McKenzie County, North Dakota severe weather history spans 413 recorded events between 1952 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 53.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,204 nationally and #18 in North Dakota.
413
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
47
Direct injuries
$15.6M
Property damage
The record
What the McKenzie County, North Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, McKenzie County, North Dakota severe weather history averages 5.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 166 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 48 events fall before 1990 and 365 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the McKenzie County, North Dakota record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $6.2M 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 McKenzie County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 222 | 0 | $2.8M | 4.5 | 1963–2024 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 142 | 0 | $1.1M | 87 | 1965–2025 |
| Tornado | 24 | 1 | $6.2M | F2 | 1952–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 15 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2024 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $5.4M | 0 | 2009–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2011 |
| Frost/Freeze | 1 | 1 | $15K | 0 | 1997–1997 |
Decade by decade
McKenzie County, North Dakota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
25 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 25 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-07-09 | EF2 | 1 | 28 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-26 | EF2 | 0 | 9 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-07-01 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-06-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-07-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-09-17 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-06-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-06-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-06-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in McKenzie County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 10, 2018 | Tornado | WATFORD CITY | 1 | 28 | $3.5M |
| Nov 28, 1997 | Frost/Freeze | MANDAREE | 1 | 3 | $15K |
| May 27, 2014 | Tornado | WATFORD CITY | 0 | 9 | $2.5M |
| Aug 18, 1995 | Hail | Keene | 0 | 5 | $2.0M |
| Jul 7, 2000 | Hail | WATFORD CITY | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 3, 1990 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
About 135 people were displaced from their homes. One fatality occurred and 28 people were injured, about 13 of them seriously. Based on the damage the tornado was rated EF2 and from that winds were estimated to have been around 127 mph.||This tornado developed just to the west of a large recreational vehicle, camper, and mobile home park on the southwest side of Watford City. The tornado passed through the park causing extensive and severe damage to over 100 recreational vehicles, campers, and single wide manufactured homes. Power poles were snapped and other non-occupied buildings were damaged and some destroyed, including a well-built pole barn. Many vehicles were damaged, some totaled.
Significant ice jam related high waters created flooding along the Yellowstone River through McKenzie County in northwest North Dakota from March 21 to March 28. Homes and infrastructure that had not been inundated in over a generation were impacted. In addition, farm equipment was either damaged or destroyed by the flood waters. A portion of Highway 200 between Cartwright, North Dakota and Fairview, Montana, which is a major route through the region, was closed due to deep water over the highway.
Thirteen campers, serving as homes, were completely destroyed and two more were damaged by this tornado. Other damage included a snapped wooden power line pole, automobiles, and fences, both wooden and metal. One automobile was tossed sixty feet and flipped onto its roof, with a trailer parked next to its initial location also flipped and completely destroyed. About a dozen other vehicles were damage, some destroyed. Eye witness reports indicated two other funnel clouds in the immediate area.||Of all the damage surveyed by the National Weather Service the absolute worst corresponded to EF2 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. From that it was determined that the peak wind speeds in the tornado were on the order of 120 mph. ||There were nine direct injuries.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
14,321
Population (ACS)
$350K
Median home value
24
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 24, 2024 | Fire | WILDFIRES AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Oct 6, 2024 | Fire | BEAR DEN FIRE | FM |
| Oct 6, 2024 | Fire | ELK HORN FIRE | FM |
| Jul 13, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 1, 2021 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 2, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in McKenzie County, North Dakota?
413 events are on record between 1952 and 2025, causing 2 direct deaths and $15.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in McKenzie County?
Hail, with 222 recorded events — 53.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed McKenzie County?
25 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 25 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover McKenzie County?
24 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include McKenzie County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is McKenzie County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates McKenzie County as very low risk, placing it in the 25 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the McKenzie County, North Dakota 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
- McIntosh County 265
- McLean County 555
- McHenry County 354
- Mercer County 318
- Logan County 191
- Morton County 805
Cite this page
“McKenzie County, North Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-dakota/mckenzie-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.