Herkimer County, New York severe weather history spans 908 recorded events between 1961 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 60.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #204 nationally and #7 in New York.
908
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$20.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Herkimer County, New York severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Herkimer County, New York severe weather history averages 14.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 372 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 36 events fall before 1990 and 872 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Herkimer County, New York record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $11.3M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Herkimer County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 553 | 0 | $11.3M | 87 | 1961–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 142 | 1 | $3.8M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Hail | 100 | 0 | $0 | 2 | 1970–2024 |
| Flood | 82 | 0 | $2.4M | 0 | 2006–2026 |
| Tornado | 11 | 1 | $3.0M | F1 | 1970–2024 |
| Lightning | 11 | 0 | $110K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Debris Flow | 5 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2014–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2017 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $101K | 0 | 2001–2008 |
Decade by decade
Herkimer County, New York severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
11 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 10 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-06-18 | EF1 | 1 | 1 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-06-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-07-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-07-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-06-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-08-28 | EF1 | 0 | 3 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-28 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-08-04 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-05-17 | EF0 | 0 | 1 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Herkimer County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 18, 1970 | Tornado | 1 | 1 | $250K | |
| Nov 1, 2019 | Flash Flood | NORWAY | 1 | 0 | $25K |
| Aug 29, 1990 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $2.5M | |
| May 19, 1986 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Feb 22, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | LITTLE FALLS | 0 | 1 | $40K |
| Jun 18, 1990 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| May 17, 1990 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K | |
| Jul 27, 1989 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The shoulder of Military Road in Norway collapsed due to flood waters. An 82-year old man's vehicle became stuck with the driver's side wheels on the pavement, and the passenger side wheels in a ravine created by the floodwaters. The man died when he exited the vehicle and was swept away by floodwaters.
Several flooding reports were received in the Mohawk Valley. A person was trapped in their house in the Town of Schuyler due to flooding off Route 5S. That route was closed in the Village of Frankfort, along with Route 171 and West Main Street. Route 5 was closed from the Town of Schuyler to Little Falls with portions of the roadway under water. The Wal-Mart in Herkimer had to be evacuated due to flooding concerns.
High water due to flash flooding from earlier in the day continued to cause impassable roadways into the evening hours on Saturday, July 1st throughout the village of Herkimer. Runoff from flash flooding caused the West Canada Creek at Kast Bridge to exceed moderate flood stage at 3:40 PM EST, crest at 4:30 PM EST and fall below flood stage by 7:12 PM EST.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
59,757
Population (ACS)
$148K
Median home value
25
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 20, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Dec 19, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 12, 2017 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Jul 8, 2014 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 12, 2013 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Mohawk 137
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Herkimer County, New York?
908 events are on record between 1961 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $20.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Herkimer County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 553 recorded events — 60.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Herkimer County?
11 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 10 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Herkimer County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Herkimer County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Herkimer County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Herkimer County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 60 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Herkimer County, New York 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
- Hamilton County 189
- Jefferson County 343
- Greene County 379
- Kings County 213
- Genesee County 224
- Lewis County 374
Cite this page
“Herkimer County, New York.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/new-york/herkimer-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.