Whitman County, Washington severe weather history spans 124 recorded events between 1971 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 28.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,800 nationally and #4 in Washington.
124
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$4.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Whitman County, Washington severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Whitman County, Washington severe weather history averages 2.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 43 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 2 events fall before 1990 and 122 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 $2.3M in reported property damage. In total, 10 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Whitman County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 35 | 0 | $456K | 74 | 1993–2024 |
| Flood | 33 | 0 | $1.0M | 0 | 2000–2026 |
| Hail | 22 | 0 | $15K | 1.75 | 1997–2022 |
| Flash Flood | 13 | 0 | $2.3M | 0 | 1998–2026 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 1997–2026 |
| Debris Flow | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2015–2022 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $25K | F2 | 1971–2011 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 2007–2010 |
| Wildfire | 2 | 0 | $120K | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
Whitman County, Washington severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
3 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971-08-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-10-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-09-14 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Whitman County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 12, 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | GLENWOOD | 0 | 5 | $4K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Missouri Flat Creek experienced a Flash Flood which resulted in the North Grand Avenue business district being inundated with up to 4 feet of water in places. Numerous businesses were damaged and parked cars were floated and carried away. Pullman police and fire crews made numerous water rescues of stranded customers and employees of at least 4 businesses including the rescue of 16 people from one business. There were no known injuries and by the next morning the creek had receded back into it's banks.
Numerous areas of northern and central Whitman County experienced flooding between the 12th and 14th. State route 23 was closed between Sprague and Saint John between mileposts 15 and 43 due to water over the roadway in several locations. Colfax, WA experienced heavy flooding closing Mill Street from Canyon to Spring which also included mileposts 0 to 1 of SR 272. Flood waters up to a foot were observed in portions of downtown Colfax. Water undercut part of the roadway on SR27 five miles south of Oakesdale washing out part of the northbound lane. Several homes in the community of Ewan were inundated with up to one foot of water.
The Palouse River Gage at Potlach, ID recorded a rise above the Flood Stage of 15.0 feet at 10:00 PM PST March 14th, cresting at 17.5 feet at 10:30 AM March 16th. The river dropped below Flood Stage during the evening of the 17th but then rose again above Flood Stage during the afternoon of the 19th cresting 15.6 feet before receding below Flood Stage for the end of the event during the evening of March 19th.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
47,003
Population (ACS)
$360K
Median home value
18
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 15, 2024 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Feb 4, 2021 | Fire | WILDFIRES AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Sep 8, 2020 | Fire | BABB FIRE | FM |
| Mar 22, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jan 15, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Whitman County, Washington?
124 events are on record between 1971 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $4.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Whitman County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 35 recorded events — 28.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Whitman County?
3 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 3 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Whitman County?
18 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Whitman County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Whitman County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Whitman County as very low risk, placing it in the 40 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Whitman 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
- Whatcom County 20
- Yakima County 117
- Walla Walla County 90
- Wahkiakum County 47
- Thurston County 28
- Stevens County 117
Cite this page
“Whitman County, Washington.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/washington/whitman-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.