Newton County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Newton County: 17.
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.

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.

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Jan 12, 2007Ice Storm, Newton$40.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Ice accumulations of around two inches impacted exposed objects throughout the entire county. Catastrophic tree and power line damage resulted from this storm. 575 residents were sheltered while 90 percent of the county experienced power outages that ranged from a few hours to 12 days.

2. May 10, 2008Tornado$35.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   This tornado is an extension of the Ottawa County, Oklahoma tornado. A National Weather Service storm survey revealed that an EF-4 tornado crossed into Missouri just north of Iris Road, and tracked east southeast all the way across Newton County to just north of Fairview. Several people were killed in automobiles, including a firefighter who was storm spotting, as the tornado briefly reached EF4 intensity near the intersection of Highway 43 and Iris Road. One vehicle at this location was thrown 5/8s of a mile. The tornado then extended to a mile wide and EF3 intensity as it tracked across the intersection of Highway 86 and BB. Many of the 14 fatalities and 200 injuries occurred…

3. Apr 15, 2001Tornado$4.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado had an intermittent track from 8 miles south southwest of Neosho, to 3 miles southwest of Boulder City. A log home and a drilling company were completely destroyed, plus numerous outbuildings, sustained considerable damage. Over 100 trees and power lines were uprooted along the tornado's track.

4. May 8, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Severe thunderstorm wind gusts ranging between 60 and 80 mph caused widespread damage to trees, power poles, and structures across much of Newton County. A roof was destroyed on a mobile home located near the intersection of Iris Road and Highway NN. Rain fell into the home, destroying the rest of the structure. In Diamond there were two buisinesses that had significant roof damage. The Dollar General Store in Neosho sustained roof damage and allowed water to enter the store. One building was destroyed at a fiberglass company in Neosho. A few thousand residences had lost power due to fallen power poles and lines.

5. Mar 17, 2008Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Four to six and a half inches of rain fell over Newton County. Record flooding occurred along Shoal Creek near Joplin. Five houses and one resturant were destroyed. All locations across the county that typically flood during periods of excessive rainfall were flooded.

6. Apr 15, 2001Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado developed southeast of Redings Mill and continued east of business Highway 71, or about 5 miles east southeast of Redings Mill. Damage was widespread along the track of the tornado. Several outbuildings and homes were damaged, one trailer was flipped over which contributed to an injury. Near the end of the track, a large well-built autobody and paint shop was destroyed along with another building just east of Highway 71 as the tornado lifted. Top winds were estimated around 115 mph.

7. Dec 27, 2015Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Multiple rail cars floated off of the tracks due to flooding of Shoal Creek. At least three families were stranded by high water. Several homes sustained flood damage. Several mobile homes were washed away by flooding along Shoal Creek near Reddings Mill. Numerous roads and low water crossings suffered flood damage. This storm report will contain the damage estimates for the entire county for this event.

8. Aug 1, 2012Drought, Newton$1.8 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The U.S Drought Monitor continued to report Extreme Drought (D3) to Exceptional Drought (D4) throughout the month of August. The region started seeing some rainfall by the end of the month. The COOP station near Diamond reported 2.69 of rainfall for the month of August. The COOP station near Neosho reported 2.99 of rainfall for the month of August. This is a continuation of the drought that began across the region in June. As a result of the limited rainfall combined with the excessive heat, the USDA Service center in Newton County indicated that crop losses were 75 percent of the spring planting. Many farmers and ranchers reported having to feed hay as pastures stopped growing…

9. Apr 30, 2017Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Up to 185 homes and business sustained flood damage across the county. Numerous roads and bridges were severely damaged or washed away across the county. This report will contain the total dollar estimate for flood damage to infrastructure, businesses, and homes across Newton County.

10. May 22, 2011Tornado$700,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The National Weather Service storm survey team determined that an EF-2 tornado touched down 5 miles east northeast of Diamond, Missouri. It remained on the ground for approximately 17 miles, seven of which was in Newton County before it crossed into Lawrence County. The maximum wind speeds were estimated at 120 miles per hour. The tornado damage path had a maximum width of one half mile. There were numerous trees uprooted, three mobile homes suffered considerable damage or were destroyed west of Wentworth. Numerous power poles were blown down along Highway J along a nearly four mile stretch. In Wentworth, numerous tress were uprooted and one outbuilding had its roof removed. The…

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

112°FJul 14, 1954

All-time low

−31°FJan 22, 1930

Warmest night

88°FAug 5, 1896

Coldest day

−1°FFeb 12, 1899

Wettest day

7.11 inOct 9, 2009

Snowiest day

22.0 inMar 14, 1999

Hottest year

2024mean 61.9°F

Coldest year

1989mean 54.6°F

Wettest year

197366.07 in

Driest year

196320.46 in

Station Neosho (USC00235976), 1,033 ft elevation, 4.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to September 30, 2026; 97.6% 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 USC00235976.
• 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.