Buchanan County, Virginia severe weather history spans 196 recorded events between 1974 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 51.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,465 nationally and #79 in Virginia.
196
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$43.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Buchanan County, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Buchanan County, Virginia severe weather history averages 3.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 62 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 4 events fall before 1990 and 192 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Buchanan County, Virginia record is flash flood, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $42.6M 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 Buchanan County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 100 | 0 | $534K | 55 | 1974–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 44 | 4 | $42.6M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Hail | 35 | 0 | $53K | 2.75 | 1977–2025 |
| Flood | 14 | 1 | $165K | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2001 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $2K | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Buchanan County, Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Buchanan County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 2002 | Flash Flood | NORTH PORTION | 2 | 0 | $25.0M |
| Aug 30, 2021 | Flash Flood | KELSA | 1 | 0 | $2.5M |
| Mar 4, 2015 | Flood | DAVENPORT | 1 | 0 | $50K |
| Jul 13, 2000 | Flash Flood | HURLEY | 1 | 0 | $75K |
| Jul 13, 2022 | Flash Flood | SLATE | 0 | 1 | $1.8M |
| Jun 14, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | GRUNDY | 0 | 1 | $5K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Rains of around 2 inches fell in less than 3 hours during the late morning and midday period, over saturated ground. An automatic gauge near Home Creek had recorded 6 inches of rain from the 10th to the 13th. Small streams flooded. A 28 year old female drowned in the Left Fork of Lester Fork. According to the investigator at the sheriff's office, she had walked across a foot bridge to turn horses loose from a barn. When she attempted to come back across the bridge, it was under water. She was tossed a rope, but lost her footing and fell in. Her body was found late that afternoon against a retaining wall at Hurley Park. Basement and garages were flooded along Looney Creek and Route 656. Shoulders of secondary roads received washout damage. Buchanan County Board of Supervisors declared a local emergency in the aftermath of this high water.
Small streams started to flood by evening on the 4th. Guess Fork flooded roads around Hurley. ||Around 2245E on the 4th, a 61 year old man drove his car into flood waters near the mouth of Hurricane Creek with the Russell Fork. This was along Route 80. His car was washed into the water. His body was recovered the next day. A female occupant of the car was able to escape.
Flash flooding made numerous roads impassable, trapped residents, and impacted homes. By evening, catastrophic flooding occurred along Slate Creek Road and resulted in water rescues and evacuations. In addition to Slate Creek Road, the following roads were also impacted by flooding. White Oak Road, Grandview Road, Mercury Drive, Pheasant Run Road, Dandelion Road, and Stone Coal Road.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,415
Population (ACS)
$95K
Median home value
27
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 4, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 1, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | DR |
| Sep 29, 2024 | Tropical Storm | POST-TROPICAL CYCLONE HELENE | EM |
| Sep 30, 2022 | Severe Storm | FLOODING AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Oct 26, 2021 | Flood | FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Buchanan County, Virginia?
196 events are on record between 1974 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $43.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Buchanan County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 100 recorded events — 51.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Buchanan County?
27 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Buchanan County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Buchanan County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Buchanan County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 51 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Buchanan County, Virginia 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
- Brunswick County 254
- Buckingham County 398
- Botetourt County 322
- Campbell County 600
- Bland County 108
- Caroline County 300
Cite this page
“Buchanan County, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/buchanan-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.