2020 Year in Severe Weather
Annual U.S. Storm Report Summary • Published April 10, 2026
Year at a Glance
129,373
Storm Reports
-14.8% vs 2019
8,780
Hail Reports
Largest: 4.5"
48,550
Winter Weather Reports
6,041
Flood / Flash Flood Reports
2020 Highlights:
Snow was the most-reported event with 43,369 reports.
January was the busiest month (14,562 reports).
Colorado led all states with 9,479 reports.
The largest hail recorded measured 4.5 inches in diameter.
Storm Reports by Event Type
| # | Event Type | Reports | % of Total |
|---|
| 1 |
Snow |
43,369 |
33.5% |
| 2 |
Heavy Rain |
16,779 |
13.0% |
| 3 |
Non-Tstm Wnd Gst |
15,708 |
12.1% |
| 4 |
Tstm Wnd Dmg |
15,434 |
11.9% |
| 5 |
Hail |
8,780 |
6.8% |
| 6 |
Tstm Wnd Gst |
7,195 |
5.6% |
| 7 |
Heavy Snow |
3,876 |
3.0% |
| 8 |
Flash Flood |
3,209 |
2.5% |
| 9 |
Non-Tstm Wnd Dmg |
2,647 |
2.0% |
| 10 |
Flood |
2,526 |
2.0% |
| 11 |
Marine Tstm Wind |
2,118 |
1.6% |
| 12 |
Tropical Storm |
1,693 |
1.3% |
Tornado Activity
MS
Most Active State
135 reports
Apr
Peak Month
337 reports
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | MS | 135 |
| 2 | AL | 88 |
| 3 | IL | 79 |
| 4 | TX | 75 |
| 5 | FL | 74 |
| 6 | MN | 60 |
| 7 | GA | 59 |
| 8 | NC | 58 |
| 9 | SC | 52 |
| 10 | LA | 50 |
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
642
Significant (≥ 2.0")
Baseball size and larger
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | TX | 890 |
| 2 | KS | 646 |
| 3 | SD | 532 |
| 4 | MN | 506 |
| 5 | NE | 497 |
| 6 | OK | 395 |
| 7 | MT | 378 |
| 8 | MO | 352 |
| 9 | CO | 343 |
| 10 | IA | 318 |
Wind Events
41,527
Wind Reports
Damaging & measured gusts
137 mph
Strongest Gust Reported
875
Reports ≥ 75 mph
Hurricane-force threshold
By Wind Type
| Type | Reports |
|---|
| Non-Tstm Wnd Gst | 15,708 |
| Tstm Wnd Dmg | 15,434 |
| Tstm Wnd Gst | 7,195 |
| Non-Tstm Wnd Dmg | 2,647 |
| High Sust Winds | 543 |
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | MT | 3,509 |
| 2 | MI | 2,174 |
| 3 | SD | 1,968 |
| 4 | FL | 1,868 |
| 5 | CO | 1,790 |
| 6 | PA | 1,780 |
| 7 | WY | 1,594 |
| 8 | ID | 1,382 |
| 9 | NY | 1,332 |
| 10 | AL | 1,267 |
Winter Weather
48,550
Total Winter Weather Reports
47,245
Snow Reports
Including heavy snow events
By Event Type
| Event | Reports |
|---|
| Snow | 43,369 |
| Heavy Snow | 3,876 |
| Freezing Rain | 820 |
| Blizzard | 174 |
| Ice Storm | 159 |
| Sleet | 152 |
Top States
| # | State | Reports |
|---|
| 1 | CO | 6,770 |
| 2 | NY | 2,949 |
| 3 | MN | 2,627 |
| 4 | WY | 2,626 |
| 5 | WI | 2,298 |
| 6 | MI | 2,175 |
| 7 | MT | 1,948 |
| 8 | IA | 1,898 |
Flood & Flash Flood Reports
6,041
Flood Reports (all types)
By Event Type
| Event | Reports |
|---|
| Flash Flood | 3,209 |
| Flood | 2,526 |
| Coastal Flood | 246 |
| Lakeshore Flood | 60 |
Geographic Distribution — Top States
| # | State | Storm Reports | % of Total |
|---|
| 1 |
CO |
9,479 |
7.3% |
| 2 |
MI |
7,449 |
5.8% |
| 3 |
MT |
6,270 |
4.8% |
| 4 |
MN |
5,494 |
4.2% |
| 5 |
IL |
5,283 |
4.1% |
| 6 |
NY |
5,116 |
4.0% |
| 7 |
WI |
4,978 |
3.8% |
| 8 |
KS |
4,534 |
3.5% |
| 9 |
SD |
4,534 |
3.5% |
| 10 |
WY |
4,498 |
3.5% |
| 11 |
FL |
4,285 |
3.3% |
| 12 |
PA |
4,243 |
3.3% |
| 13 |
IA |
3,774 |
2.9% |
| 14 |
NE |
3,726 |
2.9% |
| 15 |
TX |
3,396 |
2.6% |
| 16 |
OH |
3,302 |
2.6% |
| 17 |
ID |
2,740 |
2.1% |
| 18 |
IN |
2,681 |
2.1% |
| 19 |
MO |
2,375 |
1.8% |
| 20 |
VA |
2,285 |
1.8% |
Monthly Storm Report Activity
| Month |
2020 Reports |
2019 Reports |
Change |
| Jan |
14,562 |
20,908 |
-30%
|
| Feb |
12,977 |
25,417 |
-49%
|
| Mar |
8,819 |
12,123 |
-27%
|
| Apr |
13,470 |
10,800 |
+25%
|
| May |
9,372 |
13,052 |
-28%
|
| Jun |
10,943 |
11,386 |
-4%
|
| Jul |
12,335 |
9,742 |
+27%
|
| Aug |
10,366 |
8,826 |
+17%
|
| Sep |
5,604 |
5,969 |
-6%
|
| Oct |
7,459 |
8,891 |
-16%
|
| Nov |
9,293 |
10,709 |
-13%
|
| Dec |
14,173 |
14,076 |
+1%
|
About This Report
This report summarizes storm spotter reports and NWS weather alerts collected by iAlert for calendar year 2020.
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.
