Thomas County, Nebraska severe weather history spans 264 recorded events between 1962 and 2024. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 69.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,013 nationally and #77 in Nebraska.
264
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$3.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Thomas County, Nebraska severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Thomas County, Nebraska severe weather history averages 4.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 93 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 26 events fall before 1990 and 238 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $2.6M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Thomas County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 184 | 0 | $252K | 3 | 1972–2024 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 58 | 0 | $69K | 87 | 1978–2023 |
| Tornado | 9 | 0 | $2.6M | F2 | 1962–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 8 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2010 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2004–2023 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $75K | 0 | 2010–2023 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2005 |
Decade by decade
Thomas County, Nebraska severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
12 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-06-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-06-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-08-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1965-05-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 34.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1986-08-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-05-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 89.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1962-08-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-07-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-07-23 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Park officials reported winds estimated up to 100 mph. The strong winds uprooted several trees and downed tree limbs at the Nebraska National Forest west of Halsey. The winds destroyed an empty, older mobile home and the roof of a home sustained damage from a tree that fell.
The tornado, observed by numerous storm chasers, including the VORTEX team, and the general public, touched down in Thomas County 3 miles north northwest of Thedford and was on the ground for 15 miles before lifting in southeast Cherry County 6 miles east southeast of Brownlee. The path was over rangeland destroying 9 windmills, several miles of fences and nemerous trees. This was the most significant of 6 tornadoes produced by the same supercell thunderstorm.
A tornado touched down one mile west northwest of Purdum and caused damage to trees and power lines. Large limbs from elm trees were snapped off and displaced up to 300 feet to the south. Also, four power poles on the south side of the road were snapped off and 250 feet of barbed wire fencing was damaged.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
564
Population (ACS)
$109K
Median home value
10
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 24, 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 |
| Aug 27, 2018 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 22, 2011 | Fire | THEDFORD FIRE | FM |
| Jul 15, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Thedford 135
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Thomas County, Nebraska?
264 events are on record between 1962 and 2024, causing 0 direct deaths and $3.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Thomas County?
Hail, with 184 recorded events — 69.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Thomas County?
12 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Thomas County?
10 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Thomas County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Thomas County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Thomas County as very low risk, placing it in the 0 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Thomas 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
- Thayer County 601
- Thurston County 239
- Stanton County 299
- Valley County 356
- Sioux County 336
- Washington County 356
Cite this page
“Thomas County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/thomas-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.