Malheur County, Oregon severe weather history spans 126 recorded events between 1966 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 41.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,792 nationally and #5 in Oregon.
126
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$811K
Property damage
The record
What the Malheur County, Oregon severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Malheur County, Oregon severe weather history averages 2.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 42 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 14 events fall before 1990 and 112 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $501K in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Malheur County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 52 | 0 | $501K | 70 | 1969–2025 |
| Hail | 26 | 0 | $0 | 2 | 1970–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 18 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Heavy Rain | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Tornado | 6 | 0 | $300K | F1 | 1966–1997 |
| Wildfire | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2002 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–1998 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2025–2025 |
Decade by decade
Malheur County, Oregon severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
9 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-04-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-05-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-06-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-08-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 19.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-04-30 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-06-17 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-06-21 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-06-21 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 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
Severe thunderstorms formed in extreme Eastern Oregon near midday. High winds knocked over trees, power poles, power lines, and billboards, and caused areas of blowing dust that contributed to several auto accidents. A weather spotter at Keating, northeast of Baker City in Baker County, reported winds gusting to near 50 knots between 1000 PST and 1130 PST, with trees and large tree branches blown down. The Ontario Airport, in Malheur County, reported steady winds in the 40 to 50 knot range from 1000 PST until 1200 PST, with gusts to 60 knots. Areas of blowing dust reduced visibility to 15 feet near Ontario, contributing to several auto accidents, including a seven car pileup on United States Highway 20 at 1145 PST. No one was seriously injured. Tumbleweeds and other debris were blown into irrigation ditches and dams in the nearby Treasure Valley agricultural area, plugging them up and backing up water. It was several days before all of the weeds and debris were removed and the irrigation systems were fully operational.
A thunderstorm developed near Burns Junction shortly after the Rome storm, and produced even stronger wind. The mesonet near Burns Junction recorded gusts over 60 mph for about 10 minutes, with a peak gust of 71 mph. Sustained winds were still near 40 mph, speaking to the quick moving nature of the winds.
Rome airport observed gusts near 60 mph for about 5 minutes as a thunderstorms gust front move through. Sustained winds were between 36-44 mph at the same time. This occurred shortly before an even stronger gust occurred at Burns Junction.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
31,954
Population (ACS)
$249K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 22, 2024 | Fire | DURKEE FIRE | FM |
| Mar 28, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Coastal Storm | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Feb 19, 2004 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Apr 29, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Malheur County, Oregon?
126 events are on record between 1966 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $811K in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Malheur County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 52 recorded events — 41.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Malheur County?
9 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 Malheur County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Malheur County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Malheur County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Malheur County as very low risk, placing it in the 35 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Malheur County, Oregon 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
Cite this page
“Malheur County, Oregon.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/oregon/malheur-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.