a slow moving thunderstorm produced over 1.50 inches of rainfall in 20 minutes. A house basement was reported to have been flooded.

  5. Jun 23, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$10,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Wind gusts from a strong thunderstorm in Sheridan downed power lines and numerous trees.

  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.

Weather records

From Sheridan Airport, 2.5 miles from the city centre, with records from 1948.

All-time high
109°FJul 12, 2026
All-time low
−37°FDec 24, 1983
Warmest night
71°F2 times, most recently Aug 4, 2001
Coldest day
−19°FFeb 2, 1989
Wettest day
2.84 inApr 19, 1948
Snowiest day
22.7 inApr 3, 1955
Hottest year
2024mean 49.0°F
Coldest year
1978mean 41.4°F
Wettest year
195523.82 in
Driest year
19608.23 in
Average monthly high and low temperature and precipitation, last 30 years, Sheridan Airport 32°F 37° 12° 0.6 Jan 38° 13° 0.7 Feb 49° 22° 1.1 Mar 57° 30° 1.8 Apr 66° 39° 2.8 May 78° 47° 1.8 Jun 89° 54° 0.9 Jul 87° 52° 0.8 Aug 77° 43° 1.5 Sep 61° 32° 1.5 Oct 48° 21° 0.7 Nov 37° 13° 0.6 Dec Precipitation, inches
Average daily high and low by month, and average monthly precipitation, over the last 30 years.
Days reaching 95°F per year 1976: 9 1977: 6 1978: 5 1979: 6 1980: 9 1981: 8 1982: 19 1983: 39 39 1984: 9 1985: 15 1986: 7 1987: 3 1988: 39 1989: 16 1990: 10 1991: 13 1992: 2 1993: 1 1994: 15 1995: 12 1996: 19 1997: 1 1998: 10 1999: 15 2000: 20 2001: 15 2002: 19 2003: 26 2004: 5 2005: 13 2006: 22 2007: 26 2008: 13 2009: 3 2010: 10 2011: 19 2012: 27 2013: 11 2014: 5 2015: 14 2016: 21 2017: 20 2018: 12 2019: 6 2020: 25 2021: 24 2022: 29 2023: 9 2024: 32 2025: 7 19761986199620062016
Days reaching 95°F each complete year, last 50 years. Thirty-year average: 15.9.

Station Sheridan Airport (USW00024029), 3,971 ft elevation, 2.5 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1948 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.

Federal disaster declarations

7 since 1953. The most recent: Elk Fire, September 30, 2024.

Declarations for Sheridan County.

Federal disaster declarations
Sep 30, 2024FireElk FireFire managementFM-5539-WY
Apr 11, 2020BiologicalCovid-19 PandemicMajor disasterDR-4535-WY
Mar 13, 2020BiologicalCovid-19EmergencyEM-3479-WY
Jul 22, 2011Severe StormSevere Storms, Flooding, and LandslidesMajor disasterDR-4007-WY
Aug 12, 2007FireLittle Goose FireFire managementFM-2719-WY
Nov 20, 2003FireWy - Tongue River Wildfire - 11/19/2003Fire managementFM-2512-WY
May 29, 1978FloodSevere Storms, Flooding & MudslidesMajor disasterDR-557-WY

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.

Sources and vintage

Every number on this page comes from these public records.

  • 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 USW00024029.
  • 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.
  • Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
  • 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.