Bristol city

Every recorded tornado

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

Costliest events since 1996

1. Dec 9, 2009High Wind, Washington$760,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency management reported that several trees were blown down by non thunderstorm winds near Whitetop Mountain and also in several locations across the county. A church was destroyed at Glade Springs and two large signs were blown down in the county.

2. Jan 24, 2026Winter Storm, Washington$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A significant and highly damaging ice storm unfolded in Washington County VA as temperatures struggled to get to 32F or above, especially in the northeastern portion of the county. Ice accretion ranged from 0.25 to 0.50 inches across the county, resulting in significant damage. A trained spotter reported a maximum of 0.75 inch in the Emory and Meadowview areas, these locations stayed below freezing for a significant period of time. Extensive utility damage occurred, with power poles, powerlines, and transformers breaking from either ice weight outright or collapse of trees. At least 45% of the county was without power by the evening on the 25th. Snow and sleet accumulations of 0.8…

3. Feb 14, 2003Flood, Washington$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Four day rainfall totals of two to six inches were reported across southwest Virginia, with the highest amounts occurring in Wise and Lee counties. This rainfall combined with melting snowpack (reports of up to a foot in the higher elevations) to produce widespread flooding of rivers and streams, with evacuations ordered below Big Cherry Dam in Wise county due to water flowing over the spillway. The Clinch and Powell rivers measured significant rises due to the extended rainfall duration and snowmelt in the higher elevations.

4. Feb 28, 2011Flood$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A trained spotter reported some houses flooded on Kings Mill Pike in Bristol from slow moving thunderstorms.

5. May 26, 2004Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were reported down across the city of Bristol.

6. May 18, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Trees and power lines were reported down in Bristol.

7. Jul 8, 2001Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
8. May 26, 2004Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were reported down across Bristol.

9. Apr 25, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Several trees and powerlines down in Bristol. A large limb was downed and broke the windshield of a car.

10. Dec 16, 2010Ice Storm, Washington$20,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Law enforcement personnel reported freezing rain produced 0.25 inches of ice on roads in Abingdon, along with 2 inches of snow.

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°FJun 30, 2012

All-time low

−21°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

79°FJul 6, 1943

Coldest day

2°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

3.65 inOct 16, 1964

Snowiest day

16.2 inNov 21, 1952

Hottest year

2024mean 58.9°F

Coldest year

1996mean 53.9°F

Wettest year

200365.64 in

Driest year

200722.39 in

Snowiest season

51.0 in1959-60

Station Bristol Airport (USW00013877), 1,496 ft elevation, 15.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1937 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 USW00013877.
• 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.