Live
Active alerts for this county
Heat Advisory
Elkhart; Lagrange; Steuben; Noble; De Kalb; Starke; Pulaski; Marshall; Fulton; Whitley; Allen; White; Cass; Miami; Wabash; Huntington; Wells; Adams; Grant; Blackford; Jay; Northern La Porte; Eastern St. Joseph; Northern Kosciusko; Southern La Porte; Western St. Joseph; Southern Kosciusko; Cass; St. Joseph; Branch; Hillsdale; Northern Berrien; Southern Berrien; Williams; Fulton; Defiance; Henry; Paulding; Putnam; Van Wert; Allen
St. Joseph County, Michigan severe weather history spans 363 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 72.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,417 nationally and #18 in Michigan.
363
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
16
Direct injuries
$3.2M
Property damage
The record
What the St. Joseph County, Michigan severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, St. Joseph County, Michigan severe weather history averages 5.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 94 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 54 events fall before 1990 and 309 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the St. Joseph County, Michigan record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $1.2M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in St. Joseph County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 264 | 4 | $934K | 85 | 1967–2025 |
| Hail | 71 | 0 | $107K | 4 | 1966–2026 |
| Tornado | 18 | 0 | $967K | F2 | 1953–2026 |
| Lightning | 6 | 1 | $30K | 0 | 1997–2014 |
| Flood | 3 | 0 | $1.2M | 0 | 2008–2018 |
| Flash Flood | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–1996 |
Decade by decade
St. Joseph County, Michigan severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
17 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-10-24 | EF3 | 1 | 2 | 47.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-08-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-05-07 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 19.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-12 | EF2 | 0 | 8 | 13.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1966-07-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-07-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1953-05-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-07-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-02-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in St. Joseph County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 2006 | Lightning | CONSTANTINE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 21, 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | COLON | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| May 21, 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | STURGIS | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Mar 28, 1991 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Aug 5, 1989 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Mar 6, 2026 | Tornado | THREE RIVERS | 0 | 10 | $0 |
| Jun 17, 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | THREE RIVERS | 0 | 2 | $20K |
| May 7, 2024 | Tornado | CENTREVILLE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flooding occurred due to high water levels in many creeks, streams and rivers in the county. Several roads were closed for a period of time until flood waters receded. Over 60 structures were impacted by the flood waters as well as minor road damage. Damage of around 680,000 dollars was estimated.
The rainfall from the remnants of Lowell and Ike continued to drop heavy rainfall into the early morning hours of the 15th. When the rain finally stopped, total rainfall amounts of eight to ten inches was reported across the southern part of the county, including the Three Rivers area. Numerous roads remained closed with some culverts and bridges suffering damage. No injuries were reported. No exact figures are available for the damage to the area from the flooding.
Tornado touched down north of the Elkhart/St Joseph Michigan county line southwest of White Pigeon and skipped northeast before lifting north of White pigeon. F1 damage near SR 131 and SR 12 to buildings and high tension wires.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
60,969
Population (ACS)
$178K
Median home value
8
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Jun 30, 2004 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jan 10, 2001 | Snowstorm | SNOW | EM |
| Jan 27, 1999 | Snowstorm | MI – SEVERE WEATHER 1/2 /99 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in St. Joseph County, Michigan?
363 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $3.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in St. Joseph County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 264 recorded events — 72.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed St. Joseph County?
17 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 14 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover St. Joseph County?
8 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include St. Joseph County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is St. Joseph County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates St. Joseph County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 59 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the St. Joseph County, Michigan 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
- St. Clair County 414
- Sanilac County 241
- Saginaw County 469
- Schoolcraft County 94
- Roscommon County 172
- Shiawassee County 305
Cite this page
“St. Joseph County, Michigan.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/michigan/st-joseph-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.