Orleans County, Vermont severe weather history spans 258 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,055 nationally and #10 in Vermont.
258
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$510.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Orleans County, Vermont severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Orleans County, Vermont severe weather history averages 3.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 89 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 22 events fall before 1990 and 236 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Orleans County, Vermont record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $501.1M 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 Orleans County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 136 | 3 | $1.5M | 65 | 1958–2025 |
| Hail | 51 | 0 | $41K | 2 | 1964–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 30 | 0 | $6.2M | 0 | 1997–2024 |
| Flood | 19 | 0 | $501.1M | 0 | 2006–2023 |
| Lightning | 9 | 0 | $486K | 0 | 1996–2015 |
| Tornado | 6 | 0 | $588K | F1 | 1962–2012 |
| Heavy Rain | 6 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2002–2008 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2020–2020 |
Decade by decade
Orleans County, Vermont severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-06-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-09-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-08-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-05-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-05-20 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 9.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-05-29 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Orleans County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 19, 1987 | Thunderstorm Wind | 2 | 5 | $0 | |
| Jul 5, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $60K |
| May 20, 1962 | 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
Heavy rain from Tropical Storm Irene inundated roads in Orleans County Vermont. The Barton River flooded river road near Orleans, and the Barton River at Coventry crested at 10.27 feet at 04:00 am EST Aug 29, over two feet above flood stage of 8.0 feet. Other local roads near Troy were flooded by the Missisquoi river, and the Missisquoi at North Troy crested at 13.94 feet at 02:30 am EST Aug 29, almost five feet over flood stage of 9.0 feet.
A cold front stalled across northern Vermont during the morning of July 15, 1997. This front focused heavy convective rain in this area. Extensive flooding with a number of road washouts resulted. Rises on area rivers were quite rapid. The Albany and Hardwick areas were especially hard hit with road washouts.
Dept. of Highways reported significant flash flooding the the Morgan Center area, specifically on VT-111 at Water St. Additional reports of severe flash flooding on Toad Pond Rd. along the Sucker Brook in Morgan were also received via the public and media. Some homes and businesses were damaged in these locations.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
27,606
Population (ACS)
$223K
Median home value
33
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 20, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 8, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL DEPRESSION DEBBY | EM |
| Apr 19, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Mar 2, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 14, 2023 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Orleans County, Vermont?
258 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $510.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Orleans County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 136 recorded events — 52.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Orleans County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 6 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Orleans County?
33 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Orleans County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Orleans County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Orleans County as very low risk, placing it in the 37 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Orleans County, Vermont 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
- Orange County 215
- Rutland County 419
- Washington County 332
- Lamoille County 176
- Windham County 342
- Grand Isle County 95
Cite this page
“Orleans County, Vermont.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/vermont/orleans-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.