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Delaware County, Indiana severe weather history spans 446 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,075 nationally and #18 in Indiana.
446
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$31.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Delaware County, Indiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Delaware County, Indiana severe weather history averages 6.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 125 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 86 events fall before 1990 and 360 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Delaware County, Indiana record is lightning, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is hail, with $15.0M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Delaware County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 236 | 0 | $6.3M | 87 | 1958–2026 |
| Hail | 115 | 0 | $15.0M | 2.75 | 1974–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 36 | 0 | $451K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Tornado | 25 | 0 | $8.7M | F4 | 1954–2025 |
| Flood | 23 | 0 | $95K | 0 | 1998–2021 |
| Lightning | 9 | 1 | $652K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2017 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Delaware County, Indiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
28 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 23 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-04-03 | EF4 | 1 | 12 | 18.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-04-09 | EF3 | 3 | 22 | 156.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2002-09-20 | EF3 | 0 | 127 | 112.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1965-11-26 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-09-24 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 38.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-04-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-11-05 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 38.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-04-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-04-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Delaware County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 22, 1998 | Lightning | MUNCIE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 3, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | MORNINGSIDE | 0 | 1 | $28K |
| Jun 9, 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | MUNCIE | 0 | 1 | $45K |
| Aug 14, 2005 | Lightning | MUNCIE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 6, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | MUNCIE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 24, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The tornado started northwest of Selma northwest of Truitt Rd damaging roofs|on homes. It then moved east southeast through Selma damaging a|number of homes, uprooting and snapping trees, and knocking over|some utility poles. Highest wind intensity in Selma, indicated by|extensive damage to a couple homes, was estimated at 120 mph, or|EF2 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Maximum path width through Selma|was about 125-175 yards.
This tenth tornado to impact central Indiana was the last of five tornadoes spawned within Madison County and Delaware County, and the last of three secondary tornadoes to track within these two counties, tracking to the south of the main tornado. The tornado tracked between the Anthony area and the Delaware County Airport, approaching the Shideier community before ending. Sporadic damage along the track indicates the circulation was not continually on the ground as the tornado was likely embedded within the parent storm's rear flank downdraft. The tornado was strongest at its onset where it destroyed a barn by collapsing its walls, and at the track's end where it completely destroyed a farm outbuilding. Peak wind gusts were 100 mph.
A Muncie church fire that left a firefighter dead on June 15 was caused by a lightning strike. Muncie Fire Department officials announced the cause of the fire on Tuesday. Officials say a lightning strike at 10:45 a.m. that morning sparked the fire. Firefighter Scott Davis, 40, died fighting the blaze. Two other firefighters were injured fighting the fire at Tabernacle of Praise.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
112,280
Population (ACS)
$139K
Median home value
17
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 |
| Mar 12, 2007 | Snowstorm | SNOW | EM |
| Sep 10, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Jan 21, 2005 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Muncie 160
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Delaware County, Indiana?
446 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $31.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Delaware County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 236 recorded events — 52.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Delaware County?
28 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 23 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Delaware County?
17 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Delaware County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Delaware County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Delaware County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 76 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Delaware County, Indiana 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
- DeKalb County 199
- Dubois County 487
- Decatur County 260
- Elkhart County 555
- Dearborn County 301
- Fayette County 213
Cite this page
“Delaware County, Indiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/indiana/delaware-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.