Multnomah County, Oregon severe weather history spans 91 recorded events between 1957 and 2025. The dominant hazard is heavy rain, accounting for 37.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,916 nationally and #13 in Oregon.
91
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$3.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Multnomah County, Oregon severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Multnomah County, Oregon severe weather history averages 1.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 36 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 4 events fall before 1990 and 87 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Multnomah County, Oregon record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is heavy rain, with $2.3M 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 Multnomah County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Rain | 34 | 1 | $2.3M | 0 | 2001–2023 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 16 | 2 | $19K | 84 | 1957–2025 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $1.1M | 0 | 2007–2022 |
| Tornado | 6 | 0 | $311K | F3 | 1972–2019 |
| Hail | 6 | 0 | $10K | 1.5 | 1991–2008 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $52K | 0 | 1999–2008 |
| Debris Flow | 5 | 1 | $39K | 0 | 2018–2022 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2017 |
Decade by decade
Multnomah County, Oregon severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
7 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972-04-05 | EF3 | 6 | 300 | 8.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-11-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-07-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-09-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-10-28 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-04-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-10-13 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Multnomah County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 6, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | PARKROSE | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Nov 6, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | (TTD)PORTLAND-TROUTD | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jan 13, 2021 | Debris Flow | DODSON | 1 | 1 | $35K |
| Dec 3, 2023 | Heavy Rain | MAPLEWOOD | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 30, 1999 | Lightning | GRESHAM | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Multiple landslides and debris flow were triggered by heavy rain near Dodson between 0000PST and 0300PST. About 25 homes in the area were evacuated. One motorist was swept away by the debris flow near the intersection of NE Frontage Road and the Ainsworth State Park exit off I-84.
Heavy rain resulted in urban flooding and small stream flooding throughout the Portland Metro area. The rain was heavy enough to collapse a roof of a business in Gresham Oregon, cause a sink hole near Mt Hood College. High water flowing into Fairview Creek in Gresham snapped a sewage line. Several roads were closed due to high water and the Trimet Max operations were interrupted. water crept into businesses and homes. There were at least two land slides in Portland; one on Corbett Hill, and the other on Cornell Road.
Heavy rain resulted in urban flooding across the Portland metro area. All Amtrack and freight trains were shut down between Portland and Vancouver due to flooding. A mobile home park in Gresham flooded. There were a couple of land slides on Highway 30 where debris covered the highway. One of these slides was near German Town Road. The other slide was near the St John's Bridge, hit a car (with no injuries) as it happened, and covered all lanes of Highway 30.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
801,477
Population (ACS)
$553K
Median home value
12
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Sep 15, 2020 | Fire | WILDFIRES AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Mar 28, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 3, 2017 | Fire | EAGLE CREEK FIRE | FM |
| Feb 17, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Multnomah County, Oregon?
91 events are on record between 1957 and 2025, causing 4 direct deaths and $3.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Multnomah County?
Heavy Rain, with 34 recorded events — 37.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Multnomah County?
7 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 7 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Multnomah County?
12 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Multnomah County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Multnomah County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Multnomah County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 98 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Multnomah County, Oregon 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 65
- Polk County 54
- Marion County 84
- Sherman County 19
- Malheur County 126
- Tillamook County 94
Cite this page
“Multnomah County, Oregon.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/oregon/multnomah-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.