Greenbrier County, West Virginia severe weather history spans 475 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 46.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #964 nationally and #3 in West Virginia.
475
Recorded events
18
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$49.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Greenbrier County, West Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Greenbrier County, West Virginia severe weather history averages 7.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 160 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 12 events fall before 1990 and 463 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Greenbrier County, West Virginia record is flash flood, responsible for 16 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $44.0M 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 Greenbrier County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 220 | 1 | $2.3M | 80 | 1958–2025 |
| Hail | 96 | 0 | $219K | 3 | 1979–2025 |
| Flood | 64 | 0 | $87K | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 59 | 16 | $44.0M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 23 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Tornado | 7 | 0 | $3.1M | F3 | 1962–2016 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $8K | 0 | 2011–2015 |
| Debris Flow | 2 | 1 | $10K | 0 | 2015–2022 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2025–2025 |
Decade by decade
Greenbrier County, West Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-04-04 | EF3 | 1 | 11 | 32.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1990-06-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1975-04-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-06-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1966-08-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-03-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Greenbrier County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 23, 2016 | Flash Flood | RAINELLE | 16 | 0 | $40.0M |
| Mar 10, 2015 | Debris Flow | WHITCOMB | 1 | 0 | $5K |
| Apr 25, 1989 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Apr 4, 1974 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $2.5M | |
| Feb 29, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | ANJEAN | 0 | 1 | $15K |
| May 9, 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | SOUTH PORTION | 0 | 1 | $500K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A motorist was driving on Coffman Hill Road in the community of Ronceverte, WV when a mudslide spilled across the road, carrying with it a tree. The tree hit the vehicle, causing the fatality of the motorist. The motorist was the only one in the vehicle.
Several streams were reported out of their banks in western Greenbrier county. Water rescues took place in Rainelle.||Roads were closed and numerous homes were damaged. Route 60 was closed in Charmco where the Meadow River washed across the road and a portion of Anjean Road in Rupert was closed as well. Fourty-seven homes had internal water damage.|This flash flooding was made worse by snow melt. Overall, 270 homes were affected by the flooding.
Severe flash flooding closed Route 12 and Route 63 into Alderson. Up to 12 homes received flood damage on the Greenbrier side of Alderson and several road culverts were destroyed. A photo from broadcast media showed Muddy Creek Mountain Road washed out.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
32,386
Population (ACS)
$149K
Median home value
27
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Feb 26, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 25, 2016 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| May 21, 2015 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Greenbrier County, West Virginia?
475 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 18 direct deaths and $49.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Greenbrier County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 220 recorded events — 46.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Greenbrier County?
6 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 Greenbrier County?
27 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Greenbrier County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Greenbrier County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Greenbrier County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 76 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Greenbrier County, West 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
- Grant County 206
- Hampshire County 329
- Gilmer County 166
- Hancock County 232
- Fayette County 283
- Hardy County 233
Cite this page
“Greenbrier County, West Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/west-virginia/greenbrier-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.