Pinellas County, Florida severe weather history spans 843 recorded events between 1951 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 33.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #254 nationally and #11 in Florida.
843
Recorded events
27
Direct deaths
421
Direct injuries
$122.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Pinellas County, Florida severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pinellas County, Florida severe weather history averages 11.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 263 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 143 events fall before 1990 and 700 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Pinellas County, Florida record is tornado, responsible for 11 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $95.6M in reported property damage. In total, 12 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Pinellas County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 280 | 1 | $4.5M | 83 | 1959–2025 |
| Lightning | 175 | 9 | $11.5M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 147 | 11 | $95.6M | F4 | 1951–2025 |
| Hail | 112 | 0 | $351K | 3 | 1956–2025 |
| Waterspout | 39 | 0 | $35K | 0 | 1996–2001 |
| Flood | 37 | 0 | $6.8M | 0 | 1996–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 30 | 3 | $215K | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Flash Flood | 12 | 0 | $3.4M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2022 |
| Rip Current | 3 | 3 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2005 |
| Storm Surge/Tide | 2 | 0 | $400K | 0 | 1998–1999 |
| Wildfire | 1 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Pinellas County, Florida severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
134 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 129 touched down inside it and 5 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 | Touched down here |
| 1992-10-03 | EF3 | 3 | 75 | 2.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-05-04 | EF3 | 3 | 94 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-10-03 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-10-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-12-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 13.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-07-12 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-12-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-12-15 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-10-31 | EF2 | 0 | 17 | 27.9 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pinellas County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 1978 | Tornado | 3 | 94 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 4, 1966 | Tornado | 3 | 80 | $25.0M | |
| Oct 3, 1992 | Tornado | 3 | 75 | $25.0M | |
| Aug 12, 1976 | Tornado | 1 | 21 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 21, 2019 | Lightning | CLEARWATER BEACH | 1 | 7 | $0 |
| Jul 25, 2024 | Lightning | SPG-ALBERT WHITTED AIRPORT | 1 | 3 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2007 | Lightning | TREASURE ISLAND | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 23, 2023 | Lightning | BELLEAIR | 1 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The Pinellas County Medical Examiner documented a lightning victim that passed away in hospice 26 days after the strike. The gentleman was golfing at the time of the strike. Time and location estimated as no additional information was found.
Numerous local TV stations reported 8 injuries due to a lightning strike along Clearwater Beach. One man in his 30s suffered a direct strike and went into cardiac arrest. He was sent to the hospital in critical condition where he ultimately died three days later. Three others were taken to the same hospital. A fifth was taken to Tampa General Hospital to be treated for burns. The remaining three opted not to go to the hospital.
Pinellas County Emergency Management relayed a report from the Medical Examiner of a 58 year old homeless man who was found face down submerged in a drainage area that was filled with storm water on July 29th. The man was resuscitated and taken to a hospital where he eventually expired on August 4th. The Medical Examiner ruled that the cause of death was complications of drowning, with contributing conditions of arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease and chronic ethanolism.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
963,481
Population (ACS)
$355K
Median home value
45
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 11, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MILTON | DR |
| Oct 7, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MILTON | EM |
| Sep 28, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Sep 24, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | EM |
| Aug 10, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE DEBBY | DR |
| Aug 3, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pinellas County, Florida?
843 events are on record between 1951 and 2025, causing 27 direct deaths and $122.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pinellas County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 280 recorded events — 33.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pinellas County?
134 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 129 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pinellas County?
45 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pinellas County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pinellas County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pinellas County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 98 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pinellas 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
- Pasco County 567
- Polk County 881
- Palm Beach County 1,094
- Putnam County 656
- Osceola County 277
- St. Johns County 786
Cite this page
“Pinellas County, Florida.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/florida/pinellas-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.