Stonewall County

Every recorded tornado

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

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

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.

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. Apr 6, 2011Wildfire, Stonewall$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The massive 'Swenson Fire' ignited during the afternoon hours of the 6th in Stonewall County, north of the Swenson community. The use of a cutting torch during critical fire weather conditions started the blaze, which consumed 122,500 acres before it was finally contained on the 21st. During the fire's 15-day run, it burned into grasslands of adjacent King and Knox Counties. At least nine structures were destroyed. Tragically, a 105-year old cowboy and his wife lost four ranch homes to the fire. The couple, who were uninjured, had lived in Stonewall County their entire lives and as patriarch to six generations of family cowboys on their ranch. The fire destroyed 155 utility poles…

2. Apr 14, 2011Wildfire, Stonewall$258,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Following the initial influences of a potent upper air storm system that brought strong winds and an outbreak of wind-driven wildfires to much of the Southern Plains on the 9th and 10th, isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms developed over west Texas as the center of the system passed during the nighttime hours of the 10th and predawn hours of the 11th. Lightning associated with this convective activity initiated several additional wildfires. The massive and long-lived 'Cooper Mountain Ranch' Fire emerged around midday on the 11th from a smoldering lightning-start in southeastern Kent County, about 9 miles south of Clairemont.||The wildfire consumed 162,625 acres of…

3. Jun 16, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A severe thunderstorm produced damaging winds in the Aspermont vicinity shortly after 21:30 CST on the 16th. This was the second storm to cause damage in and around Aspermont in as many weeks, following a previously damaging storm which struck on the 5th.||The Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet site just northeast of the city recorded gusts of 63 mph and 66 mph between 21:35 CST and 21:45 CST. Reports from local newspapers and the Aspermont Fire Department indicated that several structures, including at least one home, received significant roof damage. Several additional light weight structures were destroyed, and damage to utility poles and trees was widespread. The…

4. Jun 13, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A massive high precipitation supercell storm tracked southeastward over Stonewall County during the 17:00 CST hour on the 13th. The storm produced a large swath of damaging winds as it impacted areas near Aspermont. A Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet site northeast of the city sustained a direct hit from a weak tornado which was embedded within the parent mesocyclone.||Skywarn storm spotters and storm chasers initially reported thunderstorm winds estimated between 70 mph and 80 mph along U.S. Highway 83 north of Aspermont at 17:22 CST. At approximately the same time, the onset of severe 60 mph gusts occurred at the Aspermont mesonet station. Severe gusts persisted for…

5. Jun 5, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Damaging thunderstorm winds impacted the Aspermont vicinity around 19:30 CST on the 5th. The winds caused widespread tree damage and tore tin off of several lightweight structures. Some large trees that were more than thirty years old were reportedly split and uprooted from the storm. A brick store-front was blown off of a Main Street building that dated back to the 1920s. The Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet site northeast of Aspermont recorded a peak gust of 70 mph at 19:40 CST. A local utility company reported the loss of more than fifty wooden power poles across portions of Stonewall County and neighboring King County during the storms. No injuries were reported.

6. May 1, 1996Drought, Stonewall$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The drought continued through most of the month of May, causing significant crop damage. Some areas received several inches of rain during the severe weather of the 25th and 26th, but this was not nearly enough to break this long term drought.

7. Apr 23, 2004Hail$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A supercell thunderstorm developed west of town and moved slowly east producing a swath of hail up to and slightly larger than golfball size in and west of Old Glory.

8. Jun 1, 1996Drought, Stonewall$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Despite periodic thunderstorms this month, the long drought continued across the extreme southern Texas Panhandle, the South Plains, and the Low Rolling Plains. The very dry weather adversely impacted the early cotton crop that dominates this area.

9. Feb 24, 2007High Wind, Stonewall$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A powerful storm system impacted the Southern Plains on the 24th. This system resulted in widespread severe winds and dust storm conditions. The Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet recorded peak gusts up to 70 mph. Damage was reported over a large portion of the central South Plains and the Rolling Plains, with many roofs and light weight metal structures damaged, windows broken, and utility poles/lines downed.|The winds also contributed to an intense dust storm. Many local newspapers reported that the dust storm was one of the worst events in recent history. Multiple vehicle pile-ups damaged at least 30 vehicles in Garza, Lynn, and Lubbock Counties. One motorist was injured…

10. Jun 13, 2009Tornado$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A tornado tracked southeast through rural areas near Aspermont between 17:25 CST and 17:35 CST. This tornado was obscured by precipitation and blowing dust within a massive high precipitation supercell. Although storm chasers observed suspicious storm features and small debris fallout that led them to believe a tornado was lurking within the bear's cage, visual observations of the tornado were virtually non-existent. The tornado, however, struck a Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet site three miles northeast of Aspermont at 17:30 CST. Both meteorological data from the mesonet and a post-storm survey confirmed the occurrence of this tornado.||The tornado developed near the…

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

117°FJun 28, 1994

All-time low

−10°FDec 23, 1989

Warmest night

83°F2 times, most recently Jun 20, 2011

Coldest day

9°FDec 23, 1983

Wettest day

6.92 inApr 28, 1930

Snowiest day

12.0 inJan 18, 1925

Hottest year

2012mean 66.4°F

Coldest year

1997mean 60.9°F

Wettest year

194141.02 in

Driest year

19567.65 in

Snowiest season

21.8 in1972-73

Station Aspermont (USC00410394), 1,754 ft elevation, 0.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1962 to October 23, 2026; 99.3% 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 USC00410394.
• 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.