Northumberland County, Virginia severe weather history spans 173 recorded events between 1969 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,593 nationally and #91 in Virginia.
173
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
9
Direct injuries
$2.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Northumberland County, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Northumberland County, Virginia severe weather history averages 3.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 68 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 9 events fall before 1990 and 164 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $1.8M 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 Northumberland County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 90 | 0 | $239K | 70 | 1976–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 39 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 16 | 0 | $120K | 0 | 1999–2024 |
| Hail | 13 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1998–2025 |
| Tornado | 11 | 0 | $1.8M | F2 | 1969–2024 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2018 |
Decade by decade
Northumberland 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: 9 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-05-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-08-04 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 15.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1989-05-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-08-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-01-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-09-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-07-12 | EF1 | 0 | 9 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-05-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-04-15 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Northumberland County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 13, 1996 | Tornado | EDWARDSVILLE | 0 | 9 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A damage survey conducted by the NWS Wakefield office found a path of storm damage consistent with an EF1 tornado. The tornado moved onshore from the Chesapeake Bay in the town of Fleeton, crossing Fleeton Road where several houses experienced roof and siding damage. In addition, trees were snapped and uprooted. The tornado then crossed over the Wicomico River and then moved back onshore near Timbs Road where trees were uprooted and snapped, and a few houses experienced roof and siding damage. The tornado then moved northward to near Buzzards Point Road, destroying a canopy, before lifting.
A tornado tracked from Richmond County across Ridge Road and into Northumberland County where it caused mainly EF-0 damage to Quinton Oaks Gulf course as several hardwood trees were knocked down along with a storage shed which was destroyed. Additional damage was caused to a double wide manufactured home off of Ridge Road which had large sections of its roof ripped off. The tornado then intensified as it crossed Azalea Lane and Owl Town Road where numerous hardwood trees were snapped along with two houses which had portions of their roofs lifted off. One of these houses had its garage wall blown out and the other had multiple walls collapse and cave in. The damage in this area was consistent with EF-1 damage of 95-100 mph. The tornado continued to track northeast, crossing US 360 near Glebe Lane as a high-end EF-0 with roof damage observed on houses along with additional uprooted trees. The tornado lifted just north of US 360 and east of Glebe Lane around 310 pm EST.
Tornado damaged 5 homes, with a large porch on one home and a garage/breezeway on another home completely destroyed. Damage to 2 other homes primarily incidental, and caused by flying debris. The fifth home sustained siding and substantial roof damage. Several boats were damaged/overturned at local marina. One row boat near initial damage area lifted up and tossed 300-400 yards from its tied-down position. Several other items were thrown distances of several hundred yards. Two cars were damaged, one severely. Several trees were severely damaged, one tree was uprooted by an airborne boat. There were no injuries or fatalities.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
12,188
Population (ACS)
$347K
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 Northumberland County, Virginia?
173 events are on record between 1969 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $2.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Northumberland County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 90 recorded events — 52.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Northumberland County?
11 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Northumberland County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Northumberland County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Northumberland County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Northumberland County as very low risk, placing it in the 40 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Northumberland 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
- Northampton County 132
- Nottoway County 249
- Orange County 486
- New Kent County 183
- Page County 287
- Nelson County 404
Cite this page
“Northumberland County, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/northumberland-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.