Putnam County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Putnam 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 WV GS (10,738), 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. May 26, 2018Flash Flood$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Following about three inches of rain in under three hours, flash flooding along Scary Creek, Hurricane Creek, Crooked Creek and Poplar Fork lead to significant flooding of roads, homes and businesses in the Teays Valley and Scott Depot areas. Especially hard hit were the areas of Beechwood Estates, Maplewood Estates and Barrington Woods. All sit right along Poplar Fork. Five water rescues were performed in eastern Putnam County, this includes three separate vehicles that drove into high water. About 80 houses were damaged by the flooding, with five sustaining major damage. Two businesses sustained damage, the Scott Depot Post Office and a karate studio. Eight vehicles were…

2. Jun 29, 2012Thunderstorm Wind$2.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees and large branches were blown down in the county. Over 23,000 customers lost electricity. Two homes were destroyed and 3 others had major damage. The roof to a career and technical center was damage. The public infrastructure damage assessment was around $218,000.

3. Jul 9, 2023Lightning$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Local fire department responded to a 3:15 A.M. structure fire at the Devonshire Apartment Complex in Scott Depot. The three-story building, with 22 apartments (19 occupied) and 27 occupants, was gutted. Initial report mentioned a lightning strike. No injuries were reported. Everyone evacuated safely and were accounted for.

4. May 27, 2004Flash Flood$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   One mobile home in the Spring Branch area was destroyed by flood waters. Several mobile homes in the Westwood Mobile Home Park, west of Hurricane, had insulation, underpinning, heating, and air conditioner damage. Three state bridges and several private bridges were damaged. Preliminary assessment reported about 45 homes in the county with major damage.

5. Oct 29, 2012Heavy Snow, Putnam$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A rare consolidation of a strong mid and upper level trough in the polar jet with a tropical hurricane named Sandy resulted in a historical snow storm for the month of October. ||Periods of rain fell for 2 days from the 27th into the 28th, as a cold front moved east. In response to the colder air associated with the polar jet and the strengthening mid level trough, light rain changed to the first snowflakes around 0000E to 0200E on Monday the 29th. This snow was only across the high terrain of southwest Virginia northward into the mountainous counties of central West Virginia. For example, the first flakes around Beckley were around 0100E. However, little accumulation was seen…

6. Jun 14, 2003Flash Flood$600,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Streams overflowed from Teays Valley on south. A rain gauge in Hurricane measured 2.7 inches of rain in 1 hour. One mobile home was destroyed, about a dozen other homes had major damage. One church and a public pool were also damaged.

7. Nov 19, 2003Flood, Putnam$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Rains of 2 to 4.2 inches fell from 2200E on the 18th through 1600E on the 19th. A strong inflow of moist air from the southeast, helped enhance these rains. The heaviest rain was over the central and southern mountains, say from the Snowshoe region on through Richwood, Beckley, Mullens, and Elkhorn. Some of the preliminary rain totals were 4.2 inches at Snowshoe, 3.9 inches at Richwood, 3.7 inches at Elkhorn, 3.5 inches at Rosedale, 3.3 inches at Frost and Mullens, 3.1 inches at Webster Springs and Glenville, 2.9 inches at Oak Hill and Beckley. Vegetation was dormant for the upcoming winter, the ground saturated, and the waterways were still flowing above normal levels from the…

8. May 3, 2019Hail$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Golf ball sized hail damaged hundreds of cars in Teays Valley. A few dozen homes also received roof and siding damage.

9. Jul 14, 2014Lightning$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A large brick house on a hilltop off of Blue Lick Road caught fire and burnt to the ground. Local and county officials suspect lightning ignited a fire in the attic. A smoke detector went off alerting the 2 sleeping adults. They got their 7 year old son and evacuated the house.||By the time fire crews arrived, the home was fully engulfed by flames. No fire hydrants were located on the hilltop. The home was a total lose.

10. Aug 3, 2018Flash Flood$500,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Cow Creek flooded causing water to cover parts of Cow Creek Road. Indian Fork also flooded, forcing evacuations of the Westwood Mobile Home Community due to high water. Multiple homes were damaged.

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°FAug 17, 2007

All-time low

−18°FJan 20, 1994

Warmest night

76°F2 times, most recently Jul 30, 2002

Coldest day

−4°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

4.05 inApr 16, 1939

Snowiest day

24.0 inMar 13, 1993

Hottest year

2024mean 58.6°F

Coldest year

1960mean 51.0°F

Wettest year

199653.21 in

Driest year

200125.88 in

Station Winfield Locks (USC00469683), 621 ft elevation, 3.8 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1939 to September 30, 2026; 91.3% 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 USC00469683.
• 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.