Cumberland County

Every recorded tornado

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

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. Sep 7, 2011Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Yellow Breeches Creek near Camp Hill crested in moderate flood stage at 9.6 feet. Flood stage is 7.0 feet. This is the 10th highest crest on record. The Conodoguinet Creek near Hogestown crested in moderate flood stage at 10.52 feet. Flood stage is 8.0 feet.||Many roads in the county were closed due to flooding from creeks and streams. Flooding was reported along the Susquehanna River in the Wormleysburg area.||A portion of Bridge Street in New Cumberland was underwater and residents in that area evacuated. The street was closed, and Olde Towne Beverage was underwater. The Borough of New Cumberland was under state of emergency.||A preliminary total of 160 structures suffered…

2. May 1, 2025Wildfire, Cumberland$800,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A wildfire developed during the afternoon of April 23, 2025 in Michaux State Forest, located in southwestern Cumberland County. The wildfire originated along Shippensburg Road between Milesburn and Thompson Road. The wildfire occurred during a stretch of unseasonably dry weather along with gusty winds, and expanded quickly in size to around 2,248 acres at the wildfire's furthest extent. At the fire's peak, aerial support was enlisted to battle the fire, along with firefighting crews on the ground. Evacuations from structures began during the afternoon hours of April 24th and continued through April 25th with 20-30 residences evacuated. This wildfire also caused hazy/smokey…

3. Aug 25, 2007Thunderstorm Wind$125,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Law enforcement reported trees and wires down in Carlisle. 5 people were injured at a Corvette parade when a tree fell onto one of the cars.

4. Jul 23, 2009Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain caused flash flooding just north of Carlisle in North Middletown Township. Three to five feet of water inundated several homes along Echo Road. Water was over the top of resident mailboxes in some areas. Several municipal roads were also closed due to the flooding.

5. May 31, 2025Strong Wind, Cumberland$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Strong wind gusts estimated at 40 to 50 mph knocked trees and powerlines down across Cumberland County. Wertzville Road was closed between Sample Bridge and Beard roads after trees and wires fell onto the roadway. One tree landed on a residence in Wormleysburg Borough. Additionally, numerous trees were knocked down on the east side of Carlisle. Widespread power outages occurred, with approximately 9000 customers losing power.

6. Jul 23, 2009Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain produced flash flooding just southeast of Mechanicsburg in Upper Allen Township. Several residents were evacuated from flooded homes.

7. Sep 28, 2006Tornado$75,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service survey team along with Cumberland County Emergency Management confirmed a short lived tornado occurred in Silver Spring Township in northeast Cumberland County Pennsylvania late Thursday afternoon September 28.The tornado touched down about one and half miles north of Hogestown near Dewalt Drive and moved rapidly northeast over the Conodoguinet Creek. The tornado touched down again over Interstate 81 and a third time near the intersection of Route 944 and Lambs Gap Road about a mile west of Mt. Zion before dissipating.The tornado path length was near 3 miles with a damage width of about 100 yards. The maximum wind speeds were 80 to 90 mph, placing the…

8. Aug 4, 2004Tornado$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorms spawned a weak F1 tornado during the late afternoon of Wednesday August 4th in western Cumberland County. The tornado first touched down on Bear Creek Road near the town of Greider, about 4 miles northeast of Newville. The tornado traveled east approximately 3 miles, and lifted near the Pennsylvania Turnpike 4 miles west of Carlisle. Peak winds were estimated at 85 mph. There were no injuries or deaths.The tornado took the roof off two houses, and destroyed a barn. In addition, dozens of trees were knocked down and corn crops were destroyed.

9. Dec 26, 2025Winter Weather, Cumberland$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Freezing rain accumulations near one tenth of an inch caused slick roadways in portions of Cumberland County, where the southbound lane of Interstate 81 was closed due to a multi-vehicle accident involving two tractor trailers and a passenger vehicle. Three patients were transported due to injuries, with the roadway remaining closed throughout the evening hours of December 26th.

10. May 15, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A severe thunderstorm producing winds estimated near 75 mph knocked down numerous trees and wires down along the Route 34 corridor. Some trees fell onto homes, and there was roof damage to some barns in the area.

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°F2 times, most recently Jul 3, 2026

All-time low

−22°FJan 21, 1994

Warmest night

81°F3 times, most recently Jul 3, 2026

Coldest day

−1°FJan 19, 1994

Wettest day

7.71 inSep 7, 2011

Snowiest day

26.4 inJan 23, 2016

Hottest year

2021mean 56.9°F

Coldest year

1963mean 51.4°F

Wettest year

201173.73 in

Driest year

200125.76 in

Snowiest season

77.6 in1995-96

Station Middletown Harrisburg International Airport (USW00014711), 299 ft elevation, 16.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1941 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 USW00014711.
• 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.