Pocahontas County, West Virginia severe weather history spans 143 recorded events between 1971 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 36.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,732 nationally and #52 in West Virginia.
143
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$3.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Pocahontas County, West Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pocahontas County, West Virginia severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 52 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 5 events fall before 1990 and 138 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flash flood, with $1.7M 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 Pocahontas County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 52 | 0 | $981K | 61 | 1989–2025 |
| Hail | 31 | 0 | $7K | 1.75 | 1971–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 27 | 0 | $1.7M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 27 | 0 | $657K | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2018 |
| Tornado | 1 | 0 | $0 | EFU | 2024–2024 |
Decade by decade
Pocahontas County, West Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
1 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 1 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pocahontas County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 9, 1991 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous trees and large branches were blown down. Around 9,000 customers lost electricity. One house was destroyed, 1 other had major damage and 1 rental unit had minor damage. The public infrastructure damage assessment was around $167,000.||In the aftermath, an indirect death can be contributed to the storm. A 65 year old man was outside performing storm cleanup work when he became overcome by the heat. Due to the lack of electricity in Marlinton, Martin was unable to access an air-conditioned location to cool down. He later died at the local hospital.
Streams in the southern portion of the county flooded.||The flash flooding along the small streams transitioned into minor river flooding along the Greenbrier River. ||All total, a preliminary damage assessment had on the order of 2 dozen homes with damage.
The first small stream flooding was reported around Slatyfork, followed by flooding along Knapp Creek. The restaurant along Route 66 in Cass had water up to its foundation. The Greenbrier River crested at Marlinton around 13.7 feet and at Buckeye near 16.8 feet. Flood stage is 15 feet at the forecast point at Buckeye. About 35 homes were affected in Marlinton, mainly on the south end of town near the mouth of Knapp Creek. However, most of the downtown business area escaped without getting water inside.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
7,784
Population (ACS)
$152K
Median home value
23
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 25, 2016 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Nov 27, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | DR |
| Oct 29, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pocahontas County, West Virginia?
143 events are on record between 1971 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $3.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pocahontas County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 52 recorded events — 36.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pocahontas County?
1 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 1 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pocahontas County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pocahontas County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pocahontas County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pocahontas County as very low risk, placing it in the 28 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pocahontas County, West 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
- Pleasants County 91
- Preston County 457
- Pendleton County 160
- Putnam County 474
- Ohio County 265
- Raleigh County 388
Cite this page
“Pocahontas County, West Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/west-virginia/pocahontas-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.