Washington County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

Volcanoes within 100 miles

1. 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

Mapped by UT GRC (1,507), NASA (9), USGS Conterminous (2), USGS Seismogenic Mass Movements (1).

Deadly landslides

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. Jun 19, 2025Wildfire, Southern Mountains$35.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Forsyth Fire started on Thursday, June 19th, 2025. Initial reports from fire officials state the fire is suspected to have originated as a holdover from lightning in the Pine Valley Mountains. A long stretch of hot, dry, and windy conditions prevailed ahead of the fire's discovery on the 19th. A nearby RAWS station in Pine Valley (TT900) observed Red Flag conditions (wind gusts >25 mph and RH <15%) for about 16 hours from the afternoon of the 19th to the early morning hours on the 20th. A mandatory evacuation order for the Pine Valley community was issued at 9:21 PM on the 19th. Red Flag conditions redeveloped late morning on the 20th, with strong southwest winds eventually…

2. Dec 19, 2010Flood$19.7 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain caused widespread significant flooding across Washington County. Rainfall and significantly increased river flows began on December 19th, with many rivers and streams around Zion National Park and St. George near bankfull. Reports of road flooding began on December 20th. SR-9 was closed in Zion National Park due to flooding between the tunnel and Mt. Carmel Junction, and flooding and rockslides occurred on SR-18 between Enterprise and Central.||The worst of the flooding occurred on December 21st, when the flow of the Santa Clara River increased to an estimated 5000 cfs, and the Virgin River near Bloomington was measured at 12400 cfs. Zion National Park was closed due to…

3. Oct 8, 2011Debris Flow, Southern Mountains$12.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A landslide occurred 8 miles east of Cedar City, along Utah State Route 14. The landslide occurred sometime before 5 a.m. on the morning of October 8th, when the slide was discovered and the road was closed by the Utah Department of Transportation. The landslide was 1,700 feet in length, and destroyed an 800 foot section of State Route 14. The dirt on the road was as much as 100 feet deep in some places, and it was estimated that the slide consisted of 1.5 million cubic yards of dirt, rock, and debris. This led to the closing of a 12-mile stretch of State Route 14, which is a widely used road in southern Utah, particularly for tourists trying to get to Cedar Breaks National…

4. Sep 11, 2012Flash Flood$7.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An extended period of moderate to heavy rainfall occurred in southwest Utah on the morning of September 11th, during which 3.24 inches of rainfall was measured in Ivins, Utah. In nearby Santa Clara, an earthen dike (called the Laub Dike) burst, releasing all of the water in the associated retention pond. This water and mud flowed into nearby homes and businesses, damaging both public infrastructure and private properties. A total of $3.8 million in damage was done to public infrastructure, including damage to the dike, streets, and sidewalks. The flood also damaged 16 businesses and 63 homes; some of these buildings had internal damage due to water and mud flowing into them, while…

5. Aug 23, 2020Flash Flood$5.4 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   During the late evening and early nighttime hours, intense rainfall was observed in St. George. The St. George, UT Coop observer reported 2.00 inches of rainfall in two hours, corresponding to a recurrence interval of approximately 200 years. The Santa Clara River at St. George rose from 3 cfs to 1,586 cfs in 3 hours. Interstate 15 was closed in both directions, with five to six feet of water reported across roadways in the area producing additional road closures, including the Red Hills Parkway. Many cars were stalled and stranded, several sink holes were reported, and power outages occurred. St. George Rehabilitation was partially evacuated. Flood damage was reported in…

6. Jan 3, 1997Flash Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Subtropical moisture brought heavy rains to southwest Utah to kick-off the new year. Washington county had hundreds of reports of flood damage. Most Streets and basements were flooded in the towns of St. George and Bloomington. Total rainfall amounts during this time were 2.38 inches in St. George and 2.42 inches in Bloomington. Damage in Washington county was estimated at 5 million dollars, worst in its history.

7. Nov 21, 1996Flash Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rains inundated the southwest Utah from the evening of the 21st into the morning of the 22nd. Some of the worst flooding was reported in Washington county's history. Generally the mountains of southwest Utah received 2-4 inches of rainfall. Valley locations had from 1-2 inches. Rainfall rates of up to an inch per hour were measured. The Gold Strike Mine in the Dameron valley measured 3.55" during this storm. Hurricane had 2.06 inches while St. George received 1.84 inches. Numerous streets and basements were flooded with mud and water in the towns of St. George, Santa Clara and Bloomington. Though the damage was quite extensive there were only 2 known injuries.

8. Aug 1, 2007Flash Flood$2.1 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extensive flash flooding occurred in Zion National Park and areas outside of the park near the towns of Virgin and Touquerville. Due to the massive flash flood six homes were damaged and residents were evacuated off of their roofs. In addition, Kolob Terrace was closed.||Damage amounts were estimated from media reports (6 homes destroyed, $250K each; 3 homes damaged, $25K each; and a washed out bridge, $35K). In addition, the Zion RV Park reported damages totaling $205,000, not including loss of revenue.

9. Jun 17, 2017Wildfire, Southern Mountains$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Brianhead Fire started on June 17, when a man used a weed torch at his Brian Head area cabin, and the fire became out of control. The fire burned 71,675 acres, with most of the growth in the first two weeks of the fire. The Brianhead Fire destroyed 13 homes and 13 minor structures. A priority sage grouse habitat was also impacted east of the fire perimeter in the Panguitch watershed area. Costs associated with the fire were approximately $36.6 million, with rehabilitation efforts projected to cost double or triple that amount. At the height of the fire, approximately 1,831 personnel were fighting to contain the wildfire, and 1,562 people were evacuated from 11 communities in…

10. Jul 1, 2017Wildfire, Southern Mountains$2.0 million
    National Weather Service narrative

    The Brianhead Fire started on June 17, when a man used a weed torch at his Brian Head area cabin, and the fire became out of control. The fire burned 71,672 acres, with most of the growth in the first two weeks of the fire. The Brianhead Fire destroyed 13 homes and 13 minor structures. A priority sage grouse habitat was also impacted east of the fire perimeter in the Panguitch watershed area. Costs associated with the fire were approximately $36.6 million, with rehabilitation efforts projected to cost double or triple that amount. At the height of the fire, approximately 1,831 personnel were fighting to contain the wildfire, and 1,562 people were evacuated from 11 communities in…

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°F2 times, most recently Jul 11, 2021

All-time low

−11°F2 times, most recently Jan 26, 1937

Warmest night

91°FJul 21, 1918

Coldest day

17°FJan 22, 1937

Wettest day

2.40 inAug 31, 1909

Snowiest day

15.0 inJan 18, 1894

Hottest year

1996mean 66.5°F

Coldest year

1895mean 56.8°F

Wettest year

201916.17 in

Driest year

20112.18 in

Snowiest season

15.8 in1932-33

Station St. George (USC00427516), 2,857 ft elevation, 4.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 23, 2026; 89.3% 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 USC00427516.
• 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.