2019 Year in Severe Weather
Annual U.S. Storm Report Summary • Published April 10, 2026
Year at a Glance
10,570
Hail Reports
Largest: 5.5"
71,074
Winter Weather Reports
7,803
Flood / Flash Flood Reports
2019 Highlights:
Snow was the most-reported event with 59,898 reports.
February was the busiest month (25,417 reports).
Colorado led all states with 11,889 reports.
The largest hail recorded measured 5.5 inches in diameter.
Storm Reports by Event Type
| # | Event Type | Reports | % of Total |
|---|
| 1 |
Snow |
59,898 |
39.4% |
| 2 |
Heavy Rain |
19,331 |
12.7% |
| 3 |
Tstm Wnd Dmg |
15,822 |
10.4% |
| 4 |
Non-Tstm Wnd Gst |
10,879 |
7.2% |
| 5 |
Hail |
10,570 |
7.0% |
| 6 |
Heavy Snow |
8,118 |
5.3% |
| 7 |
Tstm Wnd Gst |
5,974 |
3.9% |
| 8 |
Flash Flood |
4,025 |
2.6% |
| 9 |
Flood |
3,437 |
2.3% |
| 10 |
Non-Tstm Wnd Dmg |
2,999 |
2.0% |
| 11 |
Freezing Rain |
2,194 |
1.4% |
| 12 |
Tornado |
1,680 |
1.1% |
Tornado Activity
TX
Most Active State
163 reports
May
Peak Month
559 reports
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | TX | 163 |
| 2 | MS | 149 |
| 3 | KS | 139 |
| 4 | MO | 114 |
| 5 | AL | 110 |
| 6 | LA | 98 |
| 7 | OK | 87 |
| 8 | IA | 61 |
| 9 | OH | 58 |
| 10 | MN | 54 |
Data note: Tornado EF/F intensity ratings are not consistently recorded in storm reports. Counts above represent confirmed tornado reports; intensity data is omitted due to incomplete coverage.
Hail Activity
615
Significant (≥ 2.0")
Baseball size and larger
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | TX | 1,284 |
| 2 | KS | 927 |
| 3 | NE | 691 |
| 4 | CO | 615 |
| 5 | MT | 573 |
| 6 | MO | 446 |
| 7 | SD | 429 |
| 8 | MN | 416 |
| 9 | PA | 372 |
| 10 | IL | 356 |
Wind Events
36,251
Wind Reports
Damaging & measured gusts
173 mph
Strongest Gust Reported
693
Reports ≥ 75 mph
Hurricane-force threshold
By Wind Type
| Type | Reports |
|---|
| Tstm Wnd Dmg | 15,822 |
| Non-Tstm Wnd Gst | 10,879 |
| Tstm Wnd Gst | 5,974 |
| Non-Tstm Wnd Dmg | 2,999 |
| High Sust Winds | 577 |
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | VA | 1,748 |
| 2 | MI | 1,711 |
| 3 | TX | 1,618 |
| 4 | PA | 1,467 |
| 5 | NY | 1,447 |
| 6 | MT | 1,408 |
| 7 | FL | 1,332 |
| 8 | KS | 1,306 |
| 9 | CA | 1,270 |
| 10 | OH | 1,233 |
Winter Weather
71,074
Total Winter Weather Reports
68,016
Snow Reports
Including heavy snow events
By Event Type
| Event | Reports |
|---|
| Snow | 59,898 |
| Heavy Snow | 8,118 |
| Freezing Rain | 2,194 |
| Blizzard | 365 |
| Sleet | 276 |
| Ice Storm | 223 |
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | CO | 9,062 |
| 2 | MN | 4,943 |
| 3 | WY | 4,648 |
| 4 | WI | 4,158 |
| 5 | MI | 3,411 |
| 6 | NY | 3,390 |
| 7 | MT | 2,848 |
| 8 | IA | 2,634 |
Flood & Flash Flood Reports
7,803
Flood Reports (all types)
By Event Type
| Event | Reports |
|---|
| Flash Flood | 4,025 |
| Flood | 3,437 |
| Coastal Flood | 295 |
| Lakeshore Flood | 46 |
Geographic Distribution — Top States
| # | State | Storm Reports | % of Total |
|---|
| 1 |
CO |
11,889 |
7.8% |
| 2 |
MI |
7,889 |
5.2% |
| 3 |
MN |
7,139 |
4.7% |
| 4 |
KS |
6,674 |
4.4% |
| 5 |
WY |
6,337 |
4.2% |
| 6 |
IL |
6,271 |
4.1% |
| 7 |
WI |
5,999 |
3.9% |
| 8 |
NY |
5,632 |
3.7% |
| 9 |
MT |
5,578 |
3.7% |
| 10 |
CA |
4,905 |
3.2% |
| 11 |
NE |
4,773 |
3.1% |
| 12 |
IA |
4,723 |
3.1% |
| 13 |
PA |
4,529 |
3.0% |
| 14 |
SD |
4,355 |
2.9% |
| 15 |
OH |
4,264 |
2.8% |
| 16 |
TX |
3,822 |
2.5% |
| 17 |
MO |
3,569 |
2.3% |
| 18 |
IN |
3,287 |
2.2% |
| 19 |
VA |
3,284 |
2.2% |
| 20 |
ME |
2,933 |
1.9% |
Monthly Storm Report Activity
| Month |
2019 Reports |
2018 Reports |
Change |
| Jan |
20,908 |
0 |
—
|
| Feb |
25,417 |
0 |
—
|
| Mar |
12,123 |
0 |
—
|
| Apr |
10,800 |
0 |
—
|
| May |
13,052 |
0 |
—
|
| Jun |
11,386 |
0 |
—
|
| Jul |
9,742 |
0 |
—
|
| Aug |
8,826 |
0 |
—
|
| Sep |
5,969 |
0 |
—
|
| Oct |
8,891 |
0 |
—
|
| Nov |
10,709 |
0 |
—
|
| Dec |
14,076 |
0 |
—
|
About This Report
This report summarizes storm spotter reports and NWS weather alerts collected by iAlert for calendar year 2019.
Storm report data is sourced from National Weather Service Local Storm Reports (LSRs) ingested by the iAlert weather monitoring system.
Alert data represents official NWS alerts issued via the NOAA Weather Wire and CAP alert feed.
Data coverage: Contiguous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories.
Data represents events reported through NWS field offices; actual occurrence may be higher in areas with limited spotter coverage.
Individual storm events may generate multiple LSR entries from different reporting sources, which are counted separately as received from NWS.
Wind gust values reflect reported maximum gusts; entries over 200 mph are excluded as data entry errors.
Hail sizes reflect maximum diameter as reported by spotters and NWS personnel.
