Washington County

Every recorded tornado

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

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

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.

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.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by NASA (1).

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. Jan 19, 1996Flood, Washington$15.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   *** River Flooding ***High dew point temperatures melted most of the snow on the ground within 12 hours, with liquid water equivalent ranging from 1 to 3 inches. Snowmelt combined with 1 to 3 inches of rain (some locations received 5 inches) to produce, in some cases, catastrophic river flooding. The flooding was the worst in the region since 1985. River flooding began during the flood/flash flood event along the headwaters of the basins and continued downstream through the 22nd. Crests ranged from 3 to 21 feet above flood stage. Record flooding occurred on Wills Creek near Cumberland (MDZ002), damaging all dwellings in the town of Locust Grove. Almost all dwellings in the town of…

2. May 15, 2018Flash Flood$4.6 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread and significant flooding ongoing throughout Southeastern Washington County as a result of torrential rainfall. Numerous roads closed, water rescues ongoing, partial washouts of roads, and water inside homes.

3. Jan 19, 1996Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   ***Flood/Flash Flood***An unprecedented combination, in recent history, of unseasonably warm, humid air overriding a dense snow pack estimated between 12 and 18 inches (but up to 2 feet or more at higher elevations) caused nearly all of the pack to vanish in a 12-hour period. The unseasonably warm air was drawn northward around the circulation of a deepening storm west of the Appalachians late on the 18th and early on the 19th. The melting snow and heavy rains caused widespread, and in some cases, catastrophic flooding and flash flooding on the 19th.Strong low-level southeast flow developed by late afternoon on the 18th. Initially, colder temperatures in sheltered valleys slowed…

4. Jun 18, 1996Flash Flood$1.0 million
5. Oct 29, 2012High Wind, Washington$694,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Scattered trees were down and power outages county-wide.

6. Sep 6, 1996Flood, Washington$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Torrential rains associated with Tropical Storm Fran caused the rapid onset of river flooding along the headwaters of the Potomac River late on the 6th, spreading gradually southeast throughout the entire basin by early on the 10th. Crests were similar to those seen in January 1996 across the Lower main stem of the Potomac. Levels were 1 to 5 feet higher than in January across the Upper main stem of the Potomac.Western Allegany Co (MDZ002) was hit the hardest. The nearly $1 million in property damage included 14 destroyed homes, 19 with major damage, and 500 with minor to moderate damage. The damage was concentrated along the Potomac and the Georges Creek in the towns of…

7. Jun 4, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An NWS storm survey team examined wind damage to structures and trees in an area from Sharpsburg to Keedysville to Boonsboro. A few outbuildings were destroyed and extensive tree damage was observed. Some homes sustained wind damage to their roof structures and one garage was damaged. Some of the damage to a barn, and one area of wind damage to trees between Sharpsburg and Keedysville, were severe. Many hardwood and softwood trees were snapped off at the trunks. Extensive damage was reported in Washington Monument State Park in Boonsboro, forcing the park to close for 2 weeks. All of the damage was aligned along the direction of the wind gusts and the damage was determined to be…

8. Apr 19, 2025Thunderstorm Wind$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A wind gust of 65 knots (75 MPH) was measured by the ASOS at Hagerstown Regional Airport (KHGR). Significant tree and power line damage was observed around Clear Spring and Maugansville. Several homes sustained siding damage, and two barns were partially unroofed. A resident near Hagerstown reported numerous trees uprooted over 200 yards.

9. Jul 19, 1996Tornado$400,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A moderate tornado (F2) tracked between two mountain ridges in extreme southern Washington Co, knocking down hundreds of trees, including several onto homes which caused substantial damage. At least one barn was completely destroyed in Yarrowsburg. The storm attained maximum strength just south of town (where the trees, including numerous hardwoods, were flattened). The tornado weakened considerably before dissipating along the eastern ridge.Structural and vehicle damage, though not as prevalent as the tree damage, included the following: Portions of roofs from two barns were blown off; minor residential damage, including shattered windows, unhinged shingles, and torn off…

10. May 17, 2011Tornado$300,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Numerous snapped and uprooted trees continued along a track from near the intersection of Wellspring Road and Jennifer Lane to near the intersection of Greencastle Pike and Cearfoss Pike. Several Sheds and Outbuildings were overturned or destroyed. A garage door was blown inward on a detached garage, leading to the failure of the roof structure. ||Numerous hardwood and softwood trees were snapped by Garden View Road, Maugansville Road and Cearfoss Pike. A recreational vehicle was blown onto its side and moved forty-five feet into a neighboring yard. Shingle damage was very common. A stone 19th-century home suffured a roof uplift.

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

105°FJul 14, 1954

All-time low

−27°FJan 13, 1912

Warmest night

86°FJun 15, 1899

Coldest day

6°F2 times, most recently Jan 19, 1994

Wettest day

6.69 inJul 20, 1956

Snowiest day

26.0 inJan 7, 1996

Hottest year

2024mean 57.0°F

Coldest year

1904mean 48.8°F

Wettest year

199676.65 in

Driest year

193024.57 in

Snowiest season

74.0 in1960-61

Station Hagerstown 1E (USC00181790), 532 ft elevation, 2.3 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1899 to October 26, 2026; 99.9% 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 USC00181790.
• 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.