Garfield County, Utah severe weather history spans 188 recorded events between 1972 and 2025. The dominant hazard is flash flood, accounting for 71.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,516 nationally and #10 in Utah.
188
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$1.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Garfield County, Utah severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Garfield County, Utah severe weather history averages 3.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 86 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 5 events fall before 1990 and 183 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Garfield County, Utah record is flash flood, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $1.1M 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 Garfield County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | 134 | 3 | $1.1M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 20 | 0 | $21K | 65 | 1972–2025 |
| Hail | 17 | 0 | $26K | 1.75 | 1986–2022 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $370K | 0 | 2010–2024 |
| Tornado | 4 | 0 | $300K | F0 | 2000–2017 |
| Lightning | 3 | 2 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2012 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $2K | 0 | 1997–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2022 |
Decade by decade
Garfield County, Utah severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
5 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 5 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-09-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-03-31 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-07-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-08-26 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-09-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Garfield County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 10, 2008 | Flash Flood | ESCALANTE MUNI ARPT | 2 | 2 | $0 |
| Aug 26, 2023 | Flash Flood | RUBYS INN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 22, 2012 | Lightning | BOULDER | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 18, 2011 | Lightning | BRYCE CANYON | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 28, 2014 | Flash Flood | TROPIC | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Aug 16, 2000 | Lightning | BRYCE CANYON | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flash flooding occurred in a small, but popular, slot canyon called Egypt 3, located near the Escalante River in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. This flooding resulted in two fatalities and two more injuries. ||The drainage of Egypt 3 is very small, measuring approximately 1.2 square miles. The area is void of vegetation and soil, and the underlying parent matter is Navajo Sandstone, which is virtually impermeable. Radar rainfall estimates indicated that approximately 0.2 to 0.4 inches of rain fell on the drainage. Based on calculations after the event, the peak discharge was estimated to be approximately 450 cfs, and the time from the beginning of the rainfall to peak discharge was estimated to be 24 minutes. With the dimensions of the channel, it is probable that the depth of the flood exceeded 20 feet.
A 64-year-old woman was reported overdue from a hike on the Fairyland Loop Trail. A search of the area was conducted, with the woman being found deceased. Details are unclear, but showers and thunderstorms were in the area. A news release from Bryce Canyon National Park stated dry washes had higher flows because of precipitation. Though not conclusive, a medical examiner report stated the cause of death was likely due to drowning.
A 24-year-old male was fishing at Row Lake, on the west side of Boulder Mountain, on the evening of July 21st. When a thunderstorm moved into the area, both the man and his dog took shelter under a tree. Lightning struck the tree, and both the man and the dog were killed.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
5,219
Population (ACS)
$318K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 2021 | Fire | MAMMOTH FIRE | FM |
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Feb 11, 2011 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 5, 2005 | Coastal Storm | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Apr 30, 1983 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, LANDSLIDES & FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Boulder 129
- Escalante 107
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Garfield County, Utah?
188 events are on record between 1972 and 2025, causing 5 direct deaths and $1.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Garfield County?
Flash Flood, with 134 recorded events — 71.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Garfield County?
5 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 5 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Garfield County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Garfield County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Garfield County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Garfield County as very low risk, placing it in the 38 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Garfield County, Utah 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
- Emery County 107
- Grand County 236
- Duchesne County 97
- Iron County 111
- Davis County 181
- Juab County 57
Cite this page
“Garfield County, Utah.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/utah/garfield-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.