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Darlington County, South Carolina severe weather history spans 535 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 64.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #767 nationally and #21 in South Carolina.
535
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
36
Direct injuries
$15.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Darlington County, South Carolina severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Darlington County, South Carolina severe weather history averages 7.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 234 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 54 events fall before 1990 and 481 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Darlington County, South Carolina record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $11.5M 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 Darlington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 347 | 0 | $2.3M | 80 | 1956–2025 |
| Hail | 116 | 0 | $173K | 3 | 1960–2024 |
| Tornado | 28 | 1 | $11.5M | F3 | 1961–2024 |
| Flood | 18 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2012–2017 |
| Flash Flood | 11 | 0 | $1.4M | 0 | 2000–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 10 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2015 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $43K | 0 | 1997–1998 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2011 |
Decade by decade
Darlington County, South Carolina severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
28 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 27 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-04-18 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 77.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-04-25 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-04-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-05-20 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-08-29 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-04-12 | EF1 | 1 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-05-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-05-04 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-04-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-05-14 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Darlington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 12, 1961 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $25K | |
| Sep 30, 1999 | Tornado | CLYDE | 0 | 6 | $240K |
| May 20, 1980 | Tornado | 0 | 6 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 7, 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | DARLINGTON | 0 | 3 | $5K |
| Apr 25, 2010 | Tornado | OATS | 0 | 3 | $750K |
| Apr 18, 1969 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Aug 31, 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | NORTH LEES XRDS | 0 | 2 | $35K |
| Apr 10, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | CLYDE | 0 | 2 | $10K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The roof of a 7000 square foot Sunbeam Bread warehouse was torn off. Trees were uprooted. A National Weather Service Storm Survey concluded that the damage was the result of a microburst. Winds were estimated at up to 80 mph. Darlington County Emergency Services estimated $510,000 in damage.
A National Weather Service Storm Survey concluded an F1 tornado with winds estimated to 100 mph tracked along a path 1000 yards long and 15 yards wide causing spotty damage along South Center Rd near the intersection with Lake Swamp Rd. Four homes were damaged and a mobile home and one old house were destroyed. One person suffered minor injuries. There was also a report of golfball size hail with trees down on houses and barns along South Center Rd.
A tornado touched down at Clyde, just west of the HB Robinson nuclear power plant, and tracked across the Pine Ridge area. The storm continued east-northeast, north of Hartsville across mostly rural areas, to near the Darlington County Jetport. There was spotty damage along a 15 mile path – 11 mobile homes were destroyed and 15 more were damaged. One house had major damage. Six businesses were listed as destroyed. Six injured people were treated and released.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
62,558
Population (ACS)
$158K
Median home value
26
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Aug 5, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE DEBBY | EM |
| Aug 31, 2023 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDALIA | EM |
| Nov 21, 2022 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IAN | DR |
| Sep 29, 2022 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IAN | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Darlington 118
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Darlington County, South Carolina?
535 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths and $15.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Darlington County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 347 recorded events — 64.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Darlington County?
28 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 27 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Darlington County?
26 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Darlington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Darlington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Darlington County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 72 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Darlington County, South Carolina 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
- Colleton County 1,159
- Dillon County 267
- Clarendon County 474
- Dorchester County 801
- Chesterfield County 454
- Edgefield County 321
Cite this page
“Darlington County, South Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-carolina/darlington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.