Lincoln County, Nebraska severe weather history spans 1,855 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 58.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #18 nationally and #1 in Nebraska.
1,855
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
19
Direct injuries
$68.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Lincoln County, Nebraska severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lincoln County, Nebraska severe weather history averages 26.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 601 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 221 events fall before 1990 and 1,634 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $54.4M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Lincoln County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 1,091 | 0 | $54.4M | 4.5 | 1955–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 567 | 0 | $4.2M | 103 | 1955–2026 |
| Tornado | 103 | 0 | $7.4M | F4 | 1956–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 39 | 0 | $2.3M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 22 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2013 |
| Flood | 19 | 0 | $606K | 0 | 2010–2021 |
| Lightning | 10 | 0 | $66K | 0 | 2001–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2019 |
Decade by decade
Lincoln County, Nebraska severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
113 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 107 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956-10-29 | EF4 | 0 | 2 | 147.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-18 | EF3 | 1 | 3 | 28.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2012-03-18 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 1.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-03-18 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 6.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-04-20 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 15.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2000-05-17 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 11.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-06-25 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 9.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1975-06-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 21.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-07-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Lincoln County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 19, 2012 | Tornado | NORTH PLATTE | 0 | 2 | $750K |
| Mar 19, 2012 | Tornado | NORTH PLATTE | 0 | 2 | $500K |
| Apr 21, 2007 | Tornado | BRADY | 0 | 2 | $180K |
| May 17, 2000 | Tornado | BRADY | 0 | 2 | $750K |
| Aug 29, 1999 | Flash Flood | SOUTHWEST PORTION | 0 | 2 | $1.0M |
| Jun 26, 1989 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $2.5M | |
| Oct 29, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jun 27, 2016 | Hail | SUTHERLAND | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tennis ball size hail fell on the west side of North Platte, with a few pieces that large also falling on the east side of the city. Golf ball size hail also fell across much of the city and lasted until 6:50 p.m. CDT. In some parts of the city large hail fell off and on for almost two hours.
Ping-pong ball to baseball size hail struck the east side of town. Hail damaged the bodies of nearly every vehicle and broke some windshields at an auto dealership and in residential areas on the east side of North Platte. Then the storm moved into the southeast section of town and continued to do damage to vehicles at retail shopping center parking lots. The hail also damaged 8 skylights in the Wal-Mart Super Center store. One middle aged woman was struck in the head by a hailstone in the Wal-Mart parking lot. She was taken to the hospital for stitches. Then the storm severely damaged nearly every vehicle at 2 more auto dealerships as it moved south of Interstate 80.
Storm damage survey observed damage to homes, business and schools as numerous trees were uprooted, large tree limbs snapped or broken. The downed trees brought down numerous power lines that caused power outages between Buffalo Bill to Poplar streets. The Nebraska State Patrol closed Interstate 80 temporarily as several semi-trucks were over turned or had gone into the ditch from the strong winds.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
33,802
Population (ACS)
$190K
Median home value
20
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30, 2026 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Mar 13, 2026 | Fire | MORRILL-COTTONWOOD FIRE | FM |
| Sep 24, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 20, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- North Platte 610
- Brady 165
- Hershey 165
- Sutherland 160
- Wallace 108
- Wellfleet 107
- Maxwell 103
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lincoln County, Nebraska?
1,855 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $68.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lincoln County?
Hail, with 1,091 recorded events — 58.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lincoln County?
113 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 107 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Lincoln County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lincoln County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lincoln County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lincoln County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 49 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lincoln County, Nebraska severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Lancaster County 965
- Logan County 292
- Knox County 549
- Loup County 234
- Kimball County 426
- McPherson County 263
Cite this page
“Lincoln County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/lincoln-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.