Adair County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Adair County: 6.
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.

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.

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

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 county boundary (or inside the county).
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. May 21, 2024Tornado$30.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   This large and violent tornado entered into south central Adair County from Adams County. The tornado remained a multi-vortex circulation as it moved into the county producing high end damage for much of its remaining path. The tornado encountered several houses in the vicinity of Fontanelle Road and 320th Street. Many of the structures received at least EF2 damage with one house north of the intersection receiving up to EF4 damage with a sufficiently anchored structure destroyed and slumped into a debris field nearby. Additional EF4 damage was noted at a farmstead on Jordan Avenue south of 280th Street with the house destroyed and trees chewed down to only the largest trucks and…

2. Aug 1, 2003Drought, Adair$12.7 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Dry weather settled in over Iowa during the month. The last widespread rain occurred on 09 July. With the increasingly dry conditions became a primary concern as the month progressed. An extended period of heat and humidity from the 15th to 25th saw highs into the 90s to over 100 degrees F. in some locations. By month's end drought indices had worsened to severe to extreme drought across south central Iowa and at least moderate drought over the remainder of the HSA. Waterloo had its driest August on record, Des Moines its 3rd driest and Ottumwa its 8th driest. A cold front brought only a brief respite from the intense heat, as temperatures rebounded into the 90s to near 100…

3. Jun 30, 2014Hail$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency manager reported around 190 homes in Adair were damaged by large hail driven by strong to severe wind. Numerous trees were damaged. Crops shredded by the wind driven hail. Cars on I-80 had broken windows.

4. Apr 8, 1999Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   As mentioned in the narrative above, an intense low pressure formed to the southwest of Iowa. The low tracked northeast and lifted into eastern Nebraska. Ahead of the low, a strong low level jet of around 60 knots continued through the day. A nearly stationary frontal boundary extended east from the low. It lifted into southeast Nebraska during the day, but made little progress into southern Iowa. Lines of thunderstorms formed along the boundary through the day and lifted north rapidly. These storms were elevated in nature and as a result produced most of their severe weather in the form of hail. As the day unfolded, a sharp dry line was clearly evident on the satellite as early…

5. May 21, 2024Tornado$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency management recorded a path of damage from just east of Greenfield to just shy of the Adair/Madison County line north of 140th Street. The initial portion of this tornado was observed via the Doppler on Wheels (DOW) and was extended farther southwest accordingly. This tornado impacted farmsteads with damage to outbuildings and tree groves. Toward the end of the path, a large industrial wind mill was blown over southeast of the intersection of 150th street and Walnut Avenue. EF2 damage was then done with complete destruction of an outbuilding along York Avenue along with shredding of trees. The tornado then quickly weakened and dissipated as it approached the county line.

6. Oct 26, 1997Heavy Snow, Adair$640,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The first major winter storm of the season developed over the central Rockies as a powerful upper level jet stream dove into the southern Rockies. Intense low pressure developed over northern Oklahoma, then drifted northeast on the early morning of the 26th. A cold high pressure of Arctic origin was poised to the north of Iowa. The high gradually pushed cold air south into the central U.S. causing the precipitation on the northwest edge of the storm system to change to snow. During the early morning hours, the system went convective with widespread "thundersnow" reported over the south half of Iowa. Lightning struck a tree outside of a house in Nevada causing damage to electrical…

7. Dec 23, 2009Ice Storm, Adair$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Part 1 of 2: A major winter storm system affected the central U.S. during Christmas week. There were two upper level systems involved with this storm. The southern stream low dove into the southern U.S. and then turned northeast. The turn was sharper than is typical as the northern stream upper low pushed southeast. The southern stream and polar low interacted with each other, resulting in a Fuji Wara effect. The southern low turned north, then eventually northwest and moved from northern Louisiana into Iowa. This resulted in a considerable amount of warm air being drawn north over Iowa. Cold air remained in place at the surface due to an existing deep snow cover over most of the…

8. May 22, 2019Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tornado developed south southeast of Adair and moved quickly north. Initial damage was mainly to trees, grain bins and outbuildings. Three houses were encountered by the tornado with the first two receiving EF0 damage. The third house had the roof removed with several of the outside walls collapsing, but the inside walls remaining intact. Two individuals were sleeping inside when the tornado arrived with one injury and one fatality occurring. This structure sustained EF2 damage with the tornado passing over Interstate 80 and remaining in rural cropland for the remainder of its path in Adair County. The tornado then crossed into Guthrie County before dissipating.

9. Nov 10, 1998High Wind, Adair$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Iowa experienced the worst November storm system since the great storm of 9 and 10 November 1975. During the 9th, low pressure developed over southeast Colorado. The low moved across Kansas during the afternoon and evening of the 9th and deepened to about 990 mb. Warm and moist air was drawn north ahead of the low resulting in widespread across the state. Thunderstorms erupted during the late evening of the 9th, though no severe weather occurred. During the predawn hours of the 10th, a jet streak rotated around the base of the upper level low pressure area. The jet stream, combined with a tropospheric fold, resulted in explosive deepening of the low. As the low moved through…

10. May 24, 2007Flash Flood$250,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The cold front mentioned in the event above became stationary for several hours during the early morning of the 24th as low pressure moved from the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles on the night of the 23rd, northeast into Iowa by the morning of the 24th. A large area of thunderstorms developed to the north and northwest of the low pressure track. These storms produced significant rainfall, with two to four inch rainfall common from southwest, into central, and north central Iowa. Guthrie Center, in Guthrie County, received 6.50 inches of rain by sunrise on the 24, with additional rainfall after that. Flash flooding became a problem with significant flooding taking place in Cass,…

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

107°FJul 5, 1911

All-time low

−34°FJan 12, 1912

Warmest night

84°FJul 7, 1980

Coldest day

−15°F3 times, most recently Dec 24, 1983

Wettest day

8.00 inSep 15, 1992

Snowiest day

12.0 in3 times, most recently Jan 4, 1971

Hottest year

1921mean 53.5°F

Coldest year

1893mean 46.8°F

Wettest year

201456.01 in

Driest year

196618.15 in

Snowiest season

61.0 in1911-12

Station Greenfield (USC00133438), 1,316 ft elevation, 4.1 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 27, 2026; 98.3% 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.

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.

Neighbouring counties

• 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 USC00133438.
• 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.