California Storm & Severe Weather History
Since 1996, California has logged 40,984 severe-weather events — about 1,322 a year — with 1,148 direct deaths, 4,201 injuries and $29.8B in reported property damage.
By event type
High Wind7,14942 d$404.7M
Flood4,23145 d$2.4B
Heavy Snow3,77217 d$5.4M
Flash Flood2,78568 d$1.4B
Dense Fog2,44124 d$23.6M
Strong Wind2,39136 d$40.1M
Heavy Rain2,04622 d$391.9M
Drought1,870—$50K
Winter Storm1,66014 d$23.0M
Wildfire1,592281 d$24.0B
Frost/Freeze1,503—$9.4M
Excessive Heat1,48167 d$7.5M
Winter Weather1,47724 d$1.0M
Heat1,200143 d$200K
Thunderstorm Wind1,11118 d$55.1M
Hail8301 d$24.9M
Events by year
19962026
Notable events (775)
Events with deaths, major damage, or a strong tornado — deadliest first.
Excessive HeatJuly 3, 2014
Death Valley National Park · 1 killed ·
HeatJune 6, 2014
Death Valley National Park · 1 killed ·
Rip CurrentApril 14, 2014
Orange County Coastal Areas · 1 killed ·
High SurfMarch 16, 2014
Northern Monterey Bay · 1 killed ·
High SurfJanuary 24, 2014
Northern Monterey Bay · 1 killed · 2 injured ·
SneakerwaveJanuary 20, 2014
Coastal North Bay Including Point Reyes National Seashore · 1 killed ·
High WindNovember 21, 2013
Motherlode/Camptonville To Groveland · 1 killed · 1 injured ·
HeatSeptember 19, 2013
Death Valley National Park · 1 killed ·
WildfireSeptember 9, 2013
Northern Sacramento Valley · 1 killed · 6 injured ·
HeatJuly 1, 2013
Northern San Joaquin Valley · 1 killed ·
LightningJuly 1, 2013
Tuolumne · 1 killed ·
SneakerwaveJanuary 1, 2013
Coastal North Bay Including Point Reyes National Seashore · 1 killed ·
AvalancheDecember 24, 2012
West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada · 1 killed ·
AvalancheDecember 24, 2012
Greater Lake Tahoe Area · 1 killed ·
Winter StormDecember 20, 2012
Shasta Lake/North Shasta County · 1 killed ·
FloodNovember 30, 2012
Santa Cruz · 1 killed ·
Winter StormOctober 21, 2012
West Slope Northern Sierra Nevada · 1 killed ·
HeatOctober 2, 2012
Northern Salinas Valley / Hollister Valley / Carmel Valley · 1 killed ·
HeatAugust 7, 2012
Death Valley National Park · 1 killed ·
LightningJuly 23, 2012
Nevada · 1 killed ·
HeatMay 12, 2012
Coachella Valley · 1 killed ·
AvalancheMarch 1, 2012
Greater Lake Tahoe Area · 1 killed ·
Rip CurrentFebruary 24, 2012
Northern Monterey Bay · 1 killed ·
Rip CurrentJanuary 2, 2012
Orange County Coastal Areas · 1 killed ·
High SurfMarch 16, 2011
San Francisco Peninsula Coast · 1 killed ·
FloodFebruary 25, 2011
Santa Clara · 1 killed ·
High SurfFebruary 3, 2011
Coastal North Bay Including Point Reyes National Seashore · 1 killed ·
High SurfJanuary 21, 2011
Redwood Coast · 1 killed ·
Flash FloodDecember 22, 2010
Riverside · 1 killed ·
FloodDecember 19, 2010
San Bernardino · 1 killed ·
Rip CurrentOctober 25, 2010
Southern Monterey Bay And Big Sur Coast · 1 killed · 1 injured ·
Rip CurrentFebruary 13, 2010
Southern Monterey Bay And Big Sur Coast · 1 killed ·
FloodJanuary 20, 2010
Santa Clara · 1 killed ·
Flash FloodJanuary 20, 2010
Ventura · 1 killed ·
High SurfDecember 8, 2009
Redwood Coast · 1 killed ·
HeatAugust 5, 2009
Western Mojave Desert · 1 killed ·
HeatJuly 26, 2009
Death Valley National Park · 1 killed · 3 injured ·
High SurfJuly 24, 2009
Los Angeles County Coasts Including Downtown Los Angeles · 1 killed ·
High SurfJuly 24, 2009
Orange County Coastal Areas · 1 killed · 1 injured ·
HeatJune 27, 2009
East Bay Interior Valleys · 1 killed · 1 injured ·
Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database. Counts are every logged event since 1996; the "notable" list is filtered to events with fatalities, major damage or a strong tornado. Damage is the reporting office's estimate. A record of past weather is not a forecast. See About the Data.