Refugio County, Texas severe weather history spans 153 recorded events between 1963 and 2025. The dominant hazard is flash flood, accounting for 29.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,692 nationally and #243 in Texas.
153
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$1.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Refugio County, Texas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Refugio County, Texas severe weather history averages 2.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 56 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 14 events fall before 1990 and 139 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $400K 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 Refugio County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | 45 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2021 |
| Hail | 37 | 0 | $400K | 2.75 | 1993–2023 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 31 | 0 | $352K | 61 | 1968–2022 |
| Tornado | 25 | 0 | $283K | F3 | 1963–2020 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2021 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2015 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2016–2016 |
Decade by decade
Refugio County, Texas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
25 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 25 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963-11-08 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-10-22 | EF3 | 0 | 25 | 20.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-05-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-07-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-03-28 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-04-16 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-04-16 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-04-16 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-06-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Refugio County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 17, 1995 | Tornado | Refugio | 0 | 1 | $40K |
| Nov 8, 1963 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tornado touched down near the Woodsboro Farm Co-op damaging the ladder caging on one bin. The tornado moved east-southeast taking down power lines and damaging the roofs of several homes. One roof was completely removed from a mobile home. Minor tree damage was noted along the path length. Damage occurred to another mobile home near the high school before the tornado lifted.
NWS storm survey conducted along with the Emergency Manager and County Sheriff concluded straight line winds caused damage in the tiny fishing village of Hopper's Landing. A pavilion was blown into the bay. Very large trees were blown down.
NWS storm survey and local video concluded an EF0 tornado, with winds estimated at 65 MPH briefly touched down in north Refugio. It touched down near the intersection of west Heard Street and north Alamo Street. The tornado removed the roof and collapsed the north facing exterior wall of one mobile home. Minor shingle damage was observed on a couple of homes along east Houston Street. Several large trees were toppled.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
6,707
Population (ACS)
$99K
Median home value
28
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 9, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE BERYL | DR |
| Feb 19, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 14, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Aug 24, 2020 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORMS MARCO AND LAURA | EM |
| Jul 26, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HANNA | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Refugio County, Texas?
153 events are on record between 1963 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $1.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Refugio County?
Flash Flood, with 45 recorded events — 29.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Refugio County?
25 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 25 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Refugio County?
28 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Refugio County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Refugio County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Refugio County as very low risk, placing it in the 37 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Refugio 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
- Reeves County 400
- Roberts County 346
- Red River County 459
- Robertson County 204
- Real County 241
- Rockwall County 229
Cite this page
“Refugio County, Texas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/texas/refugio-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.