Live
Active alerts for this county
Rip Current Statement
Coastal Volusia; Mainland Northern Brevard; Northern Brevard Barrier Islands
Brevard County, Florida severe weather history spans 953 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #168 nationally and #8 in Florida.
953
Recorded events
15
Direct deaths
263
Direct injuries
$408.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Brevard County, Florida severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Brevard County, Florida severe weather history averages 13.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 250 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 123 events fall before 1990 and 830 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Brevard County, Florida record is lightning, responsible for 8 direct deaths. The costliest is wildfire, with $200.0M in reported property damage. In total, 11 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Brevard County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 418 | 3 | $1.8M | 85 | 1960–2025 |
| Hail | 236 | 0 | $0 | 2.5 | 1970–2026 |
| Tornado | 137 | 1 | $110.0M | F3 | 1953–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 63 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Lightning | 37 | 8 | $7.6M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 21 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 21 | 1 | $81.6M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 12 | 0 | $7.9M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Waterspout | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–1998 |
| Rip Current | 2 | 2 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2005 |
| Wildfire | 1 | 0 | $200.0M | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
Brevard County, Florida severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
135 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 128 touched down inside it and 7 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966-04-04 | EF4 | 11 | 530 | 135.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-06-19 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 4.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1970-03-05 | EF3 | 0 | 7 | 1.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-11-15 | EF2 | 1 | 40 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-09-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-10-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-03-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-03-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 18.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1979-09-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-01-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Brevard County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 4, 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | MERRITT IS | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 15, 2022 | Lightning | SCOTTSMOOR | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| Nov 15, 1994 | Tornado | VRB | 1 | 40 | $50.0M |
| Jul 8, 2009 | Lightning | MELBOURNE BEACH | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Jul 18, 2004 | Lightning | GRANT | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 16, 2023 | Lightning | (COF)PATRICK AFB | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 28, 2017 | Lightning | (COF)PATRICK AFB | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 22, 2005 | Rip Current | INDIALANTIC | 1 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Emergency manager reported that a crane collapsed at the new Cape Canaveral hospital construction site at Borman Drive and SR-520, leading to two fatalities. Outflow winds from a thunderstorm of up to 39 to 48 knots were observed near the site around the time.
The Orlando Fire Department and local news media reported that a crew boat with five boys was struck or nearly struck by lightning, causing the boat to capsize, at around 1615LST. Four of the boys made it to shore, where one was sent to the hospital. The fifth boy was missing for a time and was later found deceased. The hospitalized boy was in critical condition and was declared brain dead. He was taken off of life support a few days later.
A waterspout-F2 tornado, on the outer fringes of tropical storm Gordon, struck the Barefoot Bay area of southern Brevard County around 6:53 PM. A 74-year-old male was killed by trauma to the head, and about 40 people were injured. Six people were hospitalized, two in serious condition. The waterspout made landfall just south of the entrance to Barefoot Bay on US Highway 1. The tornado moved northwest through the Snug Harbor/Barefoot Bay mobile home community. About 62 mobile homes were destroyed, 46 received major damage and 181 had minor damage. The tornado exited the community and continued on the ground or in the treetops for about a mile. Total path length was about 2.5 miles with a width between 25 and 50 yards. At the end of the track a funnel cloud was reported by a truck operator on Interstate 95 in southern Brevard County. Property damage is estimated near $10 million. (M74M)
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
632,780
Population (ACS)
$340K
Median home value
45
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 11, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MILTON | DR |
| Oct 7, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MILTON | EM |
| Aug 10, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE DEBBY | DR |
| Aug 3, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | EM |
| Aug 31, 2023 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDALIA | DR |
| Aug 28, 2023 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM IDALIA | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Brevard County, Florida?
953 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 15 direct deaths and $408.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Brevard County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 418 recorded events — 43.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Brevard County?
135 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 128 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Brevard County?
45 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Brevard County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Brevard County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Brevard County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 98 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Brevard County, Florida 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
- Bradford County 222
- Broward County 1,172
- Bay County 669
- Calhoun County 218
- Baker County 263
- Charlotte County 261
Cite this page
“Brevard County, Florida.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/florida/brevard-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.