Centre County, Pennsylvania severe weather history spans 565 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 76.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #676 nationally and #27 in Pennsylvania.
565
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$35.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Centre County, Pennsylvania severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Centre County, Pennsylvania severe weather history averages 8.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 168 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 40 events fall before 1990 and 525 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $26.1M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Centre County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 434 | 0 | $2.0M | 96 | 1957–2026 |
| Hail | 83 | 0 | $20K | 3 | 1960–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 22 | 0 | $6.5M | 0 | 1996–2018 |
| Tornado | 14 | 0 | $26.1M | F4 | 1975–2023 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $200K | 0 | 2008–2025 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $510K | 0 | 2000–2024 |
Decade by decade
Centre County, Pennsylvania severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
13 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 12 touched down inside it and 1 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 | EF4 | 0 | 0 | 69.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1975-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-07-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-05-01 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 1.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-06-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-08-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-02-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-07-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-06-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-04-20 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Centre County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 26, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | OAK HALL | 0 | 3 | $5K |
| Jun 11, 2000 | Lightning | PORT MATILDA | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| May 1, 2017 | Tornado | SMULLTON | 0 | 1 | $200K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Torrential rains produced flash flooding in the Centre region from Pine Grove Mills and State College through Bellefonte and Milesburg. The hardest hit area was from Milesburg northeast along Route 150 to the Blanchard/Beech Creek Area near the Centre/Clinton county line. Numerous roads were closed including Route 26 from Porter Road to Benner Pike in College Township, Jacksonville Road (Route 26) in Marion Township, Route 3005 (Fox Hollow Road) from Cricklewood Drive in Patton Township to Park Ave/Porter Road in College Township, Route 455 in Walker Township, Route 550 from Upper Gyp Road to Reynolds Lane in Benner Township and Route 26 at Walnut Ridge Road in Marion Township.
An EF1 tornado touched down near a wooden pallet factory on the outskirts of town and moved rapidly northeastward before lifting just northeast of the town. Damage occurred to several dozen homes and outbuildings across Rebersburg. Several dozen trees were either snapped or uprooted. One utility pole was also snapped. One injury occurred when a victim was trapped by the collapse of a work shed. Maximum wind speeds were estimated near 110 mph.
Rainfall amounts between 2 and 4 inches produced significant flooding. The flooding closed several state, county and municipal roads in Howard, Curtain, Liberty, Potter and Gregg Townships. The Borough of Milesburg declared a state of emergency and evacuated several residents from the Eagle Creek Trailer Park. The major flooding at confluence of Bald Eagle Creek and Moose Run caused extensive flooding in Milesburg. Unionville and Julian were also hit hard by the flooding. Numerous businesses and homes were affected in downtown Milesburg. U.S. Alternate 220 was closed from Skytop Mountain to Unionville. SR 45 westbound from Pine Grove Mills and Dogtown Road in Potter Township were closed. Water rescues were performed along South Eagle Valley Road in Huston Township. Spring Creek in Houserville came out of its banks and flooded nearby areas.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
158,576
Population (ACS)
$324K
Median home value
15
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Dec 2, 2016 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 1, 2013 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 29, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | EM |
| Sep 8, 2011 | Flood | REMNANTS OF TROPICAL STORM LEE | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Centre County, Pennsylvania?
565 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $35.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Centre County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 434 recorded events — 76.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Centre County?
13 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 12 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Centre County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Centre County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Centre County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Centre County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 68 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Centre 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
- Carbon County 338
- Chester County 1,281
- Cameron County 98
- Clarion County 452
- Cambria County 473
- Clearfield County 487
Cite this page
“Centre County, Pennsylvania.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/pennsylvania/centre-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.