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Lake County, Ohio severe weather history spans 387 recorded events between 1960 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 58.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,306 nationally and #49 in Ohio.
387
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
90
Direct injuries
$358.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Lake County, Ohio severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lake County, Ohio severe weather history averages 5.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 105 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 42 events fall before 1990 and 345 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Lake County, Ohio record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $347.6M in reported property damage. In total, 10 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Lake County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 226 | 0 | $8.9M | 75 | 1960–2026 |
| Hail | 98 | 0 | $515K | 1.75 | 1975–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 26 | 1 | $347.6M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Flood | 14 | 0 | $655K | 0 | 2006–2020 |
| Waterspout | 13 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2001 |
| Tornado | 5 | 0 | $485K | F2 | 1969–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2008 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
| Winter Weather | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
| High Wind | 1 | 0 | $150K | 52 | 2014–2014 |
Decade by decade
Lake County, Ohio severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
5 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 4 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-07-04 | EF2 | 0 | 40 | 7.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-08-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-08-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-10-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-08-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Lake County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 28, 2006 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $320.0M |
| Jan 13, 1998 | Winter Weather | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 45 | $0 |
| Jul 5, 1969 | Tornado | 0 | 40 | $250K | |
| Jun 18, 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | MADISON NORTH | 0 | 3 | $50K |
| Nov 15, 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | MENTOR | 0 | 2 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A 77 mph thunderstorm wind gust was measured at the Fairport Harbor Light House. Dozens of trees were downed across the county by thunderstorm winds. Areas near Lake Erie were especially hard hit with considerable damage in Mentor and Madison. Several homes were damaged and two cars crushed by trees in Mentor. Also hard hit was Painesville where a car was destroyed by a fallen tree. Trees were also downed in Willoughby and Perry.
A thunderstorm downburst downed dozens of trees and damaged several homes. The damage path began near Liberty Street in Painesville and continued east along Prouty Road to near State Route 44 in Concord. A mobile home was crushed by a fallen tree in Concord.
On the evening of May 21st heavy rain measured at 2.5 inches between 930 pm and 11 pm caused widespread flash flooding in the town of Madison. A tributary to the Arcola Creek which runs through downtown Madison came out of it's banks and flooded Main Street and Safford Street with water flowing higher than the fire hydrants at an estimated four feet deep. The hardest hit areas were in the east of town where numerous basements flooded. Numerous roads in town were closed due to backed up storm drainage. The flood waters receded around 2 am.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
232,216
Population (ACS)
$214K
Median home value
15
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 30, 2012 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS | EM |
| Apr 24, 2008 | Snowstorm | RECORD SNOW AND NEAR RECORD SNOW | EM |
| Aug 1, 2006 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lake County, Ohio?
387 events are on record between 1960 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $358.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lake County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 226 recorded events — 58.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lake County?
5 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 4 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Lake County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lake County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lake County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lake County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 77 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lake County, Ohio 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
- Knox County 368
- Lawrence County 412
- Jefferson County 353
- Licking County 573
- Jackson County 258
- Logan County 380
Cite this page
“Lake County, Ohio.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/ohio/lake-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.