Hays County, Texas severe weather history spans 449 recorded events between 1953 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 39.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,066 nationally and #106 in Texas.
449
Recorded events
16
Direct deaths
141
Direct injuries
$370.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Hays County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hays County, Texas severe weather history averages 6.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 129 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 65 events fall before 1990 and 384 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Hays County, Texas record is flash flood, responsible for 15 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $216.5M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Hays County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 176 | 0 | $111.7M | 4.5 | 1967–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 126 | 15 | $216.5M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 105 | 0 | $14.3M | 70 | 1974–2025 |
| Tornado | 31 | 1 | $27.3M | F3 | 1953–2025 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $175K | 0 | 2010–2014 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2000 |
| Flood | 3 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 2007–2017 |
Decade by decade
Hays County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
33 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 29 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-08-10 | EF2 | 0 | 20 | 47.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1976-03-30 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-11-12 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-02-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-10-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2015-10-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-11-15 | EF1 | 0 | 3 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-11-15 | EF1 | 0 | 3 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hays County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 2015 | Flash Flood | WIMBERLEY | 10 | 0 | $100.0M |
| Jun 9, 1997 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 2 | 7 | $2.5M |
| Apr 29, 1953 | Tornado | 1 | 5 | $250K | |
| May 3, 2019 | Flash Flood | DRIPPING SPGS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2007 | Flash Flood | WIMBERLEY | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Nov 15, 2004 | Flash Flood | SAN MARCOS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Oct 17, 1998 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 100 | $500K |
| Nov 15, 2001 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 20 | $200K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Between 3 and 5 inches of rain fell across northwest Hays county with the heaviest rainfall observed near Henley. Flash flooding closed FM12, FM165, and FM150. A man was traveling northward in his truck toward Dripping Springs when it was swept into Onion Creek. He was unable to make it to safety and drowned.
The Blanco River rose to above bankfull stage late on the evening of November 14, but remained below flood stage. Two people attempted to drive through a low water crossing on Post Oak Road where the Blanco River crosses just south of Kyle. The car was swept into the river and washed downstream. The man was rescued after catching on to a tree. The woman also caught on to a tree but lost her grip and was swept away and drowned.
A thunderstorm produced three inch diameter hail south of Dripping Springs. As of this writing there is no official estimate of monetary loss due to the hail across Hays County including Dripping Springs and the Wimberley area. Will go with an initial 10 million dollars and this will be updated at a later time if more accurate estimates come in from city or county officials.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
268,638
Population (ACS)
$400K
Median home value
27
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 21, 2023 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Wimberley 114
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hays County, Texas?
449 events are on record between 1953 and 2025, causing 16 direct deaths and $370.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hays County?
Hail, with 176 recorded events — 39.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hays County?
33 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 29 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hays County?
27 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hays County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hays County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hays County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 91 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hays 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
- Haskell County 574
- Hemphill County 406
- Hartley County 497
- Henderson County 514
- Harrison County 899
- Hidalgo County 574
Cite this page
“Hays County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/hays-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.