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Mingo County, West Virginia severe weather history spans 271 recorded events between 1980 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 45.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,957 nationally and #25 in West Virginia.
271
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$45.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Mingo County, West Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Mingo County, West Virginia severe weather history averages 5.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 82 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 3 events fall before 1990 and 268 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Mingo County, West Virginia record is wildfire, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $30.5M 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 Mingo County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 123 | 0 | $2.2M | 70 | 1980–2026 |
| Hail | 78 | 0 | $85K | 1.75 | 1980–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 38 | 0 | $13.1M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 23 | 0 | $30.5M | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Wildfire | 3 | 1 | $3K | 0 | 1999–2001 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $6K | 0 | 2001–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2014 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2016–2016 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2014–2014 |
| Tornado | 1 | 0 | $90K | EF2 | 2012–2012 |
Decade by decade
Mingo 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
1 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 0 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-03-02 | EF3 | 2 | 37 | 49.0 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Mingo County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 9, 1999 | Wildfire | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $3K |
| Apr 7, 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | WILLIAMSON | 0 | 2 | $900K |
| Aug 19, 2005 | Flash Flood | BORDERLAND | 0 | 1 | $225K |
| Apr 8, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | GILBERT | 0 | 1 | $5K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Repetitive thunderstorms dumped 3.5 to 4.5 inches of rain in the Williamson and Delbarton vicinity on north toward the Route 119 corridor. Williamson, Millstone and Buffalo Mountain all measured around 4.25 inches of rain. The ground was already wet from previous rain. Over this steep terrain, severe flash flooding occurred along with landslides. The Pigeon Creek basin, including such tributaries as Rockhouse Fork, Elk Creek, Conley Branch, Trace Fork, and Laurel Fork received the full burnt of the runoff. This included such communities as Taylorville, Varney, Delbarton, Ragland, Belo, and Lenore.Around 90 homes were destroyed with 165 home sustaining major damage in Mingo County. The high school and the middle school for Williamson both received some water damage. Later on the 31st, the runoff caused the Tug Fork to crest at 39.8 feet at Kermit. Flood stage is 38 feet. An oddity to this event, was the fact that the Tug Fork River at Williamson did not even reach flood stage. The rain was lighter over the headwaters, upstream of Williamson.
The Tug Fork River at Williamson exceeded its flood stage of 27 feet the night of February 15, then continued to rise to a crest just under 48.4 feet the next afternoon. The river slowly receded and eventually fell back below flood stage the morning of the 17th. Around 1 am on the 16th, the City of Williamson notified the public that the flood gates would be shut. Outside of the flood walls, major flooding impacted the 2nd Avenue and Harvey Street Bridges, sections of Highway 292, several roads, and many homes and businesses in the Williamson and South Williamson areas.
The upper reaches, or headwaters, of Twelvepole Creek flooded, including around the Dingess area. There was 1 home destroyed, 3 with major damage, and 6 with minor damage. Private bridges across the small streams or runs were damaged creating access issues.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
22,542
Population (ACS)
$91K
Median home value
36
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 |
| May 20, 2021 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| May 14, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Mingo County, West Virginia?
271 events are on record between 1980 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $45.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Mingo County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 123 recorded events — 45.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Mingo County?
1 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 0 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Mingo County?
36 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Mingo County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Mingo County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Mingo County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 73 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Mingo 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
- Mineral County 207
- Monongalia County 458
- Mercer County 341
- Monroe County 167
- Mason County 292
- Morgan County 240
Cite this page
“Mingo County, West Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/west-virginia/mingo-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.