Yamhill County
Population 110,024 (2025) 716 sq mi
Property owners in Yamhill County have filed 108 federal flood insurance claims since 1978, 14th most of 36 counties in Oregon.
Hazard fingerprint Each spoke is this county’s percentile among U.S. counties where that hazard occurs. How it is computed
- Tornado damage paths since 19504
- Major flood years since 19782
At a glance
The record for Yamhill County in eight numbers. Each links to its section below.
Strongest tornado
F2
December 8, 1993, 6.0 mile path
Federal disaster declarations
19
Most recent: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, 2026
DetailsTornadoes
About one every 19 years since 1950, none rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Strongest
December 8, 1993
F2, 6.0 mile path
120 yards wide.
Most recent
Thursday, June 13, 2013
EF1, 0.2 mile path
13 years ago.
Every recorded tornado
| Jun 13, 2013 | EF1 | 0.2 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 8, 1993 | F2 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Apr 18, 1984 | F0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
| May 25, 1971 | F0 | 0.4 | 0 | 0 |
- Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Yamhill County: 0.
- 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.
Hurricanes and tropical storms
No tropical storm or hurricane has tracked within 100 miles since records began in 1851.
Wildfire and smoke
No large wildfire has been mapped here since satellite mapping began in 1984.
Smoke overhead
Smokiest year
2021: 30 days
Heavy smoke on 14 days in 2020, the most of any year.
Last 10 years
15.7 days a year
Medium or heavy smoke, 2016 to 2025.
2025
5 days
Medium or heavy smoke. 19 so far in 2026.
- 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.
Floods and flood insurance
108 federal flood insurance claims since 1980, with $1.2 million paid.
Most claims in one year
2007: 49 claims
$715,000 paid.
2nd most
1996: 25 claims
$221,000 paid.
Claims by ZIP code
| 97378 | 69 | $903,000 |
| 97128 | 15 | $156,000 |
| 97132 | 10 | $69,000 |
Flood events since 1996
- Heavy Rain14
- Flood6
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
Most severe crest
February 9, 1996
South Yamhill River at McMinnville, 59.33 ft
9.33 feet above the 50.0 ft flood stage; major flooding by today’s categories.
Most recent moderate or major crest
February 9, 1996
South Yamhill River at McMinnville, 59.33 ft
Major flooding.
| Feb 9, 1996 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 59.33 | +9.33 |
| Dec 5, 2007 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 55.90 | +5.90 |
| Dec 30, 1996 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 55.18 | +5.18 |
| Dec 29, 1998 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 55.01 | +5.01 |
| Jan 20, 2012 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 53.97 | +3.97 |
| Jan 3, 2009 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 52.92 | +2.92 |
| Feb 25, 1999 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 52.86 | +2.86 |
| Nov 27, 1999 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 52.34 | +2.34 |
| Dec 10, 2015 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 51.97 | +1.97 |
| Nov 26, 2016 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 51.84 | +1.84 |
| Nov 27, 1998 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 51.52 | +1.52 |
| Jan 12, 2006 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 51.21 | +1.21 |
| Dec 14, 1995 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 49.53 | −0.47 |
| Nov 20, 1996 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 48.03 | −1.97 |
| Feb 2, 2003 | South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 42.79 | −7.21 |
River gauges
| South Yamhill River at McMinnville | 50.0 | 59.33 ft | 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.
Drought
In severe drought or worse for 97 of 1,581 months since 1895 (6%); the longest spell lasted 11 months.
97
Months in severe drought or worse since 1895
16
Months in extreme drought
6%
Share of all months, severe or worse
Lowest reading
July 1924
−4.95, extreme drought
Longest severe spell
11 months
March 1939 to January 1940.
Latest month
September 2026
−2.79, moderate drought
Last severe month: August 2026.
- 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.
Earthquakes, volcanoes and landslides
12 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles since 1900; the largest was magnitude 5.6 in 1993.
4
Magnitude 2.5+ inside the county since 1973
53
Magnitude 3+ within 50 miles since 1973
12
Magnitude 4+ within 50 miles since 1900
3
Magnitude 5+ within 50 miles since 1900
Largest within 50 miles
March 25, 1993
4 km E of Scotts Mills, Oregon; 19.5 miles away, 12.2 miles deep.
Most recent, magnitude 3 or more
October 22, 2026
Magnitude 3.0
3 km W of Columbia City, Oregon; 34.0 miles away.
Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles
| Oct 7, 2022 | 4.4 | 44.8 |
| Aug 18, 2004 | 4.7 | 38.1 |
| Mar 25, 1993 | 5.6 | 19.5 |
| Dec 26, 1963 | 4.5 | 18.7 |
| Mar 7, 1963 | 4.6 | 20.8 |
| Nov 5, 1962 | 5.2 | 23.1 |
| Nov 6, 1961 | 4.5 | 34.7 |
| Aug 18, 1961 | 4.5 | 37.7 |
| Aug 20, 1959 | 4.6 | 48.7 |
| Aug 4, 1959 | 4.7 | 38.5 |
| Nov 16, 1957 | 4.0 | 5.8 |
| Dec 15, 1953 | 5.0 | 14.7 |
- 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).
- 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
| West Crater volcanic field | 54.4 | Low |
| Mount Hood | 56.7 | Very high |
| Mount Jefferson | 65.4 | Low |
| Indian Heaven Volcanic Field | 66.0 | Low |
| Mount St. Helens | 68.6 | Very high |
| Sand Mountain volcanic field | 73.0 | Very low |
| Blue Lake Crater | 77.3 | Low |
| Belknap Crater | 80.8 | Low |
| Mount Adams | 90.4 | High |
| Three Sisters | 92.5 | Very high |
- 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
771
Landslides mapped, probable or better
153
With a recorded date
3
Source inventories
Mapped by OR DOGAMI (761), NASA (9), West Coast Slow Moving (Yuankun and others, 2021) (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.
Severe weather and other events
45 events in the National Weather Service record, 42 of them since 1996.
0
Hail reports, 1 inch or larger
0
Hail, 2 inches or larger
0
Damaging gusts, 58 mph+
5
Winter weather events since 1996
0
Heat events since 1996
5
Cold events since 1996
More event types since 1996
| Lightning | 2 | 0 |
| Dust storms and dust devils | 1 | 0 |
Costliest events since 1996
- Dec 4, 2007Flood$9.6 million
National Weather Service narrative
The South Yamhill River flooded near McMinnville, where flood damage was mainly limited to parks. Damage was done to several bridges and roads throughout the county. The town of Willamina had minor flood damage, and 120 homes along with businesses and churches were damaged in Sheridan. NOTE: Damage estimates are for the entire Yamhill county.
- Jan 20, 2012Flood$2.0 million
National Weather Service narrative
Heavy rain combined with snowmelt runoff caused the South Yamhill River at McMinnville to overflow its banks and flood low lying areas. The South Yamhill River crested at 54 feet on January 19th at 3 pm PST, 4 feet above flood stage.
- Dec 7, 2015Heavy Rain$749,000
National Weather Service narrative
Heavy rain resulted in urban flooding in McMinnville with standing water reported in town. High water closed several roads in the area including Highway 99.
- Dec 8, 2015Heavy Rain$146,000
National Weather Service narrative
The Oregon State route 22 was closed due to erosion (sinkhole) from heavy rain. Oregon state route 153 was closed due to high water on the roads between mile markers 1 and 6.
- 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.
Weather records
From Mcminnville Municipal Airport, 3 miles from the county’s population centre, with records from 1997.
- All-time high
- 114°FJun 28, 2021
- All-time low
- 7°F2 times, most recently Dec 10, 2009
- Warmest night
- 73°FJul 22, 2006
- Coldest day
- 22°FDec 21, 1998
- Wettest day
- 3.01 inNov 24, 2016
- Hottest year
- 2015mean 55.8°F
- Coldest year
- 2008mean 51.3°F
- Wettest year
- 201649.08 in
- Driest year
- 200920.51 in
Station Mcminnville Municipal Airport (USW00094273), 158 ft elevation, 3.0 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1997 to October 26, 2026; 96.5% 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.
Federal disaster declarations
19 since 1953. The most recent: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, April 7, 2026.
| Apr 7, 2026 | Severe Storm | DR-4907-OR |
| Apr 13, 2024 | Severe Storm | DR-4768-OR |
| May 4, 2021 | Severe Storm | DR-4599-OR |
| Sep 15, 2020 | Fire | DR-4562-OR |
| Sep 10, 2020 | Fire | FM-5371-OR |
| Mar 28, 2020 | Biological | DR-4499-OR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | EM-3429-OR |
| Feb 17, 2016 | Severe Storm | DR-4258-OR |
| Mar 2, 2009 | Severe Storm | DR-1824-OR |
| Dec 8, 2007 | Severe Storm | DR-1733-OR |
| Feb 22, 2007 | Severe Storm | DR-1683-OR |
| Mar 20, 2006 | Severe Storm | DR-1632-OR |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Coastal Storm | EM-3228-OR |
| Feb 19, 2004 | Severe Storm | DR-1510-OR |
| Mar 19, 1996 | Severe Storm | DR-1107-OR |
| Feb 9, 1996 | Flood | DR-1099-OR |
| Apr 26, 1993 | Earthquake | DR-985-OR |
| Jan 25, 1974 | Flood | DR-413-OR |
| Dec 24, 1964 | Flood | DR-184-OR |
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.
How this compares
Where Yamhill County stands among 36 counties in Oregon and 3,143 in the United States.
| Tornadoes since 1950 | 4 | 17 / 36 |
| Tornadoes rated F3/EF3 or stronger | 0 | — |
| Tropical cyclones within 50 mi | 0 | — |
| Hurricane-strength passes within 50 mi | 0 | — |
| Wildfire acres since 1984 | 0 | — |
| Flood insurance claims | 108 | 14 / 36 |
| Flood insurance paid | $1.2 million | 16 / 36 |
| Disaster declarations | 19 | 13 / 36 |
| Flood events since 1996 | 20 | 22 / 36 |
| Hail and wind events since 1996 | 4 | 36 / 36 |
| Winter storm events since 1996 | 5 | 29 / 36 |
| Reported damage since 1996 | $12.5 million | 12 / 36 |
| River crests at major flood stage | 1 | 20 / 36 |
| High tide flooding days a year, last 10 years | 0.0 | — |
| Months in severe drought since 1895 | 97 | 21 / 36 |
| Medium or heavy smoke days a year, last 10 years | 15.7 | 32 / 36 |
| Earthquakes M4+ within 50 mi since 1900 | 12 | 15 / 36 |
| Earthquakes M2.5+ in the county since 1973 | 4 | 22 / 36 |
Neighbouring counties
| Clackamas County | 8 | 0 |
| Marion County | 11 | 0 |
| Polk County | 3 | 0 |
| Tillamook County | 7 | 0 |
| Washington County | 7 | 0 |
Sources and vintage
Every number on this page comes from these public records.
- 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 USW00094273.
- 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.