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Lincoln County, Idaho severe weather history spans 81 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 60.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,953 nationally and #28 in Idaho.
81
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$3.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Lincoln County, Idaho severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lincoln County, Idaho severe weather history averages 1.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 24 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 8 events fall before 1990 and 73 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flood, with $2.5M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Lincoln County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 49 | 0 | $38K | 66 | 1956–2025 |
| Hail | 12 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1979–2014 |
| Wildfire | 5 | 0 | $750K | 0 | 1996–2003 |
| Tornado | 4 | 0 | $26K | F1 | 1987–2006 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2017 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $2.5M | 0 | 2012–2017 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2014 |
Decade by decade
Lincoln County, Idaho 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987-07-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1985-05-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-10-04 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-10-04 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-10-04 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-06-24 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A significant warmup caused massive sheet flooding in Lincoln County beginning early in the month and continuing through the end. Significant damage occurred to private homes and especially roadways. The state declared Lincoln county a disaster area. Many roads were closed by the 11th with water over roadways from east of Shoshone to the Minidoka County line. The town of Kimana had significant flooding as well. Some of the road closures were 200 East Highway 24, 270 South between 650-750 East, 330S between 750 and 850, 70 South, 600 North and 1200 North.
Lightning triggered the High Point fire, which quickly burned 20,300 total acres. Several silos and nearly 2000 acres of wheat, barley and pasture were destroyed. Caught and killed in the fast moving conflagration on the pasture were some 200 cattle.
Snow melt sheet flooding continued into March in the region with continued road and property damage due to the waters. The last two days of the month release from the Magic Reservoir into the Big Wood River caused some flooding 5 miles north of Shoshone and trapped a many in his home for a couple of days. It washed over the bridge in front of his home blocking his way out.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
5,358
Population (ACS)
$256K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 9, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Apr 21, 2017 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM |
| Sep 1, 2000 | Fire | WILDFIRES | DR |
| May 5, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lincoln County, Idaho?
81 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $3.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lincoln County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 49 recorded events — 60.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lincoln 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 Lincoln County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lincoln County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lincoln County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lincoln County as very low risk, placing it in the 9 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lincoln County, Idaho 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
- Lewis County 51
- Madison County 112
- Lemhi County 135
- Minidoka County 117
- Latah County 99
- Nez Perce County 125
Cite this page
“Lincoln County, Idaho.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/idaho/lincoln-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.