Howard County, Iowa severe weather history spans 309 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 35.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,732 nationally and #82 in Iowa.
309
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
30
Direct injuries
$13.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Howard County, Iowa severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Howard County, Iowa severe weather history averages 4.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 87 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 45 events fall before 1990 and 264 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $7.4M 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 Howard County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 111 | 0 | $2.8M | 85 | 1962–2025 |
| Hail | 97 | 0 | $516K | 3.5 | 1955–2026 |
| Tornado | 44 | 0 | $7.4M | F5 | 1953–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 20 | 0 | $974K | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Flood | 13 | 0 | $1.5M | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 10 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2020 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $68K | 0 | 2003–2018 |
Decade by decade
Howard County, Iowa severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
43 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 37 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968-05-15 | EF5 | 13 | 462 | 62.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-05-10 | EF4 | 2 | 24 | 162.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-07-12 | EF4 | 0 | 8 | 10.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-05 | EF4 | 0 | 11 | 41.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-05-20 | EF3 | 1 | 0 | 116.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2004-06-11 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-07-19 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 23.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-05-22 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 28.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-07-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-05-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Howard County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 15, 1968 | Tornado | 0 | 12 | $3K | |
| May 6, 1965 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $25K | |
| Jul 12, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $2.5M | |
| May 22, 2011 | Tornado | RICEVILLE | 0 | 3 | $525K |
| Aug 4, 2012 | Lightning | RICEVILLE | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| May 10, 1953 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Apr 17, 2026 | Tornado | SARATOGA | 0 | 1 | $55K |
| Jul 24, 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | CRESCO MUNI ARPT | 0 | 1 | $10K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado formed over rural Howard County south of Saratoga and then traveled north-northeast before dissipating just before entering Lime Springs. The tornado struck and destroyed a wind turbine north of State Highway 9 and also destroyed a large farm building along Lilac Avenue.
Flash flooding led to aerial flooding across much of the county. Numerous roads and bridges remained closed, mainly in the northern part of the county.||In the Lime Springs area, the road to Lidtke park was damaged and water approached the top of the Lidtke Mill bridge.||Parts of Protivin was evacuated due to flood waters and ponding. Crops were also hit hard with too much standing water.
This was the third tornado of the night in Howard County. This EF0 tornado formed west of Schley and move northeast before dissipating east of Davis Corners. This tornado removed the roof from a hog farm building, drove lumber through the side of a metal building and also damaged other outbuildings and trees. One house had broken windows and some damage from tree branches downed on it.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
9,445
Population (ACS)
$148K
Median home value
23
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 24, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Feb 23, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Mar 23, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Mar 23, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 20, 2018 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Howard County, Iowa?
309 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $13.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Howard County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 111 recorded events — 35.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Howard County?
43 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 37 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Howard County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Howard County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Howard County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Howard County as very low risk, placing it in the 16 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Howard County, Iowa 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
- Henry County 304
- Humboldt County 312
- Harrison County 496
- Ida County 262
- Hardin County 469
- Iowa County 368
Cite this page
“Howard County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/howard-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.