Genesee County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Genesee County: 2.
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.

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Oct 12, 2006Lake-Effect Snow, Genesee$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Low pressure over Lake Superior brought a westerly flow of unseasonably cold air across western New York. Lake Effect rain began Thursday (10/13/06) morning. By midday the rain began mixing with graupel and thunder and lightning was reported. The cold air became deep enough to change the precipitation to wet snow across the Niagara Frontier by 2 p.m. Little accumulation resulted for the first few hours of snowfall. By between 5 and 8 p.m. accumulations began to reach the two to three inch mark. The weight of this heavy, wet snow on nearly fully-leafed trees began to weigh down and snap the trees. Conditions only worsened overnight with near constant thunder and lightning for…

2. Jul 25, 2009Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado crossed the town of Darien and village of Corfu in Genesee county. The initial touchdown occurred at 453 PM EDT on Reynolds Road in Darien. The tornado moved northeast across Routes 77 and 33 before lifting near Boyce Road at 505 PM EDT (a path length of about four miles). Widespread damage occurred to the small village. Over 30 homes were damaged and three buildings were demolished. Two greenhouses were also destroyed. Twenty power poles were snapped, countless trees were uprooted and a number of vehicles sustained damage. The tornado was rated an EF1 with wind speeds estimated close to 100 mph.

3. Jan 31, 2002Ice Storm, Genesee$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A three to five inch snowfall overnight of the 30th-31st turned to freezing rain during the morning hours. Ice accumulations of one-half to three-quarters inch occurred. Hundreds of thousands were left without power as the heavy ice build-up downed trees and power lines. Some areas were without power for up to 72 hours. Winds picked up and gusted to 55 mph. Trees and tree limbs fell blocking roads and damaging homes and automobiles. Tree damage included large and small limb breakage and bark damage as well as the uprooting of trees. States of Emergency were declared across the Niagara Frontier counties. East of Lake Ontario snowfall amounts of six to eight inches were followed by…

4. Dec 25, 2001Heavy Snow, Genesee$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lake effect snowbands developed and persisted for an unprecedented five days meandering north and south across the region. Multiple bands of snow developed over the Niagara peninsula during Monday, the 24th , morning and extended into Niagara and northern Erie counties into early afternoon dropping up to six inches. The activity consolidated into a single band during the mid-afternoon and dropped south across the Buffalo metro area through the evening and early overnight. Snowfall rates of 4" per hour and thunder were reported during the evening. The band drifted back north to the Niagara peninsula on Christmas day. On Wednesday the 26th, the band over the peninsula began to drift…

5. Apr 4, 2003Ice Storm, Genesee$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Low pressure over Illinois brought a mix of wintry weather to parts of the Genesee Valley, the Finger Lakes and the North Country. Across the North Country the precipitation mainly fell as snow mixed with sleet at times. Nine to twelve inches accumulated over the higher elevations. Across the Genesee Valley and the Finger Lakes, the precipitation fell mainly as freezing rain. Up to an inch of ice accumulation was measured. Hardest hit areas were eastern Monroe, Wayne and northern Cayuga counties. A Federal Disaster Declaration included Livingston, Monroe, northern Cayuga, Ontario, Orleans, Oswego, and Wayne counties. The heavy ice accumulation downed trees, limbs and power and…

6. Mar 8, 2017High Wind, Genesee$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Unusually deep low pressure moved from northwest Ontario across Hudson Bay. The low brought strong winds to the entire region with sustained winds up to 49 mph and wind gusts as high as 81 mph. A significant amount of damage resulted with hundreds of thousands left without power���over 100,000 in Monroe County alone. Particularly hard hit was the northern Genesee Valley region including parts of Orleans, Monroe, and Genesee counties. Trees and power lines were downed. Power poles were snapped. The strong winds derailed a train in Batavia (Genesee County). Twelve out of thirty-one freight cars were blown off the tracks. In Chili, a large section of fence was impaled into the…

7. Nov 20, 2000Heavy Snow, Genesee$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Cold air crossing the warm waters of Lakes Erie and Ontario resulted in lake effect squalls that dropped over two feet downwind of the lakes.Off Lake Erie, the squall developed around midday on the 20th in a southwest flow ahead of a cold front. Snow fell at the rate of two to four inches per hour for several hours. The storm crippled much of the Buffalo metro area. Tens of thousands of people were stranded in autos as city and suburban streets became clogged with traffic and came to a standstill. Three thousand school children were stranded in buses which were unable to complete their routes. Snowfall in this early stage were as high as two feet in a narrow strip about three…

8. Nov 17, 2005Heavy Snow, Genesee$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The first lake effect event of the season brought over a foot of heavy, wet snow to the areas downwind of Lake Erie while areas east of Lake Ontario received seven to ten inches. Off Lake Erie, the heavy snow, falling at the rate of 2" per hour, concentrated within an eight mile wide stip from the lake shore near Silver Creek and Angola, across Hamburg, Orchard Park, East Aurora, Elma and Alden. The weight of the wet snow caused several buildings to collapse, including a large bowling in Hamburg. Specific snow totals included: 18" at Elma; 17" at Marilla; 16" at Orchard Park and Hamburg; 14" at Bennington; 13" at East Aurora; 9" at Carthage and Harrisville; 8" at Darien and 7" at…

9. Feb 1, 2002High Wind, Genesee$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An intensifying storm moved across the Great Lakes and lifted northeast to the St. Lawrence Valley. Very strong winds behind the low blasted the region with wind gusts exceeding 55 mph. Trees and power lines were downed by the strong winds. Hundreds of thousands were without power...some for several days. Fallen trees and limbs littered the area and closed roads. Numerous reports of damage to homes and automobiles were received from throughout the area. Driving bans and States of Emergency were declared in several counties. Numerous school districts were forced to close on the first and several remained closed through the beginning of the following week. In Monroe county, two…

10. Nov 17, 2022Lake-Effect Snow, Genesee$500,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A barn was collapsed in the Town of Darien due to the weight of the heavy snow on the roof.

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

103°F3 times, most recently Jul 13, 1936

All-time low

−28°FFeb 9, 1934

Warmest night

86°FSep 3, 2011

Coldest day

−7°FJan 6, 2018

Wettest day

5.52 inJun 2, 1926

Snowiest day

23.0 inJan 23, 1966

Hottest year

2012mean 52.5°F

Coldest year

1940mean 44.4°F

Wettest year

197749.06 in

Driest year

193422.39 in

Snowiest season

153.1 in2014-15

Station Batavia (USC00300443), 913 ft elevation, 2.1 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1932 to October 26, 2026; 88.4% 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 USC00300443.
• 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.