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Del Norte County, California severe weather history spans 47 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The dominant hazard is heavy rain, accounting for 40.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #3,064 nationally and #50 in California.
47
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$7.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Del Norte County, California severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Del Norte County, California severe weather history averages 0.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 18 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 5 events fall before 1990 and 42 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Del Norte County, California record is rip current, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is heavy rain, with $6.8M in reported property damage. In total, 10 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Del Norte County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Rain | 19 | 0 | $6.8M | 0 | 2017–2025 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $591K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Tornado | 6 | 0 | $31K | F1 | 1958–1996 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3 | 0 | $0 | 56 | 1973–2026 |
| Hail | 3 | 0 | $5K | 0.75 | 1967–2022 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2016–2018 |
| Wildfire | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2002 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2003 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2024–2024 |
| Rip Current | 1 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2001 |
Decade by decade
Del Norte County, California severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 6 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-12-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-12-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-01-20 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-01-20 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-05-13 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-01-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Del Norte County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 2001 | Rip Current | CRESCENT CITY | 1 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous small streams flooded due to heavy rainfall resulting in culvert and manhole failures in Crescent City and neighboring communities. Additionally, a sinkhole allowed debris to flow into the waste water treatment plant causing damage.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
27,107
Population (ACS)
$342K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Mar 10, 2023 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | EM |
| Jan 14, 2023 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Oct 16, 2020 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| Mar 22, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Del Norte County, California?
47 events are on record between 1958 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $7.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Del Norte County?
Heavy Rain, with 19 recorded events — 40.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Del Norte County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 6 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Del Norte County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Del Norte County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Del Norte County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Del Norte County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 94 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Del Norte County, California 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
- Contra Costa County 108
- El Dorado County 238
- Colusa County 35
- Fresno County 783
- Calaveras County 47
- Glenn County 50
Cite this page
“Del Norte County, California.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/california/del-norte-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.