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Muskingum County, Ohio severe weather history spans 539 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 59.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #754 nationally and #19 in Ohio.
539
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
34
Direct injuries
$22.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Muskingum County, Ohio severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Muskingum County, Ohio severe weather history averages 7.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 144 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 70 events fall before 1990 and 469 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Muskingum County, Ohio record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $10.4M 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 Muskingum County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 319 | 1 | $2.9M | 75 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 113 | 0 | $0 | 2.75 | 1967–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 54 | 0 | $10.4M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 25 | 1 | $8.4M | F2 | 1954–2024 |
| Flood | 21 | 0 | $320K | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2012–2021 |
| Lightning | 2 | 1 | $100K | 0 | 1999–2012 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2019–2019 |
Decade by decade
Muskingum County, Ohio severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
26 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986-03-10 | EF2 | 1 | 3 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 8 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-06-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-08-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-06-25 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 8.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-11-16 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-07-22 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 12.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-05-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-04-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-04-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Muskingum County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 10, 1986 | Tornado | 1 | 3 | $250K | |
| Jun 29, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | FREELAND | 1 | 1 | $40K |
| Jul 3, 2012 | Lightning | ZANESVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2024 | Tornado | FRAYSZEBURG | 0 | 8 | $0 |
| May 31, 1985 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 25, 1968 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $250K | |
| Nov 17, 1965 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $250K | |
| Jul 22, 1958 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
One woman was killed and another man injured when the barn they were in collapsed due to the straight line winds. They were checking on their animals when the barn collapsed. The man was able to escape. The woman was not.
A microburst was confirmed by an NWS storm survey in Philo and Duncan Falls. The path of damage was 2 miles long and about 600 yards wide. A total of 89 structures had some damage with cost estimates of 680,00 dollars. Damage to the athletic field at Franklin Local Schools was estimated at nearly 200,000 dallars. Numerous trees and powerlines were brought down on cars and a few homes.
An NWS damage survey confirmed that an EF-0 tornado, with winds |peaking near 85 mph, tracked through central Muskingum County on |the evening of April 2, 2024. The length was about 1.21 miles and |the max width was estimated to be 50 yards. This tornado was |associated with the same circulation that initially produced a |tornado about 2 miles north of North Zanesville, OH near the Green|Valley Golf Club. ||Weak tornado damage was noted along Bethel Road and New Hope |Road, with a few trees snapped and roof damage to outbuildings. |All the structures that were damaged were in open fields. ||The tornado lifted around 8:51 pm. However, there was a new |circulation in Guernsey County, OH along Cowden Road that produced|EF-1 damage.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
86,411
Population (ACS)
$182K
Median home value
17
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 18, 2019 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDE | DR |
| 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 |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Muskingum County, Ohio?
539 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $22.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Muskingum County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 319 recorded events — 59.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Muskingum County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 24 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Muskingum County?
17 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Muskingum County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Muskingum County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Muskingum County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 71 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Muskingum 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
- Morrow County 285
- Noble County 247
- Morgan County 201
- Ottawa County 401
- Montgomery County 808
- Paulding County 205
Cite this page
“Muskingum County, Ohio.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/ohio/muskingum-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.