Garfield County, Oklahoma severe weather history spans 1,243 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 49.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #75 nationally and #10 in Oklahoma.
1,243
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
26
Direct injuries
$21.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Garfield County, Oklahoma severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Garfield County, Oklahoma severe weather history averages 17.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 313 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 270 events fall before 1990 and 973 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $10.2M 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 Garfield County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 619 | 0 | $106K | 8 | 1955–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 470 | 0 | $10.2M | 95 | 1955–2026 |
| Tornado | 80 | 0 | $9.1M | F4 | 1955–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 40 | 0 | $1.1M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Lightning | 20 | 0 | $636K | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $30K | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2009 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2007 |
Decade by decade
Garfield County, Oklahoma severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
81 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 75 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979-05-02 | EF4 | 1 | 25 | 20.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1991-04-26 | EF4 | 0 | 6 | 66.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-04-12 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-04-26 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-05-02 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 8.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-11-17 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 39.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-04-08 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-04-08 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 7.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-05-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-04-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Garfield County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 10 | $250K | |
| Jun 6, 1966 | Tornado | 0 | 6 | $250K | |
| Apr 9, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $2.5M | |
| Aug 17, 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lahoma | 0 | 3 | $5.0M |
| Apr 23, 2026 | Tornado | (END)VANCE AFB ENID | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 22, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K | |
| Apr 28, 1955 | 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
The west facing windows at an auto dealership were blown out on the west side of town. Forty-five to fifty foot tall pine trees were uprooted. Some of the trees fell onto the roofs of some houses. Several roofs were destroyed, as well as several aluminum sheds destroyed. A total of more than one hundred homes sustained some kind of damage. The radio tower and roof at the KLGB radio station were blown down. Thirty windshields at Speed Tech Automotive & Truck Repair were shattered.
Numerous roads across the county were closed as water rose to depths of up to four feet. In all, nine bridges were destroyed or severely damaged and eight roads were indefinately closed due to this bridge damage. County officials estimated total losses to the county (due to road and bridge damage) at $1,000,000.
An isolated thunderstorm during the afternoon hours on the 30th damaged bleachers and numerous signs and downed trees at the Garfield County Fairgrounds and at the Army Reserve Center in Enid. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
62,146
Population (ACS)
$160K
Median home value
25
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 24, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 17, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Dec 21, 2020 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 1, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Enid 189
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Garfield County, Oklahoma?
1,243 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $21.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Garfield County?
Hail, with 619 recorded events — 49.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Garfield County?
81 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 75 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Garfield County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Garfield County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Garfield County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Garfield County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 82 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Garfield County, Oklahoma 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
- Ellis County 752
- Garvin County 768
- Dewey County 635
- Grady County 1,217
- Delaware County 636
- Grant County 676
Cite this page
“Garfield County, Oklahoma.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/oklahoma/garfield-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.