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Hardin County, Texas severe weather history spans 293 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 39.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,818 nationally and #159 in Texas.
293
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$620.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Hardin County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hardin County, Texas severe weather history averages 4.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 76 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 47 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 deadliest hazard in the Hardin County, Texas record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $611.2M 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 Hardin County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 117 | 0 | $5.4M | 120 | 1961–2026 |
| Hail | 91 | 0 | $1K | 3.5 | 1957–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 47 | 0 | $611.2M | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Tornado | 27 | 1 | $1.4M | F2 | 1964–2023 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $2.4M | 0 | 1997–2016 |
| Lightning | 2 | 1 | $75K | 0 | 2008–2018 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2012–2013 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2016–2016 |
Decade by decade
Hardin County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
31 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 28 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-11-23 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-11-05 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-12-10 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 26.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-10-28 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 16.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1970-01-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-03-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-10-31 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-11-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 16.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-10-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-06-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.4 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hardin County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2018 | Lightning | HONEY IS | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Nov 23, 2004 | Tornado | KOUNTZE | 1 | 0 | $500K |
| Oct 29, 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | KOUNTZE SILSBEE ARPT | 0 | 1 | $3.0M |
| May 30, 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | SOUR LAKE | 0 | 1 | $1.1M |
| Nov 5, 1994 | Tornado | Sour Lake | 0 | 1 | $3K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Widespread 20 to 40 inches fell across the county which resulted in near 10,000 homes being flooded. Worst hit areas were around Lumberton, Silsbee, Sour Lake, and Kountze. Record flooding occurred on Pine Island Bayou and Village Creek. The second highest crest of the Neches occurred at Evadale. The US Highway 96 bridge near Silsbee collapsed due to the current.
The first reports of flooding was received from Silsbee's Fire Department. Water was entering 2 homes and major street flooding was beginning. During the event numerous roadways and structures in the county became flooded. River and bayou flooding also lasted for several days especially along Pine Island Bayou. Rain totals were between 10 and 40 inches, with the highest amounts along the extreme southern part of the county. Between 50 and a 100 homes were flooded, mainly between Sour Lake and Pinewood Estates.
A thunderstorm downburst produced wind gusts of 90 to 100 mph across parts of Hardin County from Kountze to Silsbee. Damage started around the Hwy 326/ Hwy 770 intersection southwest of Kountze, where numerous trees were snapped or uprooted. Part of the roof of the Hardin County Show Barn was ripped off. ||In Kountze, several trees were snapped or uprooted near the county courthouse. The intermediate school lost part of a metal roof on the gymnasium.||Further south, a church lost part of its roof on Hwy 96, and part of the roof at the Hawthorne Airport hangar came off. A small building near the airport was flipped over. A man that was in the building received minor injuries.||The Enchanted Forest subdivision near Silsbee was hit especially hard. Numerous trees were uprooted or snapped, with several homes having roof damage when trees landed on them. ||The area of damage was 7040 yards wide.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
57,642
Population (ACS)
$206K
Median home value
32
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 9, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE BERYL | DR |
| May 17, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Feb 19, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 14, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Aug 24, 2020 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORMS MARCO AND LAURA | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hardin County, Texas?
293 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $620.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hardin County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 117 recorded events — 39.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hardin County?
31 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 28 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hardin County?
32 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hardin County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hardin County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hardin County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 70 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hardin 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
- Hardeman County 462
- Harris County 1,937
- Hansford County 499
- Harrison County 899
- Hamilton County 389
- Hartley County 497
Cite this page
“Hardin County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/hardin-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.