Pinellas County, FL Environment & Hazard Risk

• LightningVery High$8.9M/yr expected annual loss, about 94 events a year
• Coastal floodingVery High$24.6M/yr expected annual loss, about 3.7 events a year
• TornadoVery High$33.5M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1 year
• HurricaneVery High$110M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 4 years
• Cold waveVery High$26.1M/yr expected annual loss, about 3.1 events a year
• Heat waveRelatively Moderate$5.6M/yr expected annual loss, about 3.0 events a year
• HailRelatively High$2.2M/yr expected annual loss, about 1.2 events a year
• WildfireRelatively Low$377K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1,275 years
• EarthquakeRelatively Low$560K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 3,268 years
• Strong windRelatively Moderate$706K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 2 years
• DroughtVery Low$3,851/yr expected annual loss, about 17 events a year
• LandslideVery Low$73/yr expected annual loss, about once every 37 years

Bars show the national percentile score (0 to 100) for each hazard. Dollar figures are expected annual losses to buildings, people and crops. Not rated here: avalanche, ice storm, riverine flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity, winter weather.

Check the flood zone for an address

Homes with flood insurance

76,020 of 391,677 (19.4%)

Homes in high-risk flood zones

4,807

Insured in high-risk zones

56,785 (0%)

Flood claims since 1978

51,779

Claims paid since 1978

$3.8B

• Thunderstorm Wind184 · 1 death
• Lightning175 · 9 deaths
• Hail73
• Dense Fog50 · 1 death
• Tornado48
• Waterspout39
• Flood38
• Tropical Storm34 · 1 death
• Heavy Rain30 · 3 deaths
• Storm Surge/Tide19

• Hurricane (Typhoon)09/10/2017

  Pinellas

  2 deaths, $594M damage

  What happened

  In Pinellas County, the highest winds reported from Hurricane Irma was a gust to 77 knots at Pier 60 Park. Rainfall was generally around 4 inches or greater, with the highest rain total 5.98 inches at the the GOES station BTRF1 in Tarpon Springs. The wind resulted in damage to numerous homes, as well as knocking over trees and power lines. Pinellas County Emergency Management reported that 77 homes or businesses were destroyed, 533 sustained major damage, 5761 had minor damage, and an additional 11,935 were affected by hurricane Irma throughout Pinellas County. ||The track of Irma resulted in a much stronger negative surge north of the eye, causing extremely low water levels in the Tampa Bay. No significant damage was reported from either the negative surge or the weak positive surge.||The total damage from Irma in Pinellas County was estimated at $594.45 million, including $588.08 million in individual assistance claims and $6.37 million in public assistance claims, most of which was caused by wind damage.||One indirect fatality was reported in Pinellas County from Hurricane Irma. A 53 year old man was repairing cable lines in Feather Sound on the 16th when he fell 20 feet...

• Tropical Storm09/28/2022

  Pinellas

  $50M damage

  What happened

  The highest wind reported in Pinellas County from Hurricane Ian was a gust to 77 mph in Saint Petersburg at 3:46 PM EST on September 28. Rainfall generally ranged between 1.5 and 4 inches, with a maximum total of 3.34 inches at Albert Whitted Airport. 31 homes received major damage and another 86 reported minor damage. Offshore winds caused below normal tides of 4 feet on the gulf side of barrier islands, and up to 5 feet below normal in Tampa Bay near St. Petersburg, where the minimum reported water level of -3.94 feet below MLLW at 2:12 AM EST surpassed the previous minimum of -3.72 feet below MLLW, set during Hurricane Irma in 2017.

• Hurricane (Typhoon)10/09/2024

  Pinellas

  $43M damage

  What happened

  Surface observations indicate peak wind gusts generally between 80 to 100 mph, with a maximum gust of 101 mph at Albert Whitted Airport at 9:29 PM EST on October 9. Rainfall generally ranged from 10 to 15 inches with a few pockets of 15 to 20 inches over southern and southeastern parts of the county, with a maximum total of 20.4 inches observed near St. Petersburg. Albert Whitted Airport (KSPG) shattered its previous 1-day total rainfall amount with 18.54 inches recorded on October 9, nearly tripling the previous record of 6.93 inches set on September 14, 2001 in association with Tropical Storm Gabrielle. Site records date back to 1998. St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport (KPIE) recorded its second-highest 1-day total rainfall amount with 9.18 inches on October 9, behind the record of 9.6 inches set on July 18, 2004. Site records date back to 1998. A peak water level of 1.3 feet above MHHW was measured at Clearwater Beach at 11:24 AM EST on October 9. Peak water levels measured elsewhere along coastal Pinellas County generally ranged around a foot or less above MHHW, although blowout tide conditions were observed with below normal water levels for a period of time....

• Dense Fog12/27/1996

  Pinellas

  1 death, 30 injured, $850K damage

  What happened

  Dense fog developed across West and Southwest Florida from mainly the Gulf Coast east to the Interstate 75 corridor during the predawn through late morning. Visibilities dropped to near zero at a few locations but consistently were reported 1/8 of mile over West and Southwest Florida observational sites through mid morning.Patchy dense fog lingered along coastal waterways and bays of West Central Florida through late morning. At 11:20 AM EST, motorists, heading northbound on the Pinellas county side of the Sushine Skyway Bridge, descended from the center span in sunshine and unlimited visibility into a patch of dense fog near sea-level. A chain reaction of vehicle accidents occurred on the northbound lane followed by a similar chain reaction of accidents by rubber-neckers in the southbound lane. In total, fifty-four vehicles were involved in the fog related accident. Of the fifty-four vehicles, 38 were automobiles, 11 were pick-up trucks and 5 were semi-tractor trailer trucks. One 69 year old female fatality occurred when her vehicle was crushed between a car carrier and a flatbed truck. Thirty (30) persons were injured in the mishap.

• Tropical Storm11/12/2020

  Pinellas

  $40.1M damage

  What happened

  In Pinellas County the highest wind reported from Hurricane Eta was a gust of 60 mph at the weather flow site on Clearwater Beach. Rainfall was generally above 5 inches with the highest rain total being 9.11 inches at a site in St. Petersburg. The wind resulted in many homes being damaged, as well as knocking over trees and power lines. There was also significant beach erosion along southwest facing beaches from Redington Shore to Pass-a-Grill. Pinellas County Emergency Management reported 88 homes with major damage, 621 homes with minor damage, and 1,496 other homes being affected. The total property damage by Eta in Pinellas County was estimated at $40.1 million. The maximum storm surge was 3.47 ft MHHW at St. Pete Beach. Mesonet station FW1789 located in Clearwater Beach reported a wind gust of 60mph/ 69 kts.

• Tropical Storm09/05/2004

  Pinellas

  $32.4M damage

  What happened

  Hurricane Frances made landfall just after midnight on September 5th near Vero Beach as a Category 2 storm. The hurricane continued to move slowly west northwestward across central Florida to near Bartow by 2 pm, and just northeast of Tampa by 8 pm, when it was downgraded to a tropical storm. It then emerged back into the Gulf of Mexico near Hudson shortly before midnight. Hurricane Frances took almost 24 hours to move through the Florida peninsula. Frances continued northwestward through the northern gulf of Mexico, making a second landfall on the afternoon of September 6th in the Florida big bend near Tallahassee as a tropical storm. In Lee County the observation at Big Carlos Pass recorded a gust to 51 knots (59 MPH) from the west at 12:18 AM EST on 09/05/2004. One direct death was reported when an elderly man was blown over by a wind gust while walking his dog 10 feet outside of his home. He hit his head on the sidewalk and died from blunt force trauma. Fourteen homes were destroyed by the wind. In Sarasota and Manatee Counties the maximum wind recorded at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport was 46 knots (53 MPH) from the northwest at 12:07 PM EST on 09/05/2004. In...

• Pinellas County UtilitiesServes 506,353 · Purchased surface water · Local governmentNo health violations+18 monitoring or reporting
• St Petersburg, City ofServes 349,979 · Purchased surface water · Local governmentNo health violations+9 monitoring or reporting
• Clearwater Water SystemServes 115,000 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+9 monitoring or reporting
• Pinellas Park Water DeptServes 48,939 · Purchased surface water · Local government3 health violations+11 monitoring or reporting
• Dunedin Water SystemServes 46,161 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+32 monitoring or reporting
• Tarpon Springs Water SystemServes 28,875 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+6 monitoring or reporting
• Safety Harbor Water DeptServes 16,473 · Purchased surface water · Local governmentNo health violations+1 monitoring or reporting
• Oldsmar Water SystemServes 14,898 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+3 monitoring or reporting