Allamakee County, Iowa severe weather history spans 308 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 39.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,743 nationally and #83 in Iowa.
308
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$18.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Allamakee County, Iowa severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Allamakee County, Iowa severe weather history averages 4.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 99 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 32 events fall before 1990 and 276 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 $11.1M 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 Allamakee County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 121 | 0 | $1.7M | 70 | 1961–2024 |
| Hail | 96 | 0 | $303K | 2.5 | 1958–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 33 | 0 | $11.1M | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flood | 32 | 0 | $2.2M | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 13 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2018 |
| Tornado | 11 | 0 | $3.4M | F2 | 1964–2025 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 2005–2005 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2002 |
Decade by decade
Allamakee County, Iowa severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
14 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954-04-30 | EF4 | 0 | 0 | 80.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1987-07-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 12.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-08-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-07-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-07-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-11-09 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-10-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-04-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 49.9 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Allamakee County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 8, 2008 | Flash Flood | QUANDAHL | 0 | 3 | $2.0M |
| Jul 19, 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | ROSSVILLE | 0 | 1 | $30K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Mudslides occurred over the eastern section of the county from Lansing to north of Harpers Ferry covering portions of County Road X52. Other flash flooding occurred over much of the county. A campground in the Yellow River State Forest had to be evacuated with 80 campers moved to community building in Harpers Ferry. No injuries occurred, but one car was swept away by flood waters on Little Paint Creek. In Waukon, a number of businesses had water up to two feet deep in them with basements completely filled with water. The flooding also caused the utility company to shut off natural gas service to about 60 customers to prevent the possibility of gas leaks to appliances that could have been submerged and pilot lights extinguished. Homes in the Lansing area were damaged by the mudslides with a least one home knocked off its foundation and evacuations of other homes were required along Wall Street.
Excessive rainfall caused fairly widespread flash flooding across the county. Steep terrain enhanced the flash flood threat causing mud slides and damaged infrastructure. Numerous roads were washed out and bridges damaged. A mud slide at Camp Tahigwa Girl Scout camp near Dorchester trapped part of the staff, but no one was injured. In Dorchester, the Waterloo Creek flash flooded swamping several mobile homes or trailers and cars along Highway 76. Water swept through town very quickly trapping people on their cars and roof tops. There were three injuries as a result.
Runoff from heavy rain caused flooding to occur in Lansing along Clear Creek. Two people had to be rescued when the cabin they were sleeping in was moved off its foundation. The cabin became lodged against some trees allowing rescuers to reach them with a boat. The cabin was destroyed. 5.2 inches of rain was reported around 130 a.m. The runoff also caused a mudslide to occur north of Lansing.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
14,092
Population (ACS)
$172K
Median home value
22
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | 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 27, 2017 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 31, 2016 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Chester 121
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Allamakee County, Iowa?
308 events are on record between 1958 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $18.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Allamakee County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 121 recorded events — 39.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Allamakee County?
14 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 11 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Allamakee County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Allamakee County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Allamakee County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Allamakee County as very low risk, placing it in the 38 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Allamakee 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
- Adams County 273
- Appanoose County 408
- Adair County 431
- Audubon County 269
- Benton County 752
- Black Hawk County 861
Cite this page
“Allamakee County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/allamakee-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.