660
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
8
Direct injuries
$14.7M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Worcester County, Massachusetts: 660 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 110. That places the county #42 nationally and #1 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Worcester County, Massachusetts: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Worcester County is the 2020s, when 195 of the county's 660 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 Worcester County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 52.5% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #42 for this hazard and #1 within Massachusetts, putting it in the 98.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Worcester County with 210 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 31, 1998 | WINCHENDON | 61 | 2 | 0 | $15K |
| Jun 2, 1989 | 110 | 1 | 2 | $0 | |
| Jun 22, 2008 | WESTWOOD HILLS | 50 | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 5, 2005 | DUDLEY | 50 | 0 | 2 | $30K |
| Sep 11, 2016 | WHALOM | 50 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| May 21, 2006 | NORTHBOROUGH | 50 | 0 | 1 | $50K |
| May 21, 2006 | NORTHBOROUGH | 50 | 0 | 1 | $25K |
| Jul 9, 1997 | HOLDEN | 70 | 0 | 1 | $4K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 14, 2026 | SOUTH LANCASTER | 51 | $10K |
| Apr 14, 2026 | LOVELLVILLE | 51 | $10K |
| Apr 14, 2026 | BROOKS | 51 | $1K |
| Apr 14, 2026 | TURKEY HILL SHRS | 51 | $1K |
| Sep 6, 2025 | GLEN GROVE | 50 | $300 |
| Sep 6, 2025 | WORCESTER | 50 | $2K |
| Sep 6, 2025 | BARBER | 50 | $1K |
| Sep 6, 2025 | BARBER | 50 | $800 |
| Sep 6, 2025 | WORCESTER | 50 | $300 |
| Sep 6, 2025 | SANDY BEACH | 50 | $10K |
Other hazards here
More from Worcester County
- Hail 255
- Flood 119
- Flash Flood 78
- Lightning 75
- Tornado 52
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Trees were blown down near Rutledge/Granite/Loxwood Streets and insulation was torn from the roof of an apartment building and blown several hundred yards away. A microburst associated with a severe thunderstorm likely caused this damage.
A National Weather Service survey reported numerous trees up to four feet in diameter blown down, many power lines down, and storefront windows blown in. In addition, a number of signs were blown down and one crashed through a store window. A large tree fell on and destroyed two parked cars. Trees up to 100 feet high were stripped of their bark. Up to 2,200 electric customers lost power in Westboro and about the same number lost power in several adjoining communities.
In addition to damage in Westborough, the NWS storm survey team found another concentrated area of damage in Southborough in the vicinity of Central Street, just north of Route 9. In particular, concentrated damage was observed along Winter Street off Central Street and to the north along Route 30/Boston Road, where a series of telephone poles were snapped off. The dimensions of this area were about a quarter of a mile square. A large Norway spruce tree was uprooted onto a house on Winter Street and other trees completely blocked Winter Street for a time. A gazebo was crushed by a large tree at a park off Central and Winter Streets.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Worcester County, Massachusetts?
660 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Worcester County between 1956 and 2026, causing 4 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Worcester County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Worcester County measured 110.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Worcester 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
“Thunderstorm Wind in Worcester County, Massachusetts.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/massachusetts/worcester-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.