The United States experienced a significant surge in tornado activity in 2024, with 1,910 reported across the country. This marked a substantial increase from previous years, highlighting the unpredictable nature of these violent atmospheric phenomena. Fatalities and economic impact While tornado frequency increased, the death toll from such events remained relatively low compared to historical peaks. In 2023, 86 fatalities were reported due to tornadoes, a notable increase from the 23 deaths in 2022 but far below the 553 lives lost in 2011. Moreover, the economic impact of these storms was substantial, with tornado damage in 2023 amounting to approximately 1.38 billion U.S. dollars, nearly doubling from the previous year. However, this pales in comparison to the record-setting damage of 9.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2011. Comparison to other extreme weather events While tornadoes pose significant risks, hurricanes have historically caused more extensive damage and loss of life in the United States. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 remains the costliest tropical cyclone in recent decades, with damages totaling 200 billion U.S. dollars when adjusted to 2024 values. The impact of such extreme weather events extends beyond immediate destruction, as evidenced by the 1,518 hurricane-related fatalities recorded in 2005. As climate change continues to influence weather patterns, both tornado and hurricane activity may see further shifts in frequency and intensity in the years to come.

In 2023, there were a total of 86 fatalities reported due to tornadoes in the United States, up from 23 fatalities in the previous year. This was the lowest figure reported in the North American country since 2018, when a total of 10 lives were lost due to tornadoes. On the other hand, the highest figure reported in the U.S. since 1995 was in 2011, when tornadoes caused 553 fatalities.

In 2023, tornadoes resulted in approximately 1.38 billion U.S. dollars worth of damage across the United States. This was an increase of almost 95 percent in comparison to the previous year. The North American country's economic damage caused by tornadoes peaked in 2011, at nearly 9.5 billion U.S. dollars. That same year, the number of fatalities due to tornadoes in the United States was also the highest.

This feature layer can be used by the public to view tornado counts by county.For NWS WFOs to update the tornado counts, please do so by editing the following feature layer: https://noaa.maps.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=1bf3704eb5cb44c294ce2665d711de2c#overview. The official source for this data is found at ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/.Contact brendan.schaper@noaa.gov for more information.

Tornado TracksThis feature layer, utilizing data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), displays tornadoes in the United States, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands between 1950 and 2022. A tornado track shows the route of a tornado. Per NOAA, "A tornado is a narrow, violently rotating column of air that extends from a thunderstorm to the ground. Because wind is invisible, it is hard to see a tornado unless it forms a condensation funnel made up of water droplets, dust and debris. Tornadoes can be among the most violent phenomena of all atmospheric storms we experience. The most destructive tornadoes occur from supercells, which are rotating thunderstorms with a well-defined radar circulation called a mesocyclone. (Supercells can also produce damaging hail, severe non-tornadic winds, frequent lightning, and flash floods.)"EF-5 Tornado Track (May 3, 1999) near Oklahoma City, OklahomaData currency: December 30, 2022Data source: Storm Prediction CenterData modifications: Added fields Calculated Month and DateFor more information: Severe Weather 101 - Tornadoes; NSSL Research: TornadoesSupport documentation: SPC Tornado, Hail, and Wind Database Format SpecificationFor feedback, please contact: ArcGIScomNationalMaps@esri.comNational Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationPer NOAA, its mission is "To understand and predict changes in climate, weather, ocean, and coasts, to share that knowledge and information with others, and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources."

National Risk Index Version: March 2023 (1.19.0)A Tornado is a narrow, violently rotating column of air that extends from the base of a thunderstorm to the ground and is visible only if it forms a condensation funnel made up of water droplets, dust and debris. Annualized frequency values for Tornadoes are in units of events per year.The National Risk Index is a dataset and online tool that helps to illustrate the communities most at risk for 18 natural hazards across the United States and territories: Avalanche, Coastal Flooding, Cold Wave, Drought, Earthquake, Hail, Heat Wave, Hurricane, Ice Storm, Landslide, Lightning, Riverine Flooding, Strong Wind, Tornado, Tsunami, Volcanic Activity, Wildfire, and Winter Weather. The National Risk Index provides Risk Index values, scores and ratings based on data for Expected Annual Loss due to natural hazards, Social Vulnerability, and Community Resilience. Separate values, scores and ratings are also provided for Expected Annual Loss, Social Vulnerability, and Community Resilience. For the Risk Index and Expected Annual Loss, values, scores and ratings can be viewed as a composite score for all hazards or individually for each of the 18 hazard types.Sources for Expected Annual Loss data include: Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Arizona State University’s (ASU) Center for Emergency Management and Homeland Security (CEMHS), California Department of Conservation, California Office of Emergency Services California Geological Survey, Colorado Avalanche Information Center, CoreLogic’s Flood Services, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program, Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX), Iowa State University's Iowa Environmental Mesonet, Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MLRC) Consortium, National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Cooperative Open Online Landslide Repository (COOLR), National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Hurricane Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service (NWS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office for Coastal Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Geophysical Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System, Puerto Rico Seismic Network, Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, State of Hawaii’s Office of Planning’s Statewide GIS Program, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), U.S. Forest Service's Fire Modeling Institute's Missoula Fire Sciences Lab, U.S. Forest Service's National Avalanche Center (NAC), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Geological Survey's Landslide Hazards Program, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), University of Alaska – Fairbanks' Alaska Earthquake Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln's National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC), University of Southern California's Tsunami Research Center, and Washington State Department of Natural Resources.Data for Social Vulnerability are provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Social Vulnerability Index, and data for Community Resilience are provided by University of South Carolina's Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute’s (HVRI) 2020 Baseline Resilience Indicators for Communities.The source of the boundaries for counties and Census tracts are based on the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 TIGER/Line shapefiles. Building value and population exposures for communities are based on FEMA’s Hazus 6.0. Agriculture values are based on the USDA 2017 Census of Agriculture.

In November 2022, there were 52 small-scale tornadoes or angin puting beliung occurring in Indonesia, down from 84 in October 2022. Angin puting beliung has winds of between 117 to 180 km/h and usually occurs during the transition period from rain season to dry season. Rain season in Indonesia is from November to March.

In 2023, storms caused nearly 15,000 deaths across the globe. the third-largest figure recorded since 1990. In the past three decades, the highest annual deathtoll due to storms was registered in 1991, when storm events were responsible for the death of more than 146 thousand people worldwide. That year, a massive cyclone hit Bangladesh, becoming one of the deadliest storms of the century. The death count due to storms was also remarkably high in 2008, mainly associated with a cyclone which hit Myanmar in May.

This ranking shows the ten deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history, ranked by the death toll of their victims. The deadliest tornado of all time in the United States was the Tri-State Tornado on March 18, 1925 in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana. It killed 695 people and injured over 2,000.

Tornadoes are columns of air that spin at a high rate of speed. They are small in scale but can be very violent. The area affected by a tornado's passage is between about 40 and 400 metres in width and between 1.7 and 36 kilometres in length. During a tornado the damage is due to wind as well as an extremely sudden drop in pressure. Tornadoes vary in intensity, measured on the Fujita or F scale, graduated from 0 to 5 based on the level of damage. The main season for tornadoes is from April to October, and every province is subject to the risk of tornadoes. This layer shows some of the major tornadoes that happened in Canada since the beginning of the 20th century to 1999.

In 2023, severe convective storms caused the most expensive damage in the United States. Severe convective storms, for instance, caused overall losses of 72 billion U.S. dollars. Meanwhile, wildfire, drought, and heatwaves, resulted in economic losses of 20 billion U.S. dollars. Tropical cyclone damage amounted to under five billion U.S. dollars in 2023, a significant dropdown from a previous high in 2022. Impact of severe thunderstorms in the U.S. Severe thunderstorms pose a great risk to public safety and often results in fatalities. People can be harmed in many ways during a thunderstorm, such as directly struck by lightning or hurt when a building collapses/tree falls down. In 2019, 70 people were killed as a result of severe thunderstorms. Lightning strikes alone caused 20 deaths and 100 injuries in that year. How much was paid out due to thunderstorms? The high risk of damage posed by thunderstorms means that insurance cover is an important tool in reducing the losses incurred. In 2020 alone, approximately 71,500 homeowner insurance claims were paid due to lightning losses.

Currently filtered for Storm Date is after 12/1/2023Purpose: This is a feature layer of tornado swaths for the NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.The National Weather Service (NWS) Damage Assessment Toolkit (DAT) has been utilized experimentally since 2009 to assess damage following tornadoes and convective wind events. The DAT is a GIS-based framework for collecting, storing, and analyzing damage survey data, utilizing the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale for the classification of damage. Data collected from individual locations via mobile device are transmitted to a central geospatial database where they are quality controlled and analyzed to assign the official EF rating. In addition to the individual point, the data are analyzed to generate track centerlines and damage swaths. High resolution satellite imagery and radar data, through partnership with the NASA Short-term Prediction Research and Transition Center, are also available to aid in the analysis. The subsequent dataset is then made available through a web-based graphical interface and GIS services.Here is the full REST service: https://services.dat.noaa.gov/arcgis/rest/services/nws_damageassessmenttoolkitGeoplatform website: https://communities.geoplatform.gov/disasters/noaa-damage-assessment-toolkit-dat/More InformationWelcome to the National Weather Service Damage Assessment Toolkit. Data on this interface is collected during NWS Post-Event Damage Assessments. While the data has been quality controlled, it is still considered preliminary. Official statistics for severe weather events can be found in the Storm Data publication, available from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/IPS/sd/sd.html Questions regarding this data can be addressed to: parks.camp@noaa.gov.

This map contains continuously updated U.S. tornado reports, wind storm reports and hail storm reports. Click each feature to receive information about the specific location and read a short description about the issue.Now contains ALL available Incident Report types, for a total of 15, not just Hail; Wind; and Tornados.See new layer for details or Feature Layer Item with exclusive Past 24-Hour ALL Storm Reports Layer.Each layer is updated 4 times hourly from data provided by NOAA’s National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center.A full archive of storm events can be accessed from the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.SourceNOAA Storm Prediction Center https://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reportsNOAA ALL Storm Reports layer https://www.spc.noaa.gov/exper/reportsSample DataSee Sample Layer Item for sample data during inactive periods!Update FrequencyThe service is updated every 15 minutes using the Aggregated Live Feeds MethodologyArea CoveredCONUS (Contiguous United States)What can you do with this layer?This map service is suitable for data discovery and visualization.Change the symbology of each layer using single or bi-variate smart mapping. For instance, use size or color to indicate the intensity of a tornado.Click each feature to receive information about the specific location and read a short description about the issue.Query the attributes to show only specific event types or locations.Revisions:Aug 10, 2021: Updated Classic Layers to use new Symbols. Corrected Layer Order Presentation. Updated Thumbnail.Aug 8, 2021: Update to layer-popups, correcting link URLs. Expanded length of 'Comment' fields to 1kb of text. New Layer added that includes ALL available Incident Types and Age in 'Hours Old'.This map is provided for informational purposes and is not monitored 24/7 for accuracy and currency.If you would like to be alerted to potential issues or simply see when this service will update next, please visit our Live Feed Status Page.

National Risk Index Version: March 2023 (1.19.0)A Tornado is a narrow, violently rotating column of air that extends from the base of a thunderstorm to the ground and is visible only if it forms a condensation funnel made up of water droplets, dust and debris. Annualized frequency values for Tornadoes are in units of events per year.The National Risk Index is a dataset and online tool that helps to illustrate the communities most at risk for 18 natural hazards across the United States and territories: Avalanche, Coastal Flooding, Cold Wave, Drought, Earthquake, Hail, Heat Wave, Hurricane, Ice Storm, Landslide, Lightning, Riverine Flooding, Strong Wind, Tornado, Tsunami, Volcanic Activity, Wildfire, and Winter Weather. The National Risk Index provides Risk Index values, scores and ratings based on data for Expected Annual Loss due to natural hazards, Social Vulnerability, and Community Resilience. Separate values, scores and ratings are also provided for Expected Annual Loss, Social Vulnerability, and Community Resilience. For the Risk Index and Expected Annual Loss, values, scores and ratings can be viewed as a composite score for all hazards or individually for each of the 18 hazard types.Sources for Expected Annual Loss data include: Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Arizona State University’s (ASU) Center for Emergency Management and Homeland Security (CEMHS), California Department of Conservation, California Office of Emergency Services California Geological Survey, Colorado Avalanche Information Center, CoreLogic’s Flood Services, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program, Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX), Iowa State University's Iowa Environmental Mesonet, Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MLRC) Consortium, National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Cooperative Open Online Landslide Repository (COOLR), National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Hurricane Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service (NWS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office for Coastal Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Geophysical Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System, Puerto Rico Seismic Network, Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, State of Hawaii’s Office of Planning’s Statewide GIS Program, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), U.S. Forest Service's Fire Modeling Institute's Missoula Fire Sciences Lab, U.S. Forest Service's National Avalanche Center (NAC), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Geological Survey's Landslide Hazards Program, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), University of Alaska – Fairbanks' Alaska Earthquake Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln's National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC), University of Southern California's Tsunami Research Center, and Washington State Department of Natural Resources.Data for Social Vulnerability are provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Social Vulnerability Index, and data for Community Resilience are provided by University of South Carolina's Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute’s (HVRI) 2020 Baseline Resilience Indicators for Communities.The source of the boundaries for counties and Census tracts are based on the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 TIGER/Line shapefiles. Building value and population exposures for communities are based on FEMA’s Hazus 6.0. Agriculture values are based on the USDA 2017 Census of Agriculture.

This statistic shows the number of natural disasters that occurred in the United States from 1900 to 2016, by type of disaster. There have been 24 heat waves in the United States from 1900 to 2016.

Natural disasters in the United States

The United States ranks second among countries with the most natural disasters. In 2015, a total of 22 natural disasters occurred in the U.S. Only China, with a total of 36 disasters in 2015, suffered from more natural disasters.

Most natural disasters on U.S. territory are of meteorological nature. For example: during the period from 1900 to 2016, about 106 tropical cyclones hit the U.S. coast. During that period 40 earthquakes and 2 tsunamis hit the U.S. A total of 13.5 million people were directly affected by the aforementioned 106 tropical cyclones.

Tornadoes also frequently affect the United States. In 2016, the U.S. was struck by about 971 tornadoes. Tornadoes are more common in the United States than in any other country. Tornadoes mostly strike east of the Rocky Mountains, in the so-called “Tornado Alley” stretching from northern Texas through Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Most of the storms occurred during tornado season, which lasts from March to August. In 2015, tornadoes caused economic damages totaling about 320 million U.S. dollars.

Aside from meteorological disasters, wildfires also cause a formidable amount of economic damage in the United States, destroying property and threatening lives. In 2016, there were about 68 thousand wildfires in the United States.

Extreme weather and climate disaster events caused a total of 92.9 billion U.S. dollars in damages across the United States in 2023. This was some 86 billion U.S. dollars less than the previous year. In total, there were 28 separate billion-dollar extreme weather and climate events in the United States in 2023. These included severe storms, wildfires, tropical cyclones, flooding, and drought.

In 2023, there was a global protection gap of 262 U.S. dollars for natural disasters worldwide. The estimated economic loss of natural disasters worldwide was 380 billion U.S. dollars, while the estimated insured loss amounted to 118 billion U.S. dollars.Where did the most costly natural disaster occur?Natural disasters are extreme, sudden catastrophes that are caused by natural processes by the earth. Different types of natural disasters include floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis. There are many consequences that occur as a result of natural disasters, which include death, economic and infrastructural damage, and public health issues. The 2011 earthquake and tsunami that happened in Japan caused the most economic damage worldwide in the past four decades. Most costly disasters for insurersThe impact of natural disasters on insurance companies varies depends on the prevalence of insurance coverage in the affected region. Generally, losses from natural disasters that occur in wealthy countries such as the United States include a greater percentage of insured losses than disasters that occur in lower income countries. 2017 remains the worst year for insured property losses in the United States due to several major hurricanes in the U.S. and the Caribbean. Domestically, Hurricane Katrina was the most expensive natural disaster of all time.

The number of emergency situations caused by storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, or twisters in Russia increased in the latest year observed. There were 27 disasters of that type in the country in 2021, compared to two catastrophes recorded in 2019.

About nice deaths across India were reported due to natural disasters such as cyclones, tornadoes and tsunamis in the year 2022. This showed a significant decrease compared to the previous year. The highest number of casualties recorded over the last decade was in 2018. Majority of the deaths were due to the tropical cyclones which hit the country during that time period.

In 2024, two typhoons landed in Japan. Figures peaked in 2016, with six typhoons. Typhoons mostly hit Japan between July and October, during the peak of the typhoon season. Natural disasters in Japan Natural disasters occur frequently in Japan. Since the archipelago is situated along the Ring of Fire, an area where several tectonic plates meet, the country is vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. The highest cost of damage caused by natural disasters was recorded in 2011, when the Great East Japan Earthquake, also known as Tohoku Earthquake, occurred. It was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan. Both the earthquake and the following tsunami destroyed many Japanese cities and led to the death of over 15 thousand people. Furthermore, it caused a meltdown at three reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Fukushima Prefecture. Typhoons in Japan Typhoons develop over the Pacific Ocean and are likely to approach the archipelago. Therefore, Japan's southernmost prefecture Okinawa gets hit regularly by typhoons, while the northernmost prefecture Hokkaido is the least affected area. Japanese people stated wind gusts and tornadoes as well as flooding as their leading fears regarding typhoons. The tropical cyclones often cause heavy rains and floods, resulting in a high amount of damage caused by floods every year. Since the number of typhoons has increased in recent years, the damage caused by floods grew as well.