Taylor County, West Virginia severe weather history spans 187 recorded events between 1967 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 58.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,522 nationally and #44 in West Virginia.
187
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$7.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Taylor County, West Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Taylor County, West Virginia severe weather history averages 3.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 67 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 12 events fall before 1990 and 175 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Taylor County, West Virginia record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is hail, with $4.4M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Taylor County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 110 | 1 | $958K | 70 | 1980–2025 |
| Hail | 34 | 0 | $4.4M | 2.75 | 1980–2019 |
| Flash Flood | 29 | 0 | $1.7M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $428K | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $75K | F2 | 1967–2014 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 1997–2009 |
Decade by decade
Taylor 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
4 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-08-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-05-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-07-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-07-06 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Taylor County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 17, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | GRAFTON | 1 | 0 | $5K |
| Jul 10, 1984 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Small stream flooding was common across the northern half of Taylor County. Three Fork Creek basin around Thorton was hard hit. Also, Corbin Branch, along the Harrison County border, saw considerable damage. In the county, 1 mobile home was destroyed. Two houses had water reach 3 inches deep on their first floor. Basement flooding was seen in 11 homes. Valley Falls State Park, along the Taylor and Marion County line had considerable damage to roads and trails.
Thunderstorms formed ahead of a cold front. The storms dumped 2 to 4 inches of rain, over a small area, in less than 6 hours. The cooperative observer near Grafton measured 3.1 inches of rain. Flooding occurred inside the city limits of Grafton, plus along Plum Run, Wickwire Run, and Dry Run. County officials surveyed around 80 homes and 2 businesses that were affected. Taylor County was added to the previous FEMA disaster declaration 1378.
Following a prolonged period of heavy rainfall, high water closed numerous roads across Taylor County. The Department of Highways reported over 20 county roads were closed at one point. Northwest of Grafton, Tucker Run Road had a culvert wash out. Old WV 73 was also closed due to high water in southern Taylor County.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
16,487
Population (ACS)
$149K
Median home value
20
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Apr 17, 2018 | Mud/Landslide | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 18, 2017 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Nov 27, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Taylor County, West Virginia?
187 events are on record between 1967 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths and $7.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Taylor County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 110 recorded events — 58.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Taylor County?
4 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 Taylor County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Taylor County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Taylor County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Taylor County as very low risk, placing it in the 24 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Taylor 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
- Summers County 178
- Tucker County 165
- Roane County 227
- Tyler County 196
- Ritchie County 234
- Upshur County 280
Cite this page
“Taylor County, West Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/west-virginia/taylor-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.