Hardin County, TX Environment & Hazard Risk
Relatively Low natural hazard risk, led by lightning. 259 storm events since 1996.
- Expected yearly loss
- $27.12M
- Relatively Low nationally
- Storm events since 1996
- 259
- Most often thunderstorm wind
- Flood insurance policies
- 2,595
- 12.2% of homes
- Hurricanes nearby
- 3
- 10 tropical storms or stronger since 1875
Natural hazard risk
FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025
Overall risk
Relatively Low
Score 69.6 of 100
Social vulnerability
Relatively Moderate
Score 44.6 of 100
Community resilience
Relatively Moderate
Score 49.5 of 100
Community resilience runs the other way: a higher rating means a community can recover faster.
Building value exposed: $11.65B · Agriculture value exposed: $6.04M · Risk-adjusted yearly loss: $29.59M
Risk by hazard
- LightningRelatively High$1.12M/yr expected annual loss, about 77 events a year
- Ice stormRelatively High$753K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1 year
- HurricaneRelatively Moderate$4.87M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 7 years
- TornadoRelatively Moderate$5.03M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1 year
- WildfireRelatively Low$535K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 255 years
- Cold waveRelatively Moderate$2.29M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1 year
- Heat waveRelatively Low$837K/yr expected annual loss, about 11 events a year
- Winter weatherRelatively Low$50.84K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.3 events a year
- DroughtRelatively Low$73.29K/yr expected annual loss, about 23 events a year
- Strong windRelatively Low$368K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.0 events a year
- Coastal floodingVery Low$7,455/yr expected annual loss, about once every 100 years
- EarthquakeVery Low$82.66K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1,493 years
- HailVery Low$90.95K/yr expected annual loss, about 2.0 events a year
- LandslideVery Low$84/yr expected annual loss, about once every 10 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, riverine flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.
Flood risk and insurance
National Flood Insurance Program and FEMA flood maps
Check the flood zone for an address
- Homes with flood insurance
- 2,595 of 21,330 (12.2%)
- Homes in high-risk flood zones
- 1,474
- Insured in high-risk zones
- 640 (43%)
- Flood claims since 1978
- 2,405
- Claims paid since 1978
- $191M
Flood claims paid per year
- Hurricane Harvey$155M · 838 claims
- Flooding$11.57M · 411 claims
- Tropical Storm Paul$5.76M · 155 claims
- Hurricane Rita$2.94M · 118 claims
- Fall severe storms$2.45M · 68 claims
- Tropical Storm Allison$2.14M · 148 claims
Storm history
Since 1996: 259 events, 2 deaths, $783M in damage
- Thunderstorm Wind79
- Hail69
- Flash Flood50
- Tornado14 · 1 death
- Winter Weather6
- Flood6
- Drought6
- Winter Storm5
- Wildfire5
- Heat3
Events per year
27 tornadoes on record (EF0 4, F0 10, F1 7, F2 6).
Most damaging storms
Since 1996, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage
- Flash Flood08/27/2017
Loeb, Hardin County
$600M damage
What happened
Widespread 20 to 40 inches fell across the county which resulted in near 10,000 homes being flooded. Worst hit areas were around Lumberton, Silsbee, Sour Lake, and Kountze. Record flooding occurred on Pine Island Bayou and Village Creek. The second highest crest of the Neches occurred at Evadale. The US Highway 96 bridge near Silsbee collapsed due to the current.
- Hurricane (Typhoon)09/13/2008
Hardin
$70M damage
What happened
Hurricane Ike caused category 1 wind damage across Hardin County. Many trees and power lines were downed, some landing on homes and businesses.
- Hurricane (Typhoon)09/23/2005
Hardin
$50M damage
What happened
Although Hurricane Rita made landfall just east of the Texas - Louisiana border, she moved northwest and moved across southeast Texas in the morning hours of September 24th as a dangerous category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 120 mph. Along the coast of Jefferson County, storm surges near 10 feet occurred near Sabine Pass, where over 90 percent of the homes were severely damaged or destroyed. The storm surge backed up the Sabine River, and flooded a small section of downtown Orange with around 4 to 5 feet of storm surge. Winds blew over 100 mph across the entire region, snapping and uprooting trees, and damaged over 125,000 homes and businesses. Some homes in rural Jasper and Newton counties did not have electricity restored for over six weeks. One direct fatality occurred in Jasper County when a tree fell on a mobile home. Six other indirect fatalities occurred in Jefferson County in Beaumont, where a family died of carbon monoxide poisoning after running a generator inside their apartment.
- Tropical Storm08/27/2020
Hardin
$30M damage
What happened
There was a mandatory evacuation for the county. Many trees and power lines were blown down across the county. Homes and businesses were damaged from trees falling on them or wind. Over 40 percent of the county was without power immediately after the storm. Wind gusts ranged from 35 to 70 mph across the county.
- Lightning02/06/2018
Honey Is, Hardin County
1 death, 1 injured
What happened
A 22 year old male was struck by lightning while working on cattle fencing along Starlight Road near Honey Island. A 57 year old male was also hit sustaining 2nd degree burns. A nearby cow was knocked to the ground.
- TornadoF2, 3 mi path, 600 yd wide11/24/2004
Kountze, Hardin County
1 death, $500K damage
What happened
A second tornado touched down in northeastern Hardin County, was was witnessed by many people. Residents could see both tornadoes on the ground for a brief time. One elderly woman was killed when several large trees fell on the mobile home she was in. Between 10 and 20 homes were damaged or destroyed, mainly near Highway 92 near the Hardin-Tyler county line.
Latest storm reports
Newest first
- Flash Flood06/16/2026
Village Mills, Hardin County
$2,000 damage
- Flash Flood06/16/2026
Bragg, Hardin County
- Flash Flood06/16/2026
Fresenius, Hardin County
- Thunderstorm Wind50 kt wind02/15/2026
Ariola, Hardin County
$5,000 damage
- Thunderstorm Wind50 kt wind02/15/2026
Silsbee, Hardin County
$5,000 damage
- Thunderstorm Wind61 kt wind02/15/2026
Ariola, Hardin County
- Thunderstorm Wind50 kt wind05/27/2025
Fletcher, Hardin County
$2,000 damage
- Winter Storm01/21/2025
Hardin
Hurricanes and tropical storms
Storms whose track crossed Hardin County, with the wind when it passed
- Hurricane Rita (2005)09/18/2005 · Landfall: LA · 895 mbCategory 3115 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1987)08/09/1987 · Landfall: TX · 1,007 mbTropical storm46 mph nearby
- Hurricane Bonnie (1986)06/24/1986 · Landfall: TX · 990 mbCategory 175 mph nearby
- Tropical Storm Claudette (1979)07/15/1979 · 997 mbTropical storm46 mph nearby
- Tropical Storm Barbara (1954)07/27/1954 · Landfall: LA · 999 mbTropical storm46 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1940)08/03/1940 · Landfall: TX · 972 mbTropical storm58 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1898)09/20/1898 · Landfall: TXTropical storm46 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1882)09/14/1882 · Landfall: LATropical storm58 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1879)08/19/1879 · Landfall: TX · 964 mbCategory 2104 mph nearby
- Unnamed storm (1875)09/08/1875 · Landfall: TX · 978 mbTropical storm46 mph nearby
Drinking water
21 community water systems serve about 62,596 people. Violations since 2021.
6 systems had health-based violations, such as a contaminant over the legal limit or a missed treatment step. 4 systems had a violation of any kind still open at last report.
- Lumberton MudServes 31,428 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+1 monitoring or reporting
- City of SilsbeeServes 10,026 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+2 monitoring or reporting
- North Hardin WscServes 7,755 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations
- West Hardin WscServes 4,630 · Groundwater · Local government1 health violation+4 monitoring or reporting
- Wildwood Resort CityServes 1,992 · Groundwater · PrivateNo health violations+1 monitoring or reporting
- City of KountzeServes 1,981 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+1 monitoring or reporting
- City of Sour LakeServes 1,813 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations+1 monitoring or reporting
- Hardin County Wcid 1Serves 1,256 · Groundwater · Local government1 health violation+2 monitoring or reporting
Largest systems by population served. Monitoring and reporting violations mean required tests or notices were late or missing, not that the water was unsafe.
Climate
1991-2020 normals at Lumberton, 13 mi from the county center
Summer highs peak around 93°F in Aug and winter lows bottom out near 39°F in Jan. About 63.2 inches of rain falls in a typical year.
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 62°F | 39°F | 5.23 in | - |
| Feb | 66°F | 44°F | 4.05 in | - |
| Mar | 73°F | 51°F | 3.67 in | - |
| Apr | 79°F | 56°F | 4.49 in | - |
| May | 86°F | 65°F | 5.03 in | - |
| Jun | 90°F | 71°F | 6.92 in | - |
| Jul | 93°F | 73°F | 5.23 in | - |
| Aug | 93°F | 73°F | 6.01 in | - |
| Sep | 89°F | 68°F | 5.57 in | - |
| Oct | 81°F | 57°F | 6.05 in | - |
| Nov | 71°F | 48°F | 5.39 in | - |
| Dec | 63°F | 41°F | 5.59 in | 0.2 in |
| Year | 68°F average | 63.2 in | 0.2 in | |
Pollution sites
0 Superfund sites and 3 toxic release facilities in Hardin County
Superfund sites
None in this county.
Toxic release facilities
- Clearstream Wastewater Systems Inc15,527 lbs released, Silsbee
- Trecora Hydrocarbons LLC8,988 lbs released, Silsbee
- Dragon Products North Silsbee Facility63 lbs released, Silsbee
Total: 24,578 lbs in 2024, 24,250 lbs to air.
Superfund sitesToxic release facilitiesEPA inspections and enforcementAir toxics cancer risk2 historic places
Frequently asked questions
- How risky is Hardin County for natural disasters?
- FEMA rates Hardin County relatively low for overall natural hazard risk, with expected losses of $27.12M a year. The highest-rated hazards are lightning (relatively high), ice storm (relatively high), hurricane (relatively moderate).
- What storms are most common in Hardin County?
- Since 1996, NOAA recorded 259 storm events affecting Hardin County, most often thunderstorm wind (79), hail (69), flash flood (50).
- How many tornadoes have hit Hardin County?
- 27 tornadoes have been recorded in Hardin County since 1950.
- How many homes in Hardin County have flood insurance?
- 2,595 residential flood insurance policies are in force in Hardin County, covering about 12.2% of homes. The program has paid $191M on 2,405 claims here since 1978.
- What is the weather like in Hardin County?
- At Lumberton, average highs reach 93°F in Aug and lows fall to 39°F in Jan, with 63.2 inches of rain a year (1991-2020 normals).
Source: FEMA (National Risk Index, NFIP), NOAA (Storm Events, HURDAT2, Climate Normals), EPA · Last updated 08/01/2026 · Storm counts include events in forecast zones that touch the county. This product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA.