Fayette County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by NASA (1), USGS Conterminous (1).

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Jan 19, 1996Flood, Fayette$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   On the Monongahela River near record flooding occurred at all Pennsylvania forecast points, except where record flooding occurred at Lock 2 Braddock. The crest at Lock 2 actually exceeded the crest during the flood of November 1985 by almost a foot. This was due to the tremendous contribution made by the Youghiogheny River during this particular flood. The crest at Braddock was 29.1 feet, 7.1 feet above its 22 foot flood stage, at 9 am on the 20th. Damage was extensive along the river.In Greene County, 9 homes, 3 businesses, and 3 trailer courts were affected.In Fayette County, 499 residences, 55 businesses, 4 churches, 1 fire department, 30 roads, 5 bridges, and 4 sewage plants…

2. Aug 28, 2016Flash Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flash flooding caused widespread damage across Bullskin Township, and in the town of Connellsville. Between 75 to 100 homes sustained damage from flood waters in Bullskin Township, including 29 single family homes with major damage, 8 mobile homes destroyed, a bridge destroyed, and 3 to 4 bridges suffering major structural damage. 50 people were evacuated, with damage estimated to be over 5 million dollars.

3. Jun 2, 1998Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An F2 tornado passed southeast through southern Fayette County PA, the northeast tip of Preston County WV, and into northwest Garrett County MD. The total length of the tornado as it passed across these three counties was 12 miles. Damage included a completely destroyed dairy barn, two completely destroyed house trailers, and at least 21 other structures heavily damaged, many with roofs partially or completely peeled off. Several cows were killed, with one cow thrown through the air over 100 yards. A clearly visible 300-yard wide, 1-mile long swath of trees which were completely sheared/uprooted was present near the Pennsylvania/West Virginia state border. One Fayette County…

4. Jul 1, 2013Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Coveland Creek was first reported out of its banks and debris was moving a bridge. From South Connellsville to Dunbar Borough, Dunbar Township and North Union a state of emergency was declared as flash flooding washed out roads, and damaged yards and homes across these areas. An elderly woman was evacuated from her home in North Union, where from 120 to 130 homes had water damage, and at least 14 homes were flooded by Dunbar Creek. Damage to township roads in North Union was estimated by officials to be one million dollars alone.

5. Nov 27, 2022Hail$1.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Reported by the public, with a photo of the 2 inch hail measurement. Also, the Perry Township Supervisor reported that 175 vehicles were damaged at an auto auction in the township, with around 400 vehicles damaged in the township overall.

6. Oct 6, 2024Thunderstorm Wind$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Trees were reported down along Smithfield-Masontown Road.

7. Feb 19, 2000Flood, Fayette$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread heavy rains of between 2.0 and 3.0 inches fell across southwest Pennsylvania on February 18th. This rain fell onto ground that was already nearly saturated from heavy rainfall a few days earlier. These conditions produced moderate flash flooding across the southwest corner of the state starting late on the 18th and continued into the 19th. However, the heaviest rainfall during this event occurred over the headwaters of the Monongahela River in northern West Virginia, where widespread rainfall exceeding 3.0 inches was recorded. This produced major river flooding downstream along the Monongahela River towards Pittsburgh. This rain event also produced minor flooding along…

8. Aug 25, 2023Tornado$850,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   This survey found a concentrated area of extensive tree damage and|sporadic minor structural damage that began on a farmland plateau|northwest of Mill Run along Hampton Road, and continued southeast|for approximately 2 miles, crossing Route 381, and ending along |Turkey Foot Road. This track cut across Yogi Bear's Jellystone |Park resort and campground, where several hundred campers were |present. A mixture of several hundred mature softwood and hardwood|trees were snapped or uprooted across the campground, with many |landing on RVs, cabins, shelters, and other structures throughout |the campground. Several park fixtures including water slides, |wagons, and other unique damage…

9. Nov 19, 2003Flash Flood$530,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   In Uniontown, roads, houses, and 19 businesses flooded by the overflow of Redstone and other creeks. 11 cars submerged at car dealership. 3 inches of rain reported at Uniontown fire station. In Connellsville, 3 feet of water flooded Pittsburgh St and Baldridge Ave, flooding many basements.

10. Jan 9, 2024High Wind, Fayette$500,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Wind gusts of up to 58 MPH were recorded at Connellsville Airport. The Westmoreland 911 call center reported that at least 20 structures were impacted by downed trees and wires, and there were over 100 calls overall for downed trees and wires during the late morning and afternoon. Specific examples were noted on Morgantown Street in Chadville, as well as Vardnell Street and Hopwood Coolspring road in Uniontown.

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

108°FJul 25, 1892

All-time low

−20°FJan 16, 1972

Warmest night

78°FJul 9, 1981

Coldest day

−4°FDec 25, 1983

Wettest day

5.01 inAug 5, 1956

Snowiest day

20.0 inMar 13, 1993

Hottest year

2024mean 57.5°F

Coldest year

1969mean 50.6°F

Wettest year

200360.91 in

Driest year

196329.53 in

Station Morgantown Municipal Airport (USW00013736), 1,226 ft elevation, 23.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1877 to October 26, 2026; 98.6% 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 USW00013736.
• 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.
• 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.