Chittenden County, Vermont severe weather history spans 530 recorded events between 1953 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 56.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #782 nationally and #1 in Vermont.
530
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$26.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Chittenden County, Vermont severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Chittenden County, Vermont severe weather history averages 7.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 233 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 45 events fall before 1990 and 485 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Chittenden County, Vermont record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $13.7M 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 Chittenden County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 297 | 2 | $4.3M | 70 | 1960–2025 |
| Hail | 136 | 0 | $126K | 3.3 | 1957–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 36 | 0 | $13.7M | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Flood | 24 | 1 | $4.5M | 0 | 2006–2023 |
| Lightning | 21 | 0 | $1.6M | 0 | 1996–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 9 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 1999–2012 |
| Tornado | 5 | 0 | $2.5M | F2 | 1953–1987 |
| Strong Wind | 2 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2000–2001 |
Decade by decade
Chittenden County, Vermont 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983-08-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-06-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-06-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1987-05-31 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-08-07 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Chittenden County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 30, 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | CHAMPLAIN ARPT | 2 | 0 | $25K |
| Apr 11, 2011 | Flood | NORTH UNDERHILL | 1 | 0 | $30K |
| Aug 24, 1993 | Thunderstorm Wind | Mt. Philo | 0 | 3 | $5K |
| May 27, 2010 | Lightning | COLCHESTER | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous branches and a few trees down on several roads in Colchester Mallets Bay area, including Prim, Porters Point, Colchester Point. Eldery couple were kayaking near Thayers beach when the storm struck and both capsized and drowned.
Runoff from heavy rainfall and snowmelt caused flooding in Chittenden County. The Browns River left its banks, flooding portions of Routes 15 and 128 in Jericho and Essex. The Winooski River flooded as well, and the gage at Essex Junction VT exceeded its flood stage of 15 feet at 19:21 EST on 4/11, and crested at 17.27 feet at 10:30 EST on 4/12/2011. Numerous low lying areas were flooded along the Winooski, including the Intervale in Burlington, North Williston Road in Essex, and Bridge Street in Richmond.||In addition, one fisherman drowned as his aluminum boat went through the Clark Falls's Spillway on Lake Arrowhead into the Lamoille River.
Flooding from Tropical Storm Irene caused extensive flooding across Chittenden County in the Winooski River Valley and other rivers such as the Browns River. Along the Winooski…homes and businesses were flooded in Richmond, and hundreds of acres of farmland were inundated. Routes 2 and 117 were inundated and impassable from Williston and Essex upstream through Richmond to Jonesville.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
169,758
Population (ACS)
$439K
Median home value
32
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 20, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 8, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL DEPRESSION DEBBY | EM |
| Apr 19, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jul 14, 2023 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Jul 10, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | EM |
| Mar 20, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Chittenden County, Vermont?
530 events are on record between 1953 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $26.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Chittenden County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 297 recorded events — 56.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Chittenden 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 Chittenden County?
32 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Chittenden County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Chittenden County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Chittenden County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 64 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Chittenden County, Vermont 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
- Caledonia County 300
- Essex County 135
- Bennington County 307
- Franklin County 260
- Addison County 383
- Grand Isle County 95
Cite this page
“Chittenden County, Vermont.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/vermont/chittenden-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.