Williamsburg County, South Carolina severe weather history spans 273 recorded events between 1962 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 54.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,941 nationally and #42 in South Carolina.
273
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
19
Direct injuries
$13.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Williamsburg County, South Carolina severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Williamsburg County, South Carolina severe weather history averages 4.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 105 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 27 events fall before 1990 and 246 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flood, with $8.1M 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 Williamsburg County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 150 | 0 | $693K | 74 | 1965–2025 |
| Hail | 79 | 0 | $25K | 2 | 1982–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 16 | 0 | $2.2M | 0 | 2001–2024 |
| Tornado | 14 | 0 | $1.5M | F2 | 1962–2019 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $8.1M | 0 | 2010–2017 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $525K | 0 | 1996–2015 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2012 |
Decade by decade
Williamsburg County, South Carolina severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
17 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 13 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 41.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-03-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-03-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-09-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-06 | EF1 | 0 | 3 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-07-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-06-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 20.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1995-11-07 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-11-07 | EF1 | 0 | 11 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-06-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Williamsburg County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 7, 1995 | Tornado | Kingstree | 0 | 11 | $350K |
| Jul 2, 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | KINGSTREE | 0 | 4 | $85K |
| May 6, 2003 | Tornado | HEMINGWAY | 0 | 3 | $320K |
| Nov 7, 1995 | Tornado | Sandridge | 0 | 1 | $150K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Around 10 to 15 inches of rain fell over a three day period, causing the Black River at Kingstree to rise to a major flood. The river crested at 22.65 feet, beating the previous record crest in 1973 by nearly three feet. Several hundred homes were evacuated due to inundation. The town of Quinby had moderate flooding.
Heavy rains associated with the remnants of Tropical Storm Gaston amounted to around 10 inches in about 3 to 4 hours over western Williamsburg County. This resulted in widespread road closures across western portions of the county.
A National Weather Service storm survey determined an F1 tornado touched down approximately 2.5 miles west of Hemingway. The tornado overturned two singlewide mobile homes and tore the roof off another, dropping it on a vehicle and causing damage. The damage estimate in this area was $100K. Two people were hospitalized. The tornado continued east southeast, weakening somewhat, and caused F0 damage, snapping pine trees. The trees fell on a singlewide and doublewide mobile home and two vehicles. One person was hopitalized, and the damage in this area totaled $120K. The tornado strengthened, causing F1 damage once again one mile south of Hemingway. It destroyed a tobacco warehouse and damaged a farm supply building, with $100K damage. The tornado turned slightly northeast, and caused F0 damage to trees and a wheat field before finally dissipating. The spotty damage path length was 3.8 miles.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
30,282
Population (ACS)
$105K
Median home value
30
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 29, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Aug 5, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE DEBBY | EM |
| Aug 31, 2023 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDALIA | EM |
| Nov 21, 2022 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IAN | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Williamsburg County, South Carolina?
273 events are on record between 1962 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $13.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Williamsburg County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 150 recorded events — 54.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Williamsburg County?
17 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 13 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Williamsburg County?
30 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Williamsburg County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Williamsburg County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Williamsburg County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 82 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Williamsburg County, South Carolina 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
- Union County 351
- York County 613
- Sumter County 640
- Spartanburg County 1,079
- Saluda County 316
- Richland County 1,414
Cite this page
“Williamsburg County, South Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-carolina/williamsburg-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.