Nez Perce County, Idaho severe weather history spans 125 recorded events between 1956 and 2024. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 38.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,796 nationally and #15 in Idaho.
125
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$8.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Nez Perce County, Idaho severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Nez Perce County, Idaho severe weather history averages 1.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 50 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 18 events fall before 1990 and 107 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flash flood, with $6.2M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Nez Perce County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 48 | 0 | $174K | 82 | 1956–2023 |
| Hail | 31 | 0 | $6K | 2.75 | 1958–2012 |
| Flash Flood | 14 | 0 | $6.2M | 0 | 1998–2023 |
| Flood | 14 | 0 | $2.5M | 0 | 2011–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Debris Flow | 4 | 0 | $7K | 0 | 2015–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $100 | 0 | 1996–2015 |
| Tornado | 3 | 0 | $25K | F2 | 1962–1997 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $500 | 0 | 1997–2014 |
Decade by decade
Nez Perce County, Idaho severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
4 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-06-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-05-31 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-06-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Nez Perce County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 10, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | LAPWAI | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A slow moving thunderstorm moved 2 miles east of the town of Lapwai on the afternoon of the 8th of May. An estimated 2 to 3 inches fell across the headwaters of Garden Gulch Creek in about an hour. A flash flood then raced through Garden Gulch and flooded out structures, killed some livestock and washed out roads to the intersection of State Route 95 and Garden Gulch Road. An estimated 4 million dollars in property and roads was estimated in a five mile swath along Garden Gulch.
Flash flooding impacted several streets and avenues of Lewiston. It stalled vehicles and caused debris build up in the area. A local emergency was declared from damages sustained during the event. Half an inch of rain fell in 15 minutes from 1330LST to 1345LST.
Heavy rain in and around Lewiston created numerous urban flooding problems during the morning of July 18th. A retention pond overflowed and caused a hillside washout with another hillside also suffering erosion damage. A number of roads and parking lots were flooded in the city and a block of apartments in low laying poor drainage areas suffered first floor and yard flooding.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
42,697
Population (ACS)
$335K
Median home value
15
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30, 2026 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Apr 7, 2026 | Straight-Line Winds | STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Jul 26, 2024 | Fire | GWEN FIRE | FM |
| Jul 16, 2024 | Fire | TEXAS FIRE | FM |
| Aug 13, 2021 | Fire | BEDROCK FIRE | FM |
| Apr 9, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Nez Perce County, Idaho?
125 events are on record between 1956 and 2024, causing 0 direct deaths and $8.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Nez Perce County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 48 recorded events — 38.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Nez Perce County?
4 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 4 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Nez Perce County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Nez Perce County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Nez Perce County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Nez Perce County as very low risk, placing it in the 33 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Nez Perce 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
- Minidoka County 117
- Oneida County 89
- Madison County 112
- Owyhee County 115
- Lincoln County 81
- Payette County 51
Cite this page
“Nez Perce County, Idaho.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/idaho/nez-perce-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.