Minidoka County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Minidoka County: 0.
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 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.

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

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.

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 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.

Volcanoes within 100 miles

1. U.S. volcanoes within 100 miles, from the USGS Volcano Hazards Program. The threat category is the USGS 2018 National Volcanic Threat Assessment, which ranks volcanoes by how hazardous their past eruptions were and how many people and how much infrastructure lie near them. It is not a forecast of eruption.

USGS Volcano Hazards Program, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by USGS Conterminous (2).

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Feb 4, 2017Flood$6.1 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A warmup very early in the month caused massive sheet flooding as the snow melt from extreme December and January snows began rapidly early in the month. Nearly all roads experienced major flooding with as much as 4 feet of water on some roadways. The county did not have enough signs to indicate all the road closures. By the 14th of the month the only main roadways north of Meridian Road that were open were 400 West Road and 600 West Road. Highway 24 from Rupert to Acequia was closed by the 12th. Many roads were lost due to the damage. A large number of homes received massive flooding damage. Rural home damage to wells and septic systems occurred contaminating water. The state…

2. Mar 1, 2017Flood$425,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extensive flooding continued throughout Minidoka County in March although effects did diminish significantly from February. Road and property damage remained substantial however despite the improved conditions from February.

3. Mar 25, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$240,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extensive damage in Minidoka County from thunderstorm winds ahead of a cold front. A tree fell on a house in Rupert. A tree fell on a car in Minidoka. A roof was blown off a building in Rupert. Extensive power outages reported throughout the county. A measured wind gust of 64 mph reported in Minidoka.

4. Apr 8, 1999Blizzard, Eastern Magic Valley$230,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A winter storm brought widespread snow to Eastern Idaho with blizzard conditions reported in the Magic Valley. Heavy snow and strong winds were reported in the Burley area with accumulation of up to 6 inches and drifts of up to 2 feet. Numerous vehicle accidents and slide offs were reported along I-84 and secondary roads. Major accidents closed I-84 for 10 hours and caused a 15 mile backup on the interstate. Dozens of injured, including two sheriff deputies, were transported to local hospitals. Other injuries included 9 university students when their bus collided with a truck. A major contributor to the accidents was the near zero visibilities reported in many locations by ISP.…

5. Jul 20, 1999Thunderstorm Wind$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm winds caused extensive damage to property in Rupert. Flying debris and downed trees damaged numerous vehicles and one home. The most extensive damage was a car dealership that lost part of its roof, which damaged or destoryed a number of vehicles. Power outages were widespread.

6. Apr 11, 2012Dust Storm, Eastern Magic Valley$85,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Post cold frontal winds combined with freshly tilled fields to cause a massive dust storm along interstate 84 in the Burley area. The reduced visibility caused one massive pileup involving 18 cars in a major accident. East bound traffic was shut down for several hours along the interstate. Two people were taken to the hospital but there were no fatalities or serious injuries reported.

7. Feb 14, 2000Thunderstorm Wind$80,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Near Rupert, a mesonet station recorded 96.3 mph wind gust, which is a new state wind speed record. Nearby, a home sustained roof damage and a its porch was torn off and destroyed. Three large signs were destroyed, one of which fell on a car. Several homes sustained minor roof damage. Several wheel line irrigation systems were damaged.

8. Jun 15, 2000High Wind, Eastern Magic Valley$60,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Sustained high winds at 40 to 48 mph were recorded by mesonet in the Magic Valley, throughout the afternoon. A peak gust of 62 mph was recorded, which coincided with the crumpling of a grain silo near Heyburn. The destruction of this silo accounted for the majority of the monetary damages sustained during the wind event. Additionally, downed trees and damage to wheel line irrigation systems were reported in the Magic Valley. Elsewhere across the Snake River Plains, winds were strong but below high wind criteria with a few locations reported power outages from downed trees or tree limbs.

9. Mar 10, 2023High Wind, Eastern Magic Valley$36,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Multiple wind gusts of 50 to 75 mph occurred on the 10th in association with a Pacific storm system and a strong cold frontal passage. The Burley Municipal Airport had gusts of 66 and 68 mph 4 hours apart at around 0730 adn 1130 MDT. Rupert measured 75 mph. Two semi tractor trailers blown over at different locations on interstate 86 between exit 15 and 33. A metal shid blown off foundation and down the block in Rupert. Another smi tractor trailer blown over in the median along interstate 84 near Burley. Widespread power outages were reported as well.

10. Jun 22, 2005Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Southern Minidoka County was hit by severe thunderstorms. The Minidoka mesonet site recorded a wind gust of 72 mph. Several residents of Rupert were without power and two falling trees caused damage to a home on Third Street. Several downed trees were reported in Rupert.

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 30, 2000

All-time low

−30°F2 times, most recently Jan 22, 1962

Warmest night

71°F2 times, most recently Aug 10, 2000

Coldest day

−8°FDec 21, 1990

Wettest day

1.75 inDec 23, 1964

Snowiest day

12.0 inJan 27, 1968

Hottest year

1994mean 51.7°F

Coldest year

1985mean 42.9°F

Wettest year

199815.77 in

Driest year

20134.69 in

Station Burley Municipal Airport (USW00024133), 4,143 ft elevation, 5.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 99.5% 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 USW00024133.
• 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.
• Volcanoes USGS Volcano Hazards Program, U.S. volcanoes and 2018 threat assessment.
• 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.