Sussex County, Delaware severe weather history spans 850 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #247 nationally and #2 in Delaware.
850
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
62
Direct injuries
$9.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Sussex County, Delaware severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Sussex County, Delaware severe weather history averages 12.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 329 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 64 events fall before 1990 and 786 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Sussex County, Delaware record is rip current, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is lightning, with $4.0M 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 Sussex County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 367 | 0 | $2.1M | 100 | 1957–2026 |
| Heavy Rain | 192 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2022 |
| Lightning | 80 | 0 | $4.0M | 0 | 1998–2022 |
| Flash Flood | 68 | 0 | $2.9M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Hail | 48 | 0 | $10K | 2.25 | 1968–2025 |
| Flood | 32 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2017 |
| Tornado | 28 | 1 | $594K | F2 | 1955–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 17 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2023 |
| Rip Current | 12 | 4 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2005 |
| Waterspout | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1999 |
| Wildfire | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2002 |
Decade by decade
Sussex County, Delaware severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
27 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-04-01 | EF3 | 1 | 0 | 14.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-04-15 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 6.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-07-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-08-12 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 2.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-05-08 | EF1 | 1 | 14 | 18.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-05-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 11.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-07-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-08-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-04-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-08-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Sussex County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 2023 | Tornado | DUBLIN HILL | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 5, 2005 | Rip Current | DEWEY BEACH | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 29, 2002 | Rip Current | REHOBOTH BEACH | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 25, 2001 | Rip Current | REHOBOTH BEACH | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 23, 1998 | Rip Current | LEWES | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 19, 2001 | Rip Current | REHOBOTH BEACH | 0 | 20 | $0 |
| May 8, 1984 | Tornado | 0 | 8 | $250K | |
| Jul 27, 2001 | Rip Current | REHOBOTH BEACH | 0 | 7 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Thunderstorms with torrential downpours caused flash flooding in Eastern Sussex County. The hardest hit area was in and around Long Neck. Many roadways were flooded and closed. One road collapsed in Oak Orchard. In Oak Orchard, River Road was under water and the bulkhead of one home was damaged at the Riverwinds Development. Holly Lake Road was also closed Flooding was also reported along Beaver Dam Road and Delaware State Ropute 5. Along the coast, Delaware State Route 1 in Dewey Beach and Delaware State Route 26 leading into Bethany Beach were flooded. Event precipitation totals included 7.21 in Rehoboth Beach, 6.83 inches in Harbeson, 6.39 inches in Bethany Beach and 5.76 inches in Indian River Inlet.
A lightning strike quickly caused a fire at a house on Avalon Road in Georgetown. When firefighters from five separate companies arrived, the rear of the home was already engulfed in flames and the fire had extended to a nearby storage shed. Two people were home at the time of the lightning strike and escaped before being injured. Damage to the home was estimated at $300,000.
In Rehoboth Beach, a lightning strike and ensuing fire caused about an estimated $250,000 in damage to a house on Coventry Lane in the Rehoboth Beach Yacht and Country Club development. Lightning apparently struck the attic of the home. Six fire companies fought the blaze.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
255,626
Population (ACS)
$383K
Median home value
20
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 29, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Mar 16, 2016 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Nov 16, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | DR |
| Oct 29, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Sussex County, Delaware?
850 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $9.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Sussex County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 367 recorded events — 43.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Sussex County?
27 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 24 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Sussex County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Sussex County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Sussex County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Sussex County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 94 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Sussex County, Delaware 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
- New Castle County 873
- Kent County 500
Cite this page
“Sussex County, Delaware.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/delaware/sussex-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.