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Belmont County, Ohio severe weather history spans 476 recorded events between 1968 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 49.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #963 nationally and #29 in Ohio.
476
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
7
Direct injuries
$11.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Belmont County, Ohio severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Belmont County, Ohio severe weather history averages 8.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 137 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 29 events fall before 1990 and 447 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Belmont County, Ohio record is lightning, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $7.5M 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 Belmont County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 236 | 0 | $2.8M | 87 | 1968–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 98 | 1 | $7.5M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Hail | 95 | 0 | $3K | 2.5 | 1971–2026 |
| Flood | 34 | 0 | $332K | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Tornado | 5 | 0 | $875K | F1 | 1985–2023 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2015–2021 |
| Lightning | 2 | 2 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2010 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2022–2022 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2020–2020 |
Decade by decade
Belmont County, Ohio severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 6 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-08-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-10-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1985-06-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-08-14 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-07-10 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1987-06-29 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Belmont County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 2010 | Lightning | ST CLAIRSVILLE | 1 | 5 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 1998 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $5.0M |
| Jun 28, 1998 | Lightning | SOMERTON | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 27, 1987 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 2 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
An inmate was killed and five others injured after a lightning strike at the Belmont County Correctional Facility while prisoners were in the recreational yard. Three of the injured were taken to the hospital for treatment.
Emergency management reported flash flooding in Willow Grove, which is near Neffs. 97 homes and businesses were damaged, with other damage to roads and bridges. The estimated total damage was near 1.3 million dollars. 6 people were evacuated from homes but there were no injuries.
The National Weather Service surveyed three touch down points in|Belmont county. The first was in the small town of Loomis where|several hardwood trees had large branches down and a tree was|uprooted. The next point was a roof that was blown off a business|and displaced nearly 150 yards behind the business. In addition, a|motor home was toppled over and landed on two sports car damaging|both of them. A shed was also destroyed at this location, which |was adjacent to the business. The last point several hardwood|trees where knocked down. Estimated Maximum Wind Speed…90mph to 95mph.|Estimated damage cost was provided by the local emergency manager.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
65,473
Population (ACS)
$155K
Median home value
22
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Apr 8, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | DR |
| Apr 17, 2018 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 20, 2012 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Jun 30, 2012 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Belmont County, Ohio?
476 events are on record between 1968 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $11.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Belmont County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 236 recorded events — 49.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Belmont County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 6 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Belmont County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Belmont County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Belmont County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Belmont County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 75 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Belmont County, Ohio 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
- Auglaize County 386
- Brown County 446
- Athens County 447
- Butler County 597
- Ashtabula County 500
- Carroll County 387
Cite this page
“Belmont County, Ohio.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/ohio/belmont-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.