82
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$20.6M
Property damage
Flood in Essex County, Massachusetts: 82 recorded events between 2006 and 2023. The strongest on record measured 0. That places the county #97 nationally and #5 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Flood in Essex County, Massachusetts: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for flood in Essex County is the 2010s, when 48 of the county's 82 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Essex County archive, flood makes up 12.4% of all recorded severe weather across 11 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #97 for this hazard and #5 within Massachusetts, putting it in the 96.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for flood in Essex County with 22 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 13, 2006 | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 2 | 0 | $7.0M |
| Mar 30, 2010 | NEWBURY | 0 | 0 | 2 | $3.3M |
| Mar 14, 2010 | SOUTH ESSEX | 0 | 0 | 1 | $9.8M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 8, 2023 | NORTH ANDOVER | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 10, 2023 | NORTH SALEM | 0 | $0 |
| Oct 18, 2022 | SOUTH LAWRENCE | 0 | $0 |
| Nov 13, 2021 | BURLEYS CORNER | 0 | $200 |
| Nov 12, 2021 | SHAWSHEEN VLG | 0 | $4K |
| Nov 12, 2021 | TAPLEYVILLE | 0 | $7K |
| Nov 12, 2021 | TAPLEYVILLE | 0 | $200 |
| Nov 12, 2021 | SALISBURY | 0 | $5K |
| Sep 2, 2021 | PEABODY | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 19, 2021 | SALEM MARITIME NHS | 0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Essex County
- Thunderstorm Wind 346
- Hail 98
- Flash Flood 55
- Lightning 49
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The Ipswich River flooded the Topsfield Fairgrounds parking lot and grounds. This resulted in a delay in the opening of the annual Topsfield fair. Alternate parking lots had to be opened and shuttles used to transport patrons to and from the fair. Approximately 100 small businesses were affected by floodwaters flooding their travel trailers.
Flooding affected several homes in Danvers, and closed a portion of Bridge Street in Salem.|Minor to moderate flooding affected the larger mainstem rivers in the Merrimack basin. The Merrimack River at Lowell crested at 58.1 feet at 7 pm on the 17th (flood stage is 52 feet) which is the fifth highest flood on record. In Haverhill, it crested at 17.6 feet at 230 am on the 18th (flood stage is 15 feet) while in Lawrence, a crest of 29 feet was reported at 9 am on the 18th (flood stage is 20 feet). The Spicket River at Methuen crested at 9 feet at 145 pm on the 18th (flood stage is 8 feet). The Concord River at Lowell crested at 8.4 feet at 1 am on the 19th (flood stage is 8 feet).
In Haverhill, Winter Street and North Avenue were flooded. In addition, vehicles were stuck in flood waters on Parsonage Hill Road. Spotters reported that the road was begining to wash away. Canal Street in Salem was flooded with three to four feet of water on the roadway. In Groveland, Balch Avenue was flooded near its intersection with Route 113.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many flood events are on record in Essex County, Massachusetts?
82 flood events are recorded in Essex County between 2006 and 2023, causing 2 direct deaths.
What is the strongest flood recorded in Essex County?
The strongest flood on record in Essex County measured 0.
Where does the flood data for Essex County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Flood in Essex County, Massachusetts.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/massachusetts/essex-county/flood/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.