Childress County, Texas severe weather history spans 441 recorded events between 1951 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 48.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,096 nationally and #109 in Texas.
441
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
11
Direct injuries
$35.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Childress County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Childress County, Texas severe weather history averages 5.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 111 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 101 events fall before 1990 and 340 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 $20.3M 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 Childress County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 212 | 0 | $8.3M | 4.5 | 1955–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 187 | 0 | $20.3M | 90 | 1955–2026 |
| Tornado | 26 | 0 | $6.5M | F2 | 1951–2014 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $60K | 0 | 2007–2017 |
| Flash Flood | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2016 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2016–2016 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2018–2018 |
Decade by decade
Childress County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
29 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 23 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-05-09 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1987-05-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1951-06-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-04-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-05-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1995-06-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-06-03 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-05-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-05-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Childress County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 16, 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | CHILDRESS | 0 | 6 | $16.0M |
| Jul 30, 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | (CDS)CHILDRESS ARPT | 0 | 3 | $2.0M |
| May 10, 2006 | Tornado | CHILDRESS | 0 | 1 | $5.7M |
| Jun 4, 1995 | Tornado | Childress | 0 | 1 | $300K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous photos of hail larger than baseballs were received from the south and southeast parts of the city of Childress. The slow movement of this supercell storm compounded damage to hundreds of vehicles, homes and buildings in the area. Combined property losses are estimated to be around $2 million.
A complex of severe thunderstorms produced extreme winds and resulted in significant damage in the Childress vicinity during the 21:00 CST hour of the 29th. The Automated Surface Observing System at the Childress Municipal Airport recorded a 102 mph thunderstorm wind gust at 21:29 CST. The nearby Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet recorded a series of severe gusts between 21:35 CST and 21:45 CST, with a peak gust of 80 mph at 21:40 CST. ||Damage across the northwestern half of the city was extensive. Three people were injured when the walls of a motel collapsed just off of U.S. Highway 287. Two other hotels sustained heavy damages. Minor roof damage was additionally reported at the Childress Regional Medical Center and the Childress High School.
On the heels of a supercell that produced golf ball size hail and damage in Childress, a second supercell impacted Childress less than 30 minutes later. This latter storm was more intense and dropped very large hail up to baseball size in the city. Preliminary evidence indicates widespread damage was dealt to vehicles, windows and roofing throughout much of the city.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
6,743
Population (ACS)
$125K
Median home value
14
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 19, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 14, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Feb 9, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 1, 2011 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Childress 167
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Childress County, Texas?
441 events are on record between 1951 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $35.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Childress County?
Hail, with 212 recorded events — 48.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Childress County?
29 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 23 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Childress County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Childress County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Childress County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Childress County as very low risk, placing it in the 20 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Childress County, Texas 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
- Cherokee County 574
- Clay County 656
- Chambers County 227
- Cochran County 266
- Coke County 269
- Castro County 453
Cite this page
“Childress County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/childress-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.