Benton County, Washington severe weather history spans 88 recorded events between 1956 and 2020. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 59.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,925 nationally and #8 in Washington.
88
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$577K
Property damage
The record
What the Benton County, Washington severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Benton County, Washington severe weather history averages 1.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 41 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 7 events fall before 1990 and 81 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flood, with $513K 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 Benton County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 52 | 0 | $43K | 70 | 1978–2020 |
| Hail | 14 | 0 | $0 | 1 | 1970–2019 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $513K | 0 | 2009–2017 |
| Tornado | 5 | 0 | $20K | F0 | 1956–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2019 |
| Wildfire | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2002 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2019 |
| Dust Devil | 1 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2005–2005 |
Decade by decade
Benton County, Washington 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-03-31 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-05-22 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-08-13 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-06-07 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-05-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 10.2 mi | Touched down here |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
In Benton County, there was minor flooding at the RV park along the river at Benton City and through the rural areas of West Richland. At the higher levels, some water from the river flows through a low bank area and moves overland through a rural subdivision and then rejoins the main river channel. Homes are built up so water does not enter them, but there was 60,000 dollars in damages to roads and outbuildings.
Swirling winds from a thunderstorm gust front picked up lawn furniture which flew 500 feet, crashed into, and broke the back window of a car traveling along Byron Road west of Prosser. Cushions from the furniture traveled 300-400 yards across the Yakima River. The swirling winds were about 5 yards wide and traveled 250 yards to the north and then dissipated in trees north of the Yakima River.
Numerous intersections were flooded in Kennewick and Richland Washington, including Canal Drive and Volland Street, Gage Boulevard and Quinault Street. The Columbia Park Trail was closed from Hillwood to Rockwood due to flooding. Vista Field in Kennewick had 1.05 inches in one hour, with spotter reports of 0.64 inches to 0.94 inches in Richland and 0.70 inches to 1.01 inches in Kennewick.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
212,905
Population (ACS)
$408K
Median home value
20
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 12, 2025 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | EM |
| Mar 22, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Apr 21, 2017 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 1, 2016 | Fire | SOUTH WARD GAP FIRE | FM |
| Aug 22, 2009 | Fire | DRY CREEK FIRE COMPLEX | FM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Benton County, Washington?
88 events are on record between 1956 and 2020, causing 0 direct deaths and $577K in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Benton County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 52 recorded events — 59.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Benton 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 Benton County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Benton County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Benton County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Benton County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 87 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Benton County, Washington 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
Cite this page
“Benton County, Washington.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/washington/benton-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.