Smyth County, Virginia severe weather history spans 285 recorded events between 1972 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 53.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,868 nationally and #51 in Virginia.
285
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$15.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Smyth County, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Smyth County, Virginia severe weather history averages 5.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 111 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 10 events fall before 1990 and 275 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flash flood, with $9.0M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Smyth County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 152 | 0 | $3.7M | 70 | 1972–2025 |
| Hail | 55 | 0 | $10K | 2 | 1972–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 34 | 0 | $9.0M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 25 | 0 | $172K | 0 | 2002–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 8 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2022 |
| Tornado | 7 | 0 | $2.5M | F3 | 1974–2011 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $105K | 0 | 1996–2013 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2011 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $2K | 0 | 2020–2020 |
Decade by decade
Smyth County, Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
7 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-04-27 | EF3 | 3 | 50 | 19.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-04-04 | EF3 | 1 | 4 | 8.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1975-01-25 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 3.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-05-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-07-13 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Smyth County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 1974 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Jan 26, 1975 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Thunderstorm winds caused considerable damage between Chilhowie and Marion. Winds from these storms damaged seven commercial structures, three government buildings, and 24 residential buildings. Numerous trees and power lines were also reported down due to thunderstorm winds.
The tornado with winds estimated up to 115 MPH entered from Washington County and continued northeast until lifting at Carlock Creek Road near Brushy mountain. Five homes received significant damage to their roofs and walls. Three mobile homes were overturned as well. Several other buildings in the path also received moderate damage to their roofs. Numerous large trees were also either uprooted or snapped mid trunk.
Heavy rain associated with thunderstorms resulted in flash flooding in Smyth county. Several roads including Highway 91,42,and 16 were closed because of flooding. Sulphur Spring creek, Stanley creek, and Walker creek |came out of their banks. Flash flooding occurred in the Marion, Sugar Grove, Chilhowie and Broadford areas.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
29,420
Population (ACS)
$140K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 4, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 1, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | DR |
| Sep 29, 2024 | Tropical Storm | POST-TROPICAL CYCLONE HELENE | EM |
| Apr 2, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Smyth County, Virginia?
285 events are on record between 1972 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $15.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Smyth County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 152 recorded events — 53.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Smyth County?
7 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 4 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Smyth County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Smyth County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Smyth County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Smyth County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 58 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Smyth County, Virginia 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
- Shenandoah County 492
- Southampton County 287
- Scott County 228
- Spotsylvania County 483
- Russell County 193
- Stafford County 460
Cite this page
“Smyth County, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/smyth-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.