Lancaster County, Virginia severe weather history spans 170 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 44.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,610 nationally and #92 in Virginia.
170
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
8
Direct injuries
$10.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Lancaster County, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lancaster County, Virginia severe weather history averages 2.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 69 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 5 events fall before 1990 and 165 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $6.6M 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 Lancaster County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 76 | 0 | $3.2M | 100 | 1983–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 35 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 26 | 0 | $75K | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Hail | 15 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1955–2023 |
| Tornado | 10 | 0 | $6.6M | F1 | 1975–2022 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2018 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
| Waterspout | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Lancaster County, Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
11 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 8 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-08-04 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 15.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-04-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2016-02-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2004-05-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-05-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-09-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-07-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 11.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-08-07 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-06-18 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-03-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Lancaster County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 4, 2020 | Tornado | PALMER | 0 | 5 | $3.0M |
| May 2, 1989 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 3 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The tornado that began as an EF0 in Middlesex county, intensified briefly to an EF1 in the Norwood Church Road area near Flagstaff Road in Lancaster county. In this area, a brick wall on a garage was flattened, the roof was ripped off a house, and an outbuilding was destroyed. Numerous large trees were snapped including two foot diameter pine trees. The tornado continued north and northeast for a short distance before lifting.
The tornado touched down near the boundary of Lancaster County and the Rappahannock River. The tornado then proceeded across West Irvington and Irvington where it reached its maximum intensity of up to 90 mph. Damage included loss of roofing material, gutters and/or awnings, and siding material, as well as uprooted and snapped hardwood trees. The tornado continued to the northeast with the last damage observed in a wooded area on the east side of the Hills Quarter Subdivision near King Carter Golf course.
A weak tornado first developed over the Rappahannock River near Water View and then tracked southeast between Ottoman and Senora in Lancaster county causing minor damage to mainly trees and a few structures as it crossed River Road. The tornado continued southeast crossing the Corrotoman River before crossing the south end of Weems. More minor damage occurred in south Weems. The tornado then moved into the Rappahannock River where it later dissipated.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
10,936
Population (ACS)
$327K
Median home value
25
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| May 10, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Apr 2, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Dec 18, 2018 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORM MICHAEL | DR |
| Oct 15, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE FLORENCE | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lancaster County, Virginia?
170 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $10.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lancaster County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 76 recorded events — 44.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lancaster County?
11 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 8 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Lancaster County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lancaster County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lancaster County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lancaster County as very low risk, placing it in the 32 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lancaster 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
- King William County 195
- Lee County 252
- King George County 257
- Loudoun County 1,089
- King and Queen County 150
- Louisa County 344
Cite this page
“Lancaster County, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/lancaster-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.