Defiance County

Every recorded tornado

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

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. May 25, 2011Flash Flood$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency management officials reported flooding and flash flooding across much of the western half of the county. The Hicksville Community Hospital had water flowing into lower portions of the structure, requiring sandbagging. Laboratory areas were flooded, but the sandbagging efforts kept any water out of patient areas. Several roads were closed through the county, including U.S. 127 near Mud Creek, which quickly went over its banks. Video footage from a newspaper reported showed three to six inches of water flowing from a golf course pond into the intersection of Carpenter and River Roads. Exact damage figures were not available, but flooding damage across the county is…

2. May 21, 2010Flash Flood$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Local media reported flash flooding across portions of far western Defiance County, mainly from Hicksville to Ney. Water entered the first floor of the Hicksville Community Memorial Hospital, forcing the evacuation of a few patients, as well as power being shut off to the laboratory and radiology departments. County officials reported State Roads 49, 37 and 2 were closed near the Indiana and Ohio state line. The village of Ney sustained heavy flooding as well as Lick Creek flowed over its banks flooding the Ney Community Park, parts of the Jewell Grain facility. Seeds and chemicals had to be moved from the grain facility, with sandbagging being done to stop the flooding. A parked…

3. Aug 1, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$125,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency management officials reported several large trees were either uprooted or snapped in the city of Defiance. One of these trees fell onto a house on Washington Street, reportedly destroying the house. Another tree fell onto at least two parked car on Jefferson Avenue. No injuries were reported. Damage is estimated at $125,000.

4. Jun 25, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A trained spotter reported a swath of damage extending from near the Ohio/Indiana state line northeast for about 4 miles to near the intersection of Buckskin and Gingrich roads. Several areas of tree damage were observed. Structure damage consisted of one barn destroyed, another losing its roof, roof damage to two houses, an aluminum flagpole was snapped off and some windows broken out of a few residences. A wheat field also was flattened in one area. Damage estimates of around $100,000 in property and $10,000 in crop.

5. Jan 12, 2005Dense Fog, Defiance$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread dense fog developed across much of northwestern Ohio during the morning hours. Visibility was reported to be at or near zero in many locations. Numerous accidents were reported with at least 1 fatality and 1 injury indirectly resulting from the dense fog. A 38 year old man was killed near the intersection of Ohio 18 and 281 in Defiance county. A chain reaction crash occurred when a semi struck a vehicle on the side of the road, causing additional vehicles behind the semi to crash as well. The unusually dense fog was the result of very warm and moist air moving over a rapidly diminshing snowpack.

6. Mar 8, 2009Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service (NWS) storm survey determined that a tornado initially touched down just east of Mark Center on Williams Center-Cecil Road, where eight utility poles were blown down towards the east with one pole being snapped. Immediately to the northeast of these poles on the south side of Highway 18, a small barn was blown off its foundation, but was left intact with a farm house across the road suffering some minor roof damage. The tornado briefly lifted, but touched down once again on Openlander Road between Lockwood and State Route 18. The front porch on a home was ripped off as well as a television antenna and large tree damaged. A large barn suffered some minor…

7. Jun 17, 2003Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A narrow band of thunderstorms continuously regenerated over parts of Defiance county during the morning. Estimates of 8 to 10 inches of rain fell in a 3 hour period. Emergency management reported flash flooding was most serious around Sherwood where roads were closed with 3 to 4 feet of water along Ohio Route 18 in and around Sherwood. Nearly 30 businesses and homes had some water into the first floor.

8. Jul 29, 2023Tornado$55,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A ground and drone servey revelaed a tornado touched down at a property west of Casebeer Miller Road and north of Buckskin Raod, and tracked quickly to the northeast, crossing about a third of a mile north of Buckskin Road before dissipating in an area of trees. Several trees were snapped or uprooted, with three barns suffering minor to major damage as well as one home suffering damage to a roof and pool deck. Maximum wind speeds are estimated up to 90 mph.

9. Aug 6, 2000Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Synoptic and mesoscale conditions for August 6th...A significant shortwave trough of low pressure combined with a mid level speed max of 60 knots and rapid prefrontal destabilization during the day of August 6th ahead of a strong cold front led to convective initiation across eastern Iowa by late morning. Given favorable deep layer shear of 50 knots and extreme instability present from Northern Illinois into Northwest Ohio that afternoon... storms quickly organized into a bow echo squall line as they rapidly moved eastward at speeds of up to 50 knots. As the bow echo matured... dramatic yet elevated rear inflow jet developed along the backside with isolated wind damage along and…

10. Dec 6, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    BARN ROOF BLOWN OFF AND BOAT WAS KNOCKED OVER BY THE STRONG WINDS.

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

111°FJul 25, 1934

All-time low

−26°FJan 13, 1912

Warmest night

79°F2 times, most recently Jul 5, 2012

Coldest day

−10°F2 times, most recently Jan 19, 1994

Wettest day

4.63 inSep 18, 1907

Snowiest day

12.0 in3 times, most recently Feb 16, 2021

Hottest year

2012mean 53.9°F

Coldest year

1978mean 46.4°F

Wettest year

201155.27 in

Driest year

194121.54 in

Snowiest season

75.4 in2013-14

Station Defiance (USC00332098), 700 ft elevation, 3.5 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 25, 2026; 98.2% 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 USC00332098.
• 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.