Wheeler County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Nebraska Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Wheeler County is about the same as Nebraska average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Wheeler County is lower than Nebraska average and is about the same as the national average.
Earthquake Index, #14
| Wheeler County | 0.04 |
| Nebraska | 0.04 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Wheeler County | 0.0000 |
| Nebraska | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #57
| Wheeler County | 144.97 |
| Nebraska | 205.07 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 10,634 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Wheeler County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 70 | Cold: | 78 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 16 |
| Dust Storm: | 1 | Flood: | 485 | Hail: | 6,217 | Heat: | 14 | Heavy Snow: | 58 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 0 | Ice Storm: | 19 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 116 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 3,085 | Tropical Storm: | 0 | Wildfire: | 2 | Winter Storm: | 174 | Winter Weather: | 70 |
| Other: | 229 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Wheeler County.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 1 historical earthquake event that had a recorded magnitude of 3.5 or above found in or near Wheeler County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 13.1 | 1975-05-13 | 4.3 | N/A | 42.12 | -98.45 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 50 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Wheeler County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 7.8 | 2004-07-12 | 2 | 41°59'N / 98°40'W | 41°58'N / 98°40'W | 1.50 Miles | 40 Yards | 0 | 0 | 130K | 0 | Wheeler |
| Brief Description: The tornado touched down in an grove of trees, uprooting and breaking off numerous large trees. As the tornado moved southeastwards, it encountered a farmstead where it ripped off the roof of the home, destroyed a machine shed and garage, and broke power poles. Before lifting, the tornado moved through a field and overturned the end of a center pivot irrigation system. | |||||||||||
| 11.2 | 1965-05-08 | 4 | 41°14'N / 98°40'W | 42°20'N / 98°15'W | 78.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Howard |
| 13.4 | 2004-07-12 | 2 | 41°49'N / 98°44'W | 41°49'N / 98°43'W | 1.00 Mile | 40 Yards | 0 | 0 | 90K | 0 | Wheeler |
| Brief Description: The tornado touched down in open rangeland and then moved south breaking off and uprooting numerous large trees as it encountered a farmstead. One large tree fell on the roof of a home. As the tornado moved south across the road, it hit another farmstead. Again, it broke off and uprooted numerous large trees and broke many power poles. The barn and steel fencing was lifted and tossed 50 yards northwestwards into a tree belt behind the house. The roof of the home was taken off. A detached garage was demolished. Before lifting, the tornado moved through a corral south of the home where it severely injured or killed several horses. After the storm, two colts and a mare were found up in a tree. | |||||||||||
| 19.9 | 1981-08-04 | 2 | 41°46'N / 98°50'W | 0.20 Mile | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Garfield | |
| 20.3 | 1962-04-26 | 2 | 41°43'N / 98°47'W | 2.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Valley | |
| 21.5 | 1974-04-20 | 2 | 41°29'N / 98°45'W | 41°48'N / 98°33'W | 24.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Greeley |
| 22.4 | 1965-05-08 | 4 | 41°33'N / 98°17'W | 41°55'N / 98°05'W | 27.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 4 | 53 | 25.0M | 0 | Boone |
| 23.0 | 1964-04-26 | 2 | 41°57'N / 98°10'W | 42°20'N / 98°10'W | 26.40 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Antelope |
| 23.1 | 1964-05-05 | 4 | 41°33'N / 98°17'W | 42°04'N / 97°56'W | 39.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Boone |
| 23.1 | 1970-08-02 | 2 | 41°52'N / 98°05'W | 2.00 Miles | 167 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Boone | |
| 24.6 | 1966-06-05 | 2 | 41°42'N / 98°10'W | 0.70 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 1 | 0K | 0 | Boone | |
| 25.1 | 1953-06-07 | 2 | 41°28'N / 98°38'W | 41°41'N / 98°22'W | 20.10 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Greeley |
| 26.9 | 1963-06-09 | 2 | 41°38'N / 98°55'W | 41°40'N / 98°50'W | 4.10 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Valley |
| 28.8 | 1953-06-07 | 3 | 41°42'N / 98°01'W | 41°49'N / 98°01'W | 8.00 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Boone |
| 32.3 | 1980-10-16 | 2 | 42°13'N / 98°01'W | 0.30 Mile | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Antelope | |
| 33.4 | 1964-05-05 | 4 | 41°24'N / 98°23'W | 41°33'N / 98°17'W | 11.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 11 | 25K | 0 | Greeley |
| 33.7 | 1999-06-03 | 3 | 41°36'N / 99°10'W | 41°42'N / 98°56'W | 14.00 Miles | 1000 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.5M | 1.0M | Valley |
| Brief Description: Late in the evening of June 3rd, a severe thunderstorm produced a large tornado across northwest Valley county. The thunderstorm entered the western part of the county around 11 pm. Shortly thereafter, the tornado touched down 12 miles west of Ord and snaked its way northeast before lifting after midnight about 7 miles north of Ord. This F3 tornado had a damage path almost one-half mile wide at one point. It completely destroyed two farmsteads and damaged two others along its path. At the two destroyed farmsteads, residents took shelter in the basement upon warning. The tornado tossed cars and farm equipment up to 300 feet, strewn irrigation pipe across the countryside and killed livestock. The two destroyed homes were completely wiped from the foundation. However, given sufficient warning, no one in the storms path was injured or killed. | |||||||||||
| 33.8 | 1962-05-21 | 3 | 41°54'N / 97°54'W | 42°03'N / 97°50'W | 10.60 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Antelope |
| 33.8 | 1974-04-20 | 3 | 41°26'N / 99°08'W | 41°47'N / 98°53'W | 27.30 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Dawson |
| 34.5 | 1960-08-05 | 3 | 41°42'N / 99°12'W | 41°40'N / 99°00'W | 10.30 Miles | 150 Yards | 1 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Valley |
| 35.2 | 1964-05-05 | 2 | 41°23'N / 98°15'W | 41°55'N / 97°40'W | 47.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Nance |
| 36.9 | 1972-07-20 | 2 | 41°30'N / 98°56'W | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Valley | |||
| 37.8 | 1962-05-21 | 3 | 42°03'N / 97°50'W | 42°06'N / 97°47'W | 3.60 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 6 | 2.5M | 0 | Madison |
| 37.9 | 2003-06-09 | 3 | 42°32'N / 98°48'W | 42°26'N / 98°25'W | 23.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 5.7M | 1.3M | Holt |
| Brief Description: As the tornado initially touched down, it encountered a farmstead and destroyed three barns, a detached garage, and 3 large metal grain binds, and also ripped off a portion of the house roof, broke windows, and uprooted and snapped off 90% of the trees around the farmstead. As the tornado moved southeast, it hit two more farmsteads where it completely overturned a modular home, destroyed barns, snapped off nearly all trees. Further along the path to the southeast, the tornado threw farm machinery one quarter mile into a grove of trees. Then it hit another farm where it ripped off an attached garage on a house, broke most windows in the house, moved an old home off its foundation 2 feet, and killed one cow and extensively injured 14 other cows. A barn was also destroyed at a dairy farm across the road to the southeast. The tornado then moved southeast mainly across farmland destroying fields of corn and soybeans, overturning 200 hundred center pivot irrigation systems, snapping off 1,000 power poles, and breaking off numerous large trees. As the tornado passed 3 miles north of O'Neill, it destroyed storage sheds at numerous homesteads. Baseball size hail associated with the storm punctured holes in vinyl siding and broke windows and skylights in homes. Finally just before dissipating 2 miles north of Page, the tornado lifted the front porch on a home which then took off the roof and one exterior wall of the home. | |||||||||||
| 39.3 | 1987-07-06 | 2 | 41°36'N / 99°12'W | 41°40'N / 99°08'W | 4.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Valley |
| 40.4 | 1996-06-19 | 2 | 42°31'N / 98°46'W | 42°29'N / 98°43'W | 3.00 Miles | 350 Yards | 0 | 0 | 1.0M | 0 | Holt |
| Brief Description: TORNADO ON THE GROUND FOR 3 MILES. THREE FARMSTEADS HEAVILY DAMAGED. THREE HEAD OF LIVESTOCK KILLED. HEAVY DAMAGE TO LARGE POWER TRANSMISSION LINE. CENTER PIVOT IRRIGAION SYSTEM DESTROYED. | |||||||||||
| 40.5 | 1963-08-27 | 2 | 41°28'N / 99°04'W | 41°28'N / 98°55'W | 7.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Valley |
| 40.7 | 1965-05-08 | 4 | 41°55'N / 98°05'W | 42°30'N / 97°33'W | 48.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25.0M | 0 | Antelope |
| 41.1 | 1965-05-08 | 3 | 42°06'N / 99°06'W | 42°44'N / 98°54'W | 44.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25.0M | 0 | Holt |
| 41.4 | 1984-04-25 | 2 | 41°46'N / 97°45'W | 0.50 Mile | 3 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Madison | |
| 43.1 | 1990-03-13 | 2 | 41°17'N / 98°20'W | 41°25'N / 98°09'W | 11.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Nance |
| 43.2 | 1954-05-30 | 4 | 41°44'N / 97°44'W | 41°45'N / 97°43'W | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Platte | ||
| 43.7 | 1953-06-07 | 4 | 41°21'N / 99°06'W | 41°34'N / 99°03'W | 15.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 11 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Valley |
| 44.0 | 1960-06-15 | 2 | 42°17'N / 97°55'W | 42°17'N / 97°41'W | 11.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Antelope |
| 44.3 | 1955-09-20 | 2 | 41°39'N / 99°23'W | 41°44'N / 99°15'W | 8.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Custer |
| 44.4 | 1972-07-20 | 2 | 41°51'N / 97°40'W | 0.30 Mile | 10 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Madison | |
| 44.8 | 1974-04-20 | 2 | 41°12'N / 98°59'W | 41°29'N / 98°45'W | 22.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Sherman |
| 45.7 | 1955-07-08 | 2 | 41°17'N / 98°44'W | 41°17'N / 98°35'W | 7.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Howard |
| 47.1 | 1999-06-03 | 2 | 41°31'N / 99°17'W | 41°34'N / 99°15'W | 5.50 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 300K | 0 | Custer |
| Brief Description: Several large hail reports were received beginning at 936 PM CDT near Berwyn. Five center pivot irrigation systems were overturned from 8 miles southwest to 7 miles west southwest of Comstock at approximately 1000 PM CDT. A tornado initially touched down 3 miles southwest of Comstock and was intermittentaly on the ground causing tree damage. The tornado then dropped down 1 mile southwest of the center of Comstock. It reached its maximum intensity as it struck a farm 1/2 mile west of Comstock. Every outbuilding on the farm was destroyed, including a large machine building and the house was heavily damaged. The tornado then crossed the Middle Loup River and struck a residence on the northwest edge of Comstock destroying three outbuildings and damaging the house. Another farm a mile north of Comstock was struck, and everything but the house was destroyed. Several vehicles in the path were damaged or destroyed. | |||||||||||
| 47.4 | 1972-07-20 | 3 | 41°29'N / 99°36'W | 41°42'N / 99°02'W | 32.80 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Custer |
| 47.4 | 1969-06-25 | 2 | 41°45'N / 97°46'W | 41°56'N / 97°27'W | 20.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Madison |
| 47.6 | 1975-06-21 | 2 | 42°27'N / 97°54'W | 0.50 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Knox | |
| 47.7 | 1990-03-13 | 2 | 41°15'N / 98°16'W | 41°17'N / 98°20'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Merrick |
| 47.9 | 1964-05-05 | 2 | 41°07'N / 98°33'W | 41°23'N / 98°15'W | 24.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 7 | 25K | 0 | Howard |
| 48.0 | 1998-10-28 | 2 | 42°32'N / 98°58'W | 42°34'N / 98°58'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 50K | 0 | Holt |
| Brief Description: Tornado touched down on the northeast edge of Atkinson and remained on the ground for nearly 1 mile. The tornado destroyed a pole barn. It also carried a metal shed 100 yards and damaged trees and feed bunks. The tornado touched down two more times, once 1 mile north of Atkinson, just east of Highway 11, and again 2 miles north of Atkinson, just west of Highway 11, doing minor tree damage. | |||||||||||
| 48.3 | 1959-05-28 | 2 | 41°24'N / 99°13'W | 41°27'N / 99°06'W | 6.40 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Valley |
| 48.8 | 2008-06-05 | 2 | 42°12'N / 99°27'W | 42°25'N / 99°13'W | 20.00 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 50K | 10K | Rock |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This multiple vortex tornado formed near Rose and tracked northeast for about 20 miles before exiting Rock County about 13 miles south-southeast of Newport at 1500 CST. In Rock County, the tornado broke power poles, shifted a house off its foundation a few inches, destroyed outbuildings, overturned a couple of center pivot irrigation systems, and snapped trees. The tornado maintained the EF2 intensity through Rock and Holt County. The average path width in Rock County was 30 yards. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Supercell thunderstorms developed along a nearly stationary front across southwest Nebraska during the afternoon hours of June 4th and continued through the afternoon of June 5th. The storms produced very large hail during the overninght and morning hours, then some tornadoes during the afternoon of June 5th. | |||||||||||
| 49.0 | 1960-06-14 | 2 | 42°18'N / 97°42'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Pierce | |
| 49.3 | 1984-04-25 | 3 | 41°11'N / 98°30'W | 41°16'N / 98°25'W | 8.00 Miles | 40 Yards | 0 | 18 | 25.0M | 0 | Howard |
| 49.9 | 1982-05-10 | 2 | 41°13'N / 98°27'W | 0.30 Mile | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Howard | |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.