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Montgomery County, Maryland severe weather history spans 1,599 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 55.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #28 nationally and #1 in Maryland.
1,599
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
22
Direct injuries
$52.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Montgomery County, Maryland severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Montgomery County, Maryland severe weather history averages 21.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 664 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 71 events fall before 1990 and 1,528 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Montgomery County, Maryland record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $28.9M 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 Montgomery County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 880 | 2 | $28.9M | 80 | 1959–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 241 | 1 | $3.4M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Hail | 191 | 0 | $116K | 2.75 | 1965–2025 |
| Flood | 186 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2006–2025 |
| Lightning | 42 | 1 | $9.3M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Tornado | 28 | 0 | $11.1M | F1 | 1952–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 27 | 1 | $20K | 0 | 1999–2005 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2007 |
Decade by decade
Montgomery County, Maryland severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
29 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 27 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-09-17 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 15.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1979-09-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-06-05 | EF1 | 0 | 5 | 15.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-06-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-02-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-11-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-11-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-05-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-06-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-09-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Montgomery County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2021 | Flash Flood | AUTREY PARK | 1 | 3 | $1.0M |
| Oct 9, 2005 | Heavy Rain | ROCKVILLE | 1 | 1 | $20K |
| Nov 1, 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | HOLLYWOOD PARK | 1 | 0 | $1.5M |
| Jul 25, 2010 | Lightning | ROCKVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 18, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | POTOMAC | 1 | 0 | $300K |
| Jun 5, 2024 | Tornado | QUINCE ORCHARD | 0 | 5 | $5.0M |
| Aug 27, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | CAPITOL VIEW PARK | 0 | 3 | $40K |
| Aug 11, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | PARKWOOD | 0 | 1 | $500K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Floodwaters rushed into the Rock Creek Woods Apartments shortly before 3 AM EST according to Montgomery County Police and Fire Officials. The water rose almost to the ceilings in some cases. A 19 year old male was deceased due to the floodwaters. ||Three people were hospitalized due to injuries that were not life threatening, and one firefighter suffered minor injuries.
Reports indicate that a man was killed when a very large tree limb, measuring 4 feet in diameter and 30 feet in length, fell onto the truck he was driving. Very heavy localized rainfall from earlier in the day likely caused the tree limb to fall. A passenger in the vehicle was seriously injured. The incident occurred on Bonifant Road, just to the east of Rockville.
Hundreds of trees, branches and wires blew down between Rockville and North Bethesda. Trees blew down onto cars and porches in the Bethesda Park Condo Complex, displacing residents. The roof blew off of The Original Pancake House in the 12200 block of MD-355 Rockville Pike; the roof partially blew off another building across the street. Large trees blew down onto structures in the 1200 block of Charles Road. Trees blew down on southbound MD-185 Connecticut Avenue at MD-586 Veirs Mill Road. Numeorus trees blew down along Tilden Lane. Trees blew down on MD-355 Rockville Pike at I-495 Capital Beltway. A large tree blew down onto two residences on Charles Road trapping several people.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
1,065,949
Population (ACS)
$640K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Mar 4, 2016 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Nov 20, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | DR |
| Oct 28, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Takoma Park 157
- Parkwood 130
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Montgomery County, Maryland?
1,599 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $52.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Montgomery County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 880 recorded events — 55.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Montgomery County?
29 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 27 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Montgomery County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Montgomery County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Montgomery County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Montgomery County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 92 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Montgomery County, Maryland 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
- Kent County 329
- Prince George's County 960
- Howard County 608
- Queen Anne's County 386
- Harford County 948
- St. Mary's County 648
Cite this page
“Montgomery County, Maryland.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/maryland/montgomery-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.