Kent County

Every recorded tornado

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

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Mar 29, 2010Flood$25.6 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Eight to ten inches of rain fell across Kent County causing record rises on the Pawtuxet River at Cranston, cresting at nearly 21 feet, roughly 6 feet higher than the previous record set only two weeks prior. The Pawtuxet River flows into Kent County and resultant flooding occurred in Warwick, West Warwick, and Coventry. The South Branch of the Pawtuxet River also went into flood, setting a record at just over nine feet. ||Numerous basements were flooded in East Greenwich, Warwick, West Warwick, and Coventry. In addition, numerous streets were closed due to flooding in Coventry, East Greenwich, and West Warwick, including portions of Jefferson Boulevard, and Routes 2 and 5, all…

2. Mar 14, 2010Flood$1.3 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The South Branch of the Pawtuxet River at Washington rose above flood stage and the main branch of the Pawtuxet River at Cranston rose into major flood, eventually setting a record crest following three to four inches of rain. The main branch of the Pawtuxet River flooded portions of Warwick and West Warwick. ||Multiple streets across West Warwick, Coventry, and Warwick were closed due to flooding, including Aster, Begonia, Canna, Daisy, and River Streets in West Warwick. These streets were flooded with up to four feet of water and resulted in residents in the area being evacuated. The Natick Bridge, which carries East Avenue traffic over the Pawtucket River was closed and has…

3. Jun 22, 1997Lightning$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A line of thunderstorms, some severe, moved southeastward across Rhode Island with large hail, frequent cloud to ground lightning, and wind gusts measured up to 80 mph. A microburst moved through part of East Providence (the Riverside section and Bullocks Neck) and West Barrington (the Bullocks Cove area). A boat was lifted off its cradle on land and landed on top of a car and a crane was turned about 30 degrees in the Bullocks Cove area. Two boats were swamped in the Cove and there was considerable tree damage. A lightning bolt started a fire which destroyed an upstairs apartment in West Barrington. As a result of a National Weather Service survey of the area, winds in the…

4. Oct 15, 2005Flood, Western Kent$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A low pressure system interacted with a plume of tropical moisture as the low slowly moved parallel to the Long Island and south Massachusetts coasts, resulting in excessive rain and flooding across Rhode Island. Between 2.5 and 4.5 inches of rain fell from this event. Many roads were closed region wide; and approximately 500 evacuations occurred. These evacuations were concentrated mainly along the Pawtuxet, Pocasset, Woonasquatucket, and Blackstone Rivers. Along the Blackstone River, evacuations occurred in Woonsocket and Central Falls. In Providence, the fire department rescued people from their flooded cars on Charles Street and Branch Avenue near the Woonasquatucket River. In…

5. Sep 2, 2013Flash Flood$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain over the same part of Rhode Island for the second day in a row resulted in widespread flash flooding across much of Kent County and Cranston. Information on flooding in Cranston can be found in a separate event entry for Providence County. In Coventry this included, Route 102 flooded with up to a foot of water, numerous roads flooded with one to two feet of water, including Route 117, Hopkins Hill and Sandy Bottom Roads, and Laurel and Tiogue Avenues, with cars stuck in flood waters on all of those roads. Hopkins Hill Road, Sandy Bottom Road, and Route 33 were later closed. Route 116 (Knotty Oak Road) was washed out at Gervais Street. In West Greenwich, Route 102 was…

6. Oct 28, 2006High Wind, Eastern Kent$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Trees fell onto a house in Warwick, causing significant damage.

7. Apr 1, 1997Heavy Snow, Western Kent$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A low pressure system which formed off the New Jersey coast during the early morning hours of March 31st intensified rapidly as it moved to a position 60 miles south of Newport, Rhode Island. This system retreated to the south during the early morning hours of April 1st, pulling in cold air from the north. The center then moved slowly eastward. Heavy snow and strong winds produced blizzard and near-blizzard conditions across most of Rhode Island during the early morning hours on April 1st. Snowfall accumulations set all-time records for April across most of the state, with amounts ranging from around 4 inches along the south coast to nearly 30 inches along the Massachusetts border…

8. Sep 1, 2013Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain fell across Coventry, RI resulting in substantial flash flooding. Route 117 was flooded at several points, including near Route 116 under the railroad trestle, near South Main, and near Paine Memorial Field. Many cars became stuck in flood waters along Route 117. The area near 1070 Tiogue Avenue was flooded and impassable. The intersection of Hopkins Hill Road and Tiogue Avenue was flooded with four cars stuck in the flood waters. The intersection of Laurel Avenue and Washington Street was flooded and impassable. Hopkins Hill Road was closed due to flooding between South Main Street and Route 3.

9. Oct 20, 2012Lightning$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Two houses were set on fire by lightning, both were deemed uninhabitable.

10. Apr 1, 1997Heavy Snow, Eastern Kent$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A low pressure system which formed off the New Jersey coast during the early morning hours of March 31st intensified rapidly as it moved to a position 60 miles south of Newport, Rhode Island. This system retreated to the south during the early morning hours of April 1st, pulling in cold air from the north. The center then moved slowly eastward. Heavy snow and strong winds produced blizzard and near-blizzard conditions across most of Rhode Island during the early morning hours on April 1st. Snowfall accumulations set all-time records for April across most of the state, with amounts ranging from around 4 inches along the south coast to nearly 30 inches along the Massachusetts border…

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

104°FAug 2, 1975

All-time low

−13°FJan 23, 1976

Warmest night

80°FJul 3, 2026

Coldest day

7°F3 times, most recently Jan 16, 1994

Wettest day

6.31 inAug 4, 1979

Snowiest day

35.5 inFeb 23, 2026

Hottest year

2021mean 54.2°F

Coldest year

1978mean 48.7°F

Wettest year

198367.52 in

Driest year

196525.44 in

Snowiest season

106.5 in1995-96

Station Providence (USW00014765), 51 ft elevation, 3.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 100.0% 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 USW00014765.
• 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.