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North Bighorn Basin/Worland BLM; Cody Foothills; Lincoln and Uinta Counties/Lower Elevations; Upper Green River Basin/Rock Springs BLM; Sweetwater County/Rock Springs BLM/Flaming Gorge NRA; Natrona County/Casper BLM; Johnson County/Casper BLM; South Bighorn Basin/Worland BLM; Upper Wind River Basin/Wind River Basin; South Bighorn Mountains; Absaroka Mountains/North Shoshone NF; Owl Creek Mountains; East Wind River Mountains/South Shoshone NF; Granite/Green/Ferris/Rattlesnake Mountains; Casper Mountain
Sweetwater County, Wyoming severe weather history spans 184 recorded events between 1957 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 62.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,535 nationally and #17 in Wyoming.
184
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$2.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Sweetwater County, Wyoming severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Sweetwater County, Wyoming severe weather history averages 2.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 46 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 30 events fall before 1990 and 154 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 $1.3M 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 Sweetwater County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 115 | 0 | $58K | 80 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 26 | 0 | $56K | F1 | 1960–2025 |
| Hail | 13 | 0 | $700K | 1.75 | 1980–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 11 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2016 |
| Flash Flood | 8 | 0 | $1.3M | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Wildfire | 5 | 0 | $261K | 0 | 2000–2002 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2017 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2014 |
| Dust Devil | 1 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2008–2008 |
Decade by decade
Sweetwater County, Wyoming severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
26 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 25 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-07-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2001-04-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-07-31 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-06-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-09-09 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-07-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-06-23 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-05-28 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-05-26 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 11.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Sweetwater County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | ROCK SPGS | 0 | 10 | $0 |
| May 24, 2014 | Lightning | RELIANCE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | ROCK SPGS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A second straight day of drenching thunderstorms brought widespread flash flooding throughout the city of Rock Springs. Many businesses and residential basements were flooded. In addition, numerous cars were stranded in flood waters both on city streets and in large parking lots.
The Rock Springs Police Department reported flooding in a trailer park on 9th Street near the South Side Belt Route. Up to 3 feet of water collected in low-lying areas of the park and displaced some residents before the water receded shortly after 2100MST. Several media outlets shared pictures of street flooding in and around downtown Rock Springs.
A large roof section was torn from a home in the small community of Reliance north of Rock Springs. Strong wind also toppled a utility pole and did damage to a nearby fence. Weak convection was responsible for the wind gust, as there was no thunderstorm in the area.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
41,542
Population (ACS)
$251K
Median home value
4
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jul 22, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | DR |
| Jun 15, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Sweetwater County, Wyoming?
184 events are on record between 1957 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $2.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Sweetwater County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 115 recorded events — 62.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Sweetwater County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 25 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Sweetwater County?
4 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Sweetwater County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Sweetwater County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Sweetwater County as very low risk, placing it in the 31 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Sweetwater County, Wyoming 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
- Sublette County 95
- Teton County 118
- Sheridan County 385
- Uinta County 82
- Platte County 564
- Washakie County 144
Cite this page
“Sweetwater County, Wyoming.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wyoming/sweetwater-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.