Cochran County, Texas severe weather history spans 266 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 49.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,997 nationally and #172 in Texas.
266
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
20
Direct injuries
$31.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Cochran County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cochran County, Texas severe weather history averages 3.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 97 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 58 events fall before 1990 and 208 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $25.3M 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 Cochran County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 132 | 0 | $3.7M | 3.25 | 1956–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 84 | 0 | $1.9M | 81 | 1980–2025 |
| Tornado | 38 | 0 | $25.3M | F4 | 1956–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 9 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1999–2023 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2008–2021 |
| Flood | 1 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 2015–2015 |
Decade by decade
Cochran County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
38 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 38 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-04-17 | EF4 | 0 | 24 | 30.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-03-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-06-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-05-31 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-05-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-10-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.9 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cochran County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 18, 1970 | Tornado | 0 | 20 | $25.0M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A pair of slow moving and short-lived thunderstorms resulted in significant damage to cotton crops in northeastern Cochran County during the 17:00 CST hour of the 21st. Local newspaper reports and agricultural officials indicate that up to 15,000 acres of cotton were damaged or destroyed. Although reports did not specify hail size, estimates indicated here are based on damage and radar depictions of well-defined reflectivity three-body scatter artifacts.
While investigating a fatal plane crash near Lehman, broadcast media reported that a family nearby was caught in a hailstorm while in their car. The family estimated the hail was as large as ping pong balls which caused numerous dents to their vehicle after pulling off the road. NTSB personnel had not yet released the official findings of their study at the time of this publication, but preliminary evidence indicates that the severe thunderstorm contributed to the aircraft mishap which claimed the lives of all three occupants. This information is subject to change pending the results of the NTSB investigation. The value of the 1985 Piper PA-46-310P was estimated at $300K.
The Levelland Fire Department reported a second tornado west-northwest of Morton shortly before 22:30 CST. A National Weather Service damage survey found evidence of a strong tornado that developed west of Morton and crossed Texas Highway 114 as it tracked north-northwestward through north-central Cochran county. The tornado impacted the Star Route Gin, which sustained severe damage including the partial collapse of the structure. Concrete anchors were pulled out of the ground and portions of the steel roof beams were heavily damaged.|The tornado continued north-northwestward across Farm to Market Road 596 where the tornado destroyed at least three irrigation systems and snapped more than one dozen utility poles. |Damage at the Star Route Gin and the snapped utility poles support an EF-2 rating. No injuries were reported and damage estimates totaled $175,000.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
2,550
Population (ACS)
$53K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Feb 19, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 14, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Feb 9, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Morton 112
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cochran County, Texas?
266 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $31.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cochran County?
Hail, with 132 recorded events — 49.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cochran County?
38 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 38 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cochran County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Cochran County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Cochran County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Cochran County as very low risk, placing it in the 13 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cochran County, Texas 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
- Clay County 656
- Coke County 269
- Childress County 441
- Coleman County 506
- Cherokee County 574
- Collin County 1,297
Cite this page
“Cochran County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/cochran-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.