Severe Weather History


New Hampshire Lightning History: 208 Recorded Events

208

Recorded events

10

Counties affected

0

Direct deaths

$10.4M

Property damage

New Hampshire lightning history: 208 recorded events across 10 counties between 1996 and 2025.

Decade by decade

New Hampshire lightning history by decade

New Hampshire lightning history: recorded events per decade
New Hampshire lightning history: recorded events per decade

The 2000s are the busiest decade on record with 131 reported lightning events across New Hampshire. Earlier decades are thinner because systematic reporting for this hazard expanded over time, not because the weather was calmer.

County ranking

Counties with the most lightning events in New Hampshire

RankCountyEventsDeathsDamageSpan
#1Rockingham County560$2.3M1996–2010
#2Strafford County280$533K1996–2008
#3Hillsborough County240$1.3M1996–2014
#4Carroll County230$657K1998–2020
#5Merrimack County200$3.7M1997–2025
#6Belknap County200$607K1996–2020
#7Cheshire County150$177K1996–2015
#8Grafton County100$835K1997–2005
#9Sullivan County60$154K2002–2007
#10Coos County60$200K1998–2016
Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events · ranked by recorded event count

All hazards in New Hampshire · Lightning across the U.S.