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Lancaster County, Nebraska severe weather history spans 965 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 51.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #156 nationally and #5 in Nebraska.
965
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
50
Direct injuries
$220.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Lancaster County, Nebraska severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lancaster County, Nebraska severe weather history averages 12.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 264 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 166 events fall before 1990 and 799 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Lancaster County, Nebraska record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $105.9M 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 Lancaster County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 497 | 0 | $2.0M | 5 | 1957–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 334 | 0 | $6.4M | 87 | 1956–2025 |
| Tornado | 52 | 1 | $105.9M | F4 | 1950–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 49 | 0 | $5.1M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Lightning | 11 | 0 | $936K | 0 | 1996–2011 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $100.2M | 0 | 2008–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2019–2024 |
Decade by decade
Lancaster County, Nebraska severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
58 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 50 touched down inside it and 8 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-05-22 | EF4 | 1 | 38 | 54.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-04-25 | EF4 | 1 | 8 | 89.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-04-26 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 5.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-12-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 23.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2019-05-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-10-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2009-03-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-06-12 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 20.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-04-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Lancaster County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 23, 2004 | Tornado | HALLAM | 1 | 30 | $100.0M |
| Jun 3, 1989 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 7 | $0 | |
| Aug 9, 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | BERKS | 0 | 5 | $3.4M |
| Apr 26, 2024 | Tornado | HAVELOCK | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Aug 19, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | (LNK)LINCOLN ARPT | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| May 10, 1996 | Lightning | LINCOLN | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 7, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $3K | |
| Jun 7, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $3K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Record rainfall of 5 to 10 inches fell across Lancaster County, and the Salt Creek basin on the evening of the 6th into the early morning of the 7th. This led to significant flooding along the creek, from near Roca north through the Lincoln metro area. The flooding resulted in numerous road closures, water rescues and some mandatory evacuations. The flooding was largely contained within the levy system within the city of Lincoln, but many parks and low-lined areas were flooded.
A very destructive hailstorm was centered on Firth Nebraska. The path of destruction was 6 to 8 miles wide and 20 to 30 miles long beginning near Sprague in Lancaster county and continuing to near Sterling in extreme northwest Johnson county. In Firth, hail up to the size of baseballs was driven by 50 mph winds. 148 out of 200 houses and businesses in town were heavily damaged with almost every north facing window broken out. Siding damage was also extensive. In Lancaster county, crop losses included around 20 percent of 10 thousand acres of corn, 30 percent of 6 thousand acres of soybeans and 10 percent of 2 thousand acres of sorghum. From southern Lancaster county into extreme northern Gage and northwest Johnson counties a total of 34 thousand acres of corn, 36 thousand acres of soybeans and 14 thousand acres of sorghum were heavily damaged. The Farm Service Agency estimated that the damaged fields in Gage county amounted to 36 thousand acres with losses around 65 percent for corn and soybeans and 45 percent for sorghum.
Numerous reports from a variety of sources of flash flooding in the southeast part of the city of Lincoln. Rainfall reports of 3.5 to over 5 inches of rainfall were received. This along with areas of several inches accumulation of hail led to widespread street flooding in the area. Small streams and creeks in the area also overflowed including Stevens Creek. Water was flowing over the bridge where Holdridge Street crosses Stevens Creek. Severe water rescues were performed from stranded motorists.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
326,696
Population (ACS)
$275K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 22, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| May 21, 2025 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Oct 21, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Mar 21, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Lincoln 126
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lancaster County, Nebraska?
965 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $220.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lancaster County?
Hail, with 497 recorded events — 51.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lancaster County?
58 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 50 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Lancaster County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lancaster County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lancaster County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lancaster County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 91 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lancaster County, Nebraska 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
- Knox County 549
- Lincoln County 1,855
- Kimball County 426
- Logan County 292
- Keya Paha County 246
- Loup County 234
Cite this page
“Lancaster County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/lancaster-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.