Richland County, North Dakota severe weather history spans 708 recorded events between 1952 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 41.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #391 nationally and #4 in North Dakota.
708
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
32
Direct injuries
$6.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Richland County, North Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Richland County, North Dakota severe weather history averages 9.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 257 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 113 events fall before 1990 and 595 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Richland County, North Dakota record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $2.9M 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 Richland County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 296 | 0 | $35K | 4.5 | 1958–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 244 | 0 | $2.9M | 78 | 1960–2025 |
| Tornado | 62 | 2 | $1.7M | F4 | 1952–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 44 | 0 | $278K | 0 | 1996–2016 |
| Funnel Cloud | 34 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2021 |
| Flood | 20 | 0 | $1.6M | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $45K | 0 | 1997–2002 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2009–2013 |
Decade by decade
Richland 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
61 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 58 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-07-02 | EF4 | 2 | 19 | 9.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-08-07 | EF4 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-07-01 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-05 | EF3 | 0 | 11 | 5.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-07-01 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-06-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 26.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-08-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1953-05-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-08-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Richland County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 3, 1955 | Tornado | 2 | 19 | $250K | |
| May 5, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 11 | $0 | |
| Apr 18, 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | GREAT BEND | 0 | 1 | $20K |
| Jun 5, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | WAHPETON | 0 | 1 | $75K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado tracked north northeastward for roughly two miles before crossing into Cass County. The tornado was likely enshrouded in downburst winds and heavy rain. The tornado and accompanying winds knocked down numerous wooden power poles along its path and four steel t-bar high voltage towers. Peak winds were estimated at 120 mph.
Several grain bins were dented in and numerous large tree limbs were broken down at a farmstead. Numerous tree branches were broken down in shelterbelts throughout Devillo and Lemars townships. Some corn fields were flattened.
A squall with embedded microburst moved across the Fairmount area, snapping large branches and smaller trees at numerous rural properties and in the town itself. The overhead doors were blown in on a few garages and an industrial building. A fertilizer plant had a large north-facing overhead door blown in and a section of its northeast side wall blown out.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
16,584
Population (ACS)
$184K
Median home value
37
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 15, 2024 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Jul 5, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 13, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 9, 2020 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 1, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Richland County, North Dakota?
708 events are on record between 1952 and 2025, causing 2 direct deaths and $6.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Richland County?
Hail, with 296 recorded events — 41.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Richland County?
61 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 58 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Richland County?
37 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Richland County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Richland County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Richland County as very low risk, placing it in the 35 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Richland 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
- Renville County 175
- Rolette County 148
- Ransom County 365
- Sargent County 361
- Ramsey County 492
- Sheridan County 127
Cite this page
“Richland County, North Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-dakota/richland-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.