Duval County, Texas severe weather history spans 217 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 38.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,338 nationally and #212 in Texas.
217
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$8.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Duval County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Duval County, Texas severe weather history averages 3.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 66 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 33 events fall before 1990 and 184 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $6.4M 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 Duval County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 84 | 0 | $6.4M | 4.25 | 1970–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 69 | 0 | $769K | 87 | 1956–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 36 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 1997–2023 |
| Tornado | 18 | 0 | $788K | F2 | 1963–2015 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2015 |
| Flood | 3 | 0 | $150K | 0 | 2010–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2025 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Duval County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
14 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 12 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-05-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-07-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1993-04-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-05-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-04-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-05-15 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-04-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-07-20 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2003-06-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-02-21 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Duval County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 2013 | Hail | BENAVIDES | 0 | 1 | $5.3M |
| Oct 27, 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | SAN JOSE | 0 | 1 | $150K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
NWS storm survey concluded that baseball to softball sized hail fell across Benavides causing damage to nearly every home and business in the town. Damage included broken windows, doors, roofs, and siding. The damage was confined primarily to the north and east side of structures. Vehicles were severely dented with large holes in windshields or completely broken out. One person suffered a head injury. The severe hail damaged 258 residences, 100 abandoned homes, and 700 cars.
NWS storm survey combined with Freer Fire Chief reports indicated that golf ball to baseball sized hail fell in the northeast portions of the city of Freer. The hail caused dents in vehicles including a new and used car lot. The baseball sized hail broke out windows in north facing buildings. Hail broke windshields out of the fire truck.
An NWS storm survey concluded straight line winds severely damaged roughly 15 homes, a community center and church. Nearly all the damage was observed on the northwest sides of the structres with debris scattered to the southeast. Two mobile home were completely destoyed, with one man injured that was inside one of the mobile homes. The two mobile homes that were completly destroyed were oriented north-northeast to south-southwest, perpendicular to the northwest to southeast straight-line winds observed on radar. The damage from the two mobile homes was thrown to the southeast roughly 20 yards. In addition numerous large trees and power poles were uprooted and broken, all lying to the southeast direction. Several vehicles were also damaged by the uprooted trees and debris from homes. Winds were estimated between 80 and 100 mph.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
9,742
Population (ACS)
$89K
Median home value
20
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 |
| Jul 26, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HANNA | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| May 29, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Duval County, Texas?
217 events are on record between 1956 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $8.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Duval County?
Hail, with 84 recorded events — 38.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Duval County?
14 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 12 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Duval County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Duval County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Duval County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Duval County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 54 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Duval 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
- Donley County 607
- Eastland County 506
- Dimmit County 132
- Ector County 814
- Dickens County 339
- Edwards County 233
Cite this page
“Duval County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/duval-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.