Hidalgo County, Texas severe weather history spans 574 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 36.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #652 nationally and #60 in Texas.
574
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
30
Direct injuries
$506.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Hidalgo County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hidalgo County, Texas severe weather history averages 8.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 163 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 79 events fall before 1990 and 495 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Hidalgo County, Texas record is flash flood, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $248.6M 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 Hidalgo County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 208 | 0 | $14.5M | 89 | 1960–2025 |
| Hail | 163 | 0 | $210.3M | 4.5 | 1956–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 69 | 3 | $248.6M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Flood | 44 | 1 | $19.4M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Tornado | 43 | 0 | $12.0M | F3 | 1955–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 30 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Lightning | 11 | 1 | $1.3M | 0 | 1996–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2022 |
Decade by decade
Hidalgo County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
39 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 37 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-04-19 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-04-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 40.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-06-30 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-07-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-04-30 | EF1 | 0 | 11 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-05-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-05-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-06-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-08-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-08-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hidalgo County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 2025 | Flash Flood | ALAMO | 3 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 1996 | Lightning | MISSION | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Aug 1, 2010 | Flood | PROGRESO | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 30, 2003 | Tornado | PENITAS | 0 | 11 | $1.5M |
| Mar 15, 1983 | Tornado | 0 | 9 | $2.5M | |
| May 24, 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | LINDSAY GARDENS | 0 | 2 | $110K |
| May 8, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | LINN | 0 | 1 | $50K |
| Jun 30, 2011 | Tornado | (MFE)MILLER INTL ARP | 0 | 1 | $500K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Torrential rains moved out from the McAllen/metro into the mid-Valley section of Hidalgo County, to include locations east of Edinburg, including Elsa/Edcouch, then south through San Juan, Alamo, and Donna, extending south to around Military Highway (US 281) east of Pharr and near the Rio Grande.||Poor drainage locations flooded with at least 3 feet of water depth, and nearly the entire IH-2 frontage road had 2 to 3 or more feet of water depth, with dozens of vehicles stranded and at least one hundred more removed from the floodwaters. A number of farm-to-market and state highways had pockets of flood waters, forcing closures that lasted into March 28th. ||In this flood area, there were three known drownings when vehicles became submerged in deeper waters in canals/drainage areas during encounters with law enforcement. One drowning was a juvenile who was unable to be rescued from a vehicle that submerged near Edcouch.||Damage details and further information will be available later in 2025 from these areas.
After hours of rainfall the nuisance flooding became a flash flood. Several inches to at least a foot of water rose into homes in the Las Brisas subdivision on the east side of town, with three to five feet of water on neighborhood streets. At least three feet of water submerged vehicles along the frontage roads between the Westgate and Airport Road exits during the peak of the flash flooding. Additional high water closed portions of FM 1015 between Weslaco and Progresso (which also had flash flooding of unknown depth)and FM 493 near Donna. At least 26 separate boat rescues were made in flooded neighborhoods and more than 500 homes were impacted by some level of floodwater.
Numerous roads were closed in east Edinburg and the surrounding colonias, including San Carlos, as 6 to 18 inches of water covered roadways. Numerous vehicles became stalled in the waters. Water entered numerous homes and businesses. City of Edinburg officials reported that nearly 50 people had to be evacuated due to flood waters. According to City of Edinburg officials, preliminary damage estimates totaled about $23 million. An estimated 510 homes sustained damage, 225 incurred major damage and 285 incurred minor damage, for an estimated total of $18.5 million. 25 businesses sustained some damage and approximately $4.5 million in road infrastructure damage was sustained, including potholes and washed away roads.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
891,977
Population (ACS)
$141K
Median home value
32
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 2025 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 9, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE BERYL | DR |
| 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 |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hidalgo County, Texas?
574 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 5 direct deaths and $506.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hidalgo County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 208 recorded events — 36.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hidalgo County?
39 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 37 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hidalgo County?
32 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hidalgo County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hidalgo County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hidalgo County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 99 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hidalgo 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
- Henderson County 514
- Hill County 596
- Hemphill County 406
- Hockley County 640
- Hays County 449
- Hood County 481
Cite this page
“Hidalgo County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/hidalgo-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.