Henry County

Every recorded tornado

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

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. Sep 17, 2004Tornado$53.8 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down near Fieldale at 1104 EST. The F1 tornado crossed U.S. Highway 220 turning over 2 tractor-trailer trucks and 2 passenger vehicles. All 4 drivers suffered minor injuries. The tornado damage patch widened to a quarter mile, and strengthened to F2 as it approached and struck a factory. At this location, around 40 vehicles were severely damaged or destroyed. The factory experienced significant damage. The tornado then proceeded north and entered a residential subdivision, but only minor roof and tree damage occurred here. The tornado path became intermittent as it continued north and the damage was limited to trees. The tornado crossed into Franklin County at 1114 EST.

2. May 18, 2018Flash Flood$9.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Severe flooding with numerous reports affected parts of Henry County, especially south and west of Martinsville. A car was pulled out of flood waters on Highway 220 south of Martinsville.

3. Sep 30, 2010Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   There were several reports of flooding in the Bassett area with on unnamed creek flowing over a road. Several other reports of countywide flooding were received. Damage values are estimated.

4. Apr 5, 2011Thunderstorm Wind$1.8 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm winds caused several trees down across the central and northern portion of Henry County. This includes trees down on a house with people trapped inside in Fieldale. Heavy damage was also reported on Skyview Trail in the Spencer area. One mobile home received heavy damage, another home had its roof lifted off, a shed was destroyed, several vehicles were heavily damaged, and a gazebo was blown away. In the Dyer Store area Martin Stables received heavy damage. it was here where a machinery storage building, hay barn, and half a cinder block building were destroyed. Most of the farm equipment was destroyed by falling debris.

5. May 24, 2020Flash Flood$1.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Smith River was reported to be completely flooding over River Road in Fieldale near Shadyview Road. The Smith River at Bassett (BASV2) stage was around 12 feet near the time of this report. The river crested at 13.35 feet (14400 cfs) around 822 EST per USGS statistics. No flood stage had been set at this gage mainly due to the flood control exercised by Philpott Dam. But the stage was the 2nd highest since dam began operation in 1952, after the flood in September, 1987 of 15.20 feet. It should be noted that Philpott Dam lost power earlier in the evening due to a mudslide and the dam operators were unable to reduce downstream flows to the normal extent.

6. Sep 6, 1996Flash Flood$700,000
7. May 24, 2020Debris Flow$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A debris flow damaged the power house at Philpott Dam knocking out power to the dam and causing some damage. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers which operates Philpott, the timing of the landslide is not exact but the power to the plant tripped at 6:43 PM EDT on May 24, 2020. The slide may have started slowly a little before that time but the mass damaging slide would have been around the time of power failure. The slide occurred in the utility right of way cleared land area that goes up from the powerhouse transformer and switch yard up the hill on the AEP grid system on the Henry County side of the Dam.

8. Sep 17, 2018Flash Flood$431,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Henry County was part of Presidential Major Disaster declaration with significant damage to roads and other structures. There were nearly a dozen calls to the county 911 for flooding, including several road washouts and motorists trapped in a flooded vehicle. Residents of Blackberry Mobile Home Park also reported flooding. The time of occurrence is based on reports and the time of highest runoff from the CREST hydrologic model.

9. Jul 9, 2010Lightning$400,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lightning struck a two-story brick house with a full basement, catching it on fire. The house and all its contents were destroyed.

10. Jul 4, 2001Lightning$400,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Thunderstorms during the afternoon of the 4th produced damaging winds, damaging lightning, and flash flooding.Thunderstorm winds downed trees from 2 miles northwest of Pittsville to Pittsville, and downed trees in Collinsville, blocking some roads.Heavy thunderstorm rains caused Jones Creek to flood and close Figsboro Road in Martinsville. Additional roads in Martinsville were flooded and closed by the heavy rain.Lightning struck a sawmill in Bassett Forks, igniting a fire which completely destroyed mill, equipment, and stock.

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

105°FAug 2, 1942

All-time low

−7°F3 times, most recently Feb 21, 2015

Warmest night

78°FAug 28, 1943

Coldest day

16°F3 times, most recently Jan 19, 1994

Wettest day

6.40 inOct 15, 1954

Snowiest day

19.0 inMar 13, 1993

Hottest year

1939mean 59.2°F

Coldest year

1976mean 53.8°F

Wettest year

201872.95 in

Driest year

198032.45 in

Snowiest season

42.5 in2009-10

Station Martinsville Fltr Plt (USC00445300), 780 ft elevation, 2.3 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1937 to October 21, 2026; 98.9% 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 USC00445300.
• 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.