Seward County, Nebraska severe weather history spans 405 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 51.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,236 nationally and #47 in Nebraska.
405
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
18
Direct injuries
$66.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Seward County, Nebraska severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Seward County, Nebraska severe weather history averages 5.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 112 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 65 events fall before 1990 and 340 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Seward County, Nebraska record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $64.2M 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 Seward County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 207 | 0 | $100K | 4.25 | 1958–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 126 | 0 | $1.4M | 91 | 1956–2025 |
| Tornado | 38 | 1 | $64.2M | F4 | 1953–2024 |
| Flood | 17 | 0 | $152K | 0 | 2002–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 9 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $257K | 0 | 1996–1996 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2019–2019 |
Decade by decade
Seward County, Nebraska severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
43 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 32 touched down inside it and 11 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-04-25 | EF4 | 1 | 8 | 89.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2001-06-13 | EF4 | 0 | 2 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1953-05-09 | EF3 | 5 | 82 | 46.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2014-05-11 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 19.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1992-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 21.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1992-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 14.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 63.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1965-05-08 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 40.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-06-21 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 5.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 23.7 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Seward County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 26, 1957 | Tornado | 1 | 8 | $2.5M | |
| May 11, 1985 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 14, 2001 | Tornado | RUBY | 0 | 2 | $1.0M |
| May 10, 1953 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 16, 1992 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25.0M | |
| Jun 15, 1992 | Hail | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A slow moving tornado tracked from south of Seward to just east of town with a total track length of 8 miles. The tornado was caught on film by several chasers. The tornado destroyed an entire farmstead and a propane and anhydrous ammonia tank farm and machine shed. Several vehicles were tumbled and tossed into a field across from the farm house. The tornado was at its maximum intensity at the farmstead it destroyed. Northeast of highway 34 the tornado struck several sheds and barns.
Significant flooding occurred along the West Fork of Big Blue River, especially upstream of Dorchester near Beaver Crossing. Here some county road were closed and structures near the river channel at Beaver Crossing were flooded. Only minor low-land agricultural flooding near the river channel was observed near Dorchester.
Rainfall of 3.5 inches fell overnight on July 15-16 in the Milford area. This caused flooding along Coon Creek which flooded a park and golf course on the south side of town and also closed a few county roads in the area.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
17,641
Population (ACS)
$241K
Median home value
19
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 |
| 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 |
| Jun 25, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Seward County, Nebraska?
405 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $66.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Seward County?
Hail, with 207 recorded events — 51.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Seward County?
43 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 32 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Seward County?
19 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Seward County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Seward County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Seward County as very low risk, placing it in the 25 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Seward 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
- Scotts Bluff County 864
- Sheridan County 820
- Saunders County 624
- Sherman County 329
- Sarpy County 531
- Sioux County 336
Cite this page
“Seward County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/seward-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.