Live
Active alerts for this county
Butler County, Pennsylvania severe weather history spans 903 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 62.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #207 nationally and #10 in Pennsylvania.
903
Recorded events
7
Direct deaths
91
Direct injuries
$56.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Butler County, Pennsylvania severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Butler County, Pennsylvania severe weather history averages 12.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 263 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 79 events fall before 1990 and 824 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Butler County, Pennsylvania record is tornado, responsible for 6 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $26.9M 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 Butler County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 560 | 1 | $17.0M | 87 | 1961–2026 |
| Hail | 201 | 0 | $52K | 2.5 | 1956–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 75 | 0 | $6.9M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 28 | 6 | $26.9M | F3 | 1954–2025 |
| Flood | 28 | 0 | $5.3M | 0 | 2008–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2018–2022 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–1996 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1996–1997 |
| Debris Flow | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2017 |
Decade by decade
Butler County, Pennsylvania severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
29 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985-05-31 | EF3 | 9 | 120 | 39.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1986-10-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1981-04-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-07-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-06-01 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-10-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2019-06-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-04-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-07-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-09-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Butler County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 1985 | Tornado | 6 | 80 | $25.0M | |
| Jun 12, 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | JACKSVILLE | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Oct 14, 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | CRIDERS CORNERS | 0 | 6 | $1.0M |
| Jul 30, 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Chicora | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Aug 22, 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | PORTERSVILLE | 0 | 1 | $15K |
| Jun 27, 1978 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K | |
| Jun 17, 1978 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A microburst, estimated at 100 mph (87 kts), struck Cranberry Mall and nearby areas. Aluminum flag poles were bent to the ground. Trailer picked up and rolled by the wind, injuring 6 people. A total of 12 businesses were damaged, including a muffler shop, jewelry store, and bank, mainly between Routes 19 and 228. One house destroyed on Shady Oak Dr. Nine houses suffered major damage; 64 received minor damage. Roofing, siding, and windows broken. Dunkin Doughnuts on Route 19 hard hit. Its sign was found 5 miles north. Fox Run area off Rowan Rd also hit hard. Many large trees toppled or snapped. Recreational vehicle destroyed. Four vehicles at the muffler shop were crushed by debris. Witnesses described the sky as pitch black or green. At Fox Run, microburst was one quarter mile wide. 5500 customers lost electric power in Butler, Beaver, and Allegheny counties.
In Middlesex Township, a tornado downed approximately 500 trees, path length, about three miles. Route 8 was closed for several hours. Many of the trees were twisted from their bases. The tornado destroyed one barn and tore large sections of roof off two others. Approximately 10 homes had damage to their chimneys. An additional 30 homes had minor damage to roofs, gutters, etc. A section of one of the barn roofs was blown about 500 yards through the picture window of a neighboring house. Pea- to quarter-size hail, up to 18 inches deep, was reported in a 1.25 mile wide, 12 mile long path through Middlesex Township. Extensive damage occurred to Corn, Soybean, and Oat Crops. Most of the corn stalks were stripped of their leaves. Between 35 and 40 farms incurred up to $300,000 in crop damage. A local garden center sustained $50,000 in damage to plants, and $25,000 to buildings. Over 10,000 mums were destroyed. A storm survey was conducted by the National Weather Service Office at Pittsburgh.
An F1 tornado touched down at 2:01 PM EST around 10 miles west of the city of Butler. It traveled to the east-northeast and dissipated at around 2:06 PM EST 2 miles northwest of Butler. The estimated maximum winds along this 7-mile path were about 105 MPH. Roofs were blown off several houses with one being deposited about 75 yards away. Other houses lost siding, and a barn lost part of its roof. Large swaths of trees were downed. Some of the trees were laying in a circular or converging pattered which indicated cyclonic motion. Some trees were also snapped or sheared off.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
197,254
Population (ACS)
$294K
Median home value
11
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 29, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | EM |
| Apr 16, 2010 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORMS | DR |
| Sep 10, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM |
| Sep 19, 2004 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING ASSOCIATED WITH TROPICAL DEPRESSION FRANCES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Butler County, Pennsylvania?
903 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 7 direct deaths and $56.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Butler County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 560 recorded events — 62.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Butler County?
29 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 Butler County?
11 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Butler County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Butler County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Butler County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 79 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Butler County, Pennsylvania 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
- Bucks County 911
- Cambria County 473
- Bradford County 620
- Cameron County 98
- Blair County 304
- Carbon County 338
Cite this page
“Butler County, Pennsylvania.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/pennsylvania/butler-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.