Storm risk in Lancaster County, Nebraska

FEMA's overall hazard score for Lancaster County is 90.74 (Relatively Moderate), 292nd of 3,144 counties. Hail scores 98.76 (Relatively High), strong wind 99.24 (Very High) and tornado 98.76 (Relatively High). Expected hail loss is $174 per $1 million of buildings a year; NOAA logged 186 hail reports in Lancaster County from 2014 to June 2026.

FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. NOAA hail reports 2014 to June 2026.

Lancaster County: expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings for hail, strong wind and tornado, on a log scale, against all U.S. counties and the counties of NE$0.1$1$10$100$1,000Hail: $174 per $1 million, 235th of 3,126 rated counties$174Hail235th of 3,126 countiesStrong wind: $102 per $1 million, 256th of 3,121 rated counties$102Strong wind256th of 3,121 countiesTornado: $698 per $1 million, 142nd of 3,144 rated counties$698Tornado142nd of 3,144 counties
  • Lancaster County, coloured by its FEMA rating
  • all U.S. counties
  • each county in the state
  • U.S. median
  • state median

Expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings, log scale. Dot colour is FEMA’s rating band. The tornado lane counts everything exposed, not only buildings.

How FEMA rates Lancaster County

HazardRatingScore (0 to 100)Rank in U.S.Rank in NE
OverallRelatively Moderate 90.74292 of 3,1442 of 93
HailRelatively High 98.7640 of 3,1264 of 93
Strong windVery High 99.2425 of 3,1262 of 93
TornadoRelatively High 98.7640 of 3,1262 of 93

Expected yearly loss, in dollars

HazardThis county, total a yearPer $1M of buildingsState median countyU.S. median countyRank per $1M, U.S.Rank per $1M, state
Hail$10,482,250$174 $175$22 235 of 3,12648 of 93
Strong wind$6,191,458$102 $74$20 256 of 3,12137 of 93
Tornado$42,158,494$698 $440$199 142 of 3,1446 of 93

Rank 1 is the highest. Overall, hail and wind losses count buildings; the tornado row counts everything FEMA exposes, so it overstates building damage. Expected annual loss is an average over many years for the whole county, not a forecast for one roof.

What stands out in Lancaster County

  • FEMA expects hail in Lancaster County to cost $174 per $1 million of buildings a year: 7.77 times the U.S. median and 0.99 times the NE county median, ranked 235th of 3,126 counties nationally and 48th of 93 in Nebraska.
  • FEMA expects strong wind in Lancaster County to cost $102 per $1 million of buildings a year: 5.03 times the U.S. median and 1.39 times the NE county median, ranked 256th of 3,121 counties nationally and 37th of 93 in Nebraska.
  • FEMA expects tornado in Lancaster County to cost $698 per $1 million of buildings a year: 3.51 times the U.S. median and 1.59 times the NE county median, ranked 142nd of 3,144 counties nationally and 6th of 93 in Nebraska.
  • Applying FEMA's estimate to a $258,900 home, the average yearly loss in Lancaster County is about $45 for hail and $27 for wind before any deductible; at the U.S. median county rates it would be $5.79 and $5.27.
  • If the next years look like 2014 to 2025, a roof kept 20 years in Lancaster County meets about 81.7 hail days of 1 inch or more; the median county in NOAA's file (1,275 counties) would give 35.0.
  • Built in 1981, the median home in Lancaster County is 45 years old, so an original roof has outlived a 3-tab shingle (15 to 20 years) and an architectural one (25 to 30 years); 72.1% of its 138,232 homes are at least 26 years old.
  • March to June holds 142 of the 186 hail reports in Lancaster County (76 percent); the quietest month is January, with 0 reports.

What hail and wind cost a home here in an average year

Enter a home value. The calculator applies Lancaster County’s own loss rate: the county’s expected yearly loss divided by the value of its buildings. It starts at the Census median home value for the county.

$45hail, a year; $5.79 at the U.S. median county rate
$27strong wind, a year; $5.27 at the U.S. median county rate
$1,429hail and wind together over 20 years, at today’s rate

Formula: home value × Lancaster County yearly loss ÷ building value. Hail: $10,482,250 ÷ $60,407,471,734 = 0.0001735. Wind: $6,191,458 ÷ $60,407,471,734 = 0.0001025. This is FEMA’s estimate of average damage to buildings and does not account for your deductible. Tornado is left out because FEMA’s tornado loss counts people and other exposure, not only buildings.

Read this as a yardstick. The rate is an average over every building in the county, from sheds to office towers, and over many years. Real losses come in rare, large storms; a roof with no damage in 19 years can need full replacement in the 20th. The figure is not a quote and not a prediction for one address.

Lancaster County in plain numbers

  • Lancaster County scores 90.74 in FEMA's overall hazard index (Relatively Moderate): 292nd of 3,144 rated counties and 2nd of 93 in Nebraska.
  • Hail scores 98.76 (Relatively High). FEMA expects $10,482,250 of hail damage to buildings in Lancaster County a year, which is $174 per $1 million of buildings, 7.77 times the U.S. median.
  • Strong wind scores 99.24 (Very High) with $6,191,458 of expected yearly building loss in Lancaster County: $102 per $1 million of buildings, 5.03 times the U.S. median.
  • Tornado scores 98.76 (Relatively High) and FEMA's expected yearly tornado loss is $42,158,494, counting everything exposed, or $698 per $1 million of buildings in Lancaster County.
  • FEMA's own event record for Lancaster County averages 7.78 hail events and 4.48 strong-wind events a year.
  • NOAA logged 186 hail reports in Lancaster County between 2014 and June 2026, on 54 days with stones of 1 inch or more; the largest was 5 inches.
  • In Lancaster County, FEMA counts buildings worth 60.41 billion dollars and 322,200 residents.
  • Social vulnerability is Very Low in Lancaster County.
  • Community resilience there is Very High, for 322,200 residents.
  • 1 city in Lancaster County is covered on this site: Lincoln. 37 Census ZIP areas have more than half of their land in the county.
  • Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Lincoln is $6,090 to $13,485.
  • Lancaster County ranks 17 of the 194 counties with a page here for hail loss per $1 million of buildings, 8 for wind and 11 for tornado.
  • In Lancaster County, June is the busiest month with 57 of the 186 reports (31 percent), against 0 reports in December.
  • Lancaster County's worst year was 2022, with 6 hail days at 1 inch or more and 27 reports. At the 2014 to 2025 pace that is 4.08 such days a year, one about every 2.9 months.
  • The median home in Lancaster County was built in 1981; 48.6% of its 138,232 housing units date from before 1980, 72.1% from before 2000 and 13.4% from 2010 on.
  • Census puts the median home value in Lancaster County at $258,900, and 58.8% of homes are lived in by their owners.
  • 12,752 single-family building permits were issued in Lancaster County from 2014 to 2025, about 92.3 per 1,000 homes, peaking in 2021.
  • NOAA lists 17 tornado tracks in Lancaster County since 2014; the strongest was an EF3 on April 26, 2024 near Havelock, 5.25 miles long.
  • The fastest gust in NOAA's records for Lancaster County is 100 mph on August 9, 2025 at Berks.
  • The nearest county with a page here is Sarpy County, 37 miles from the centre of Lancaster County; its hail score is 96.98.
  • Across counties the median is one roofing firm for every 5,189 homes; Census counted 45 roofing contractor establishments in Lancaster County in 2023, one for every 3,072 homes.
  • FEMA has named Lancaster County in 5 disaster declarations since 2014, the latest 328 days before its data end, and 3 of them were storm-type.

The hail record of Lancaster County, year by year

NOAA logged 186 reports in Lancaster County; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 54 days. That is 4.1 such days a year; the median county in NOAA’s file has 1.8.

Lancaster County: NOAA hail reports per year, 2014 to June 2026, with the number of days that had hail of 1 inch or more0510152025302014: 15 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 3.5 inch142015: 17 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch152016: 20 reports, 6 days at 1 inch or more, largest 5 inch162017: 21 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch172018: 1 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch182019: 18 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch192020: 6 reports, 3 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2 inch202021: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch212022: 27 reports, 6 days at 1 inch or more, largest 3.5 inch222023: 14 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch232024: 8 reports, 4 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch242025: 10 reports, 4 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2 inch252026: 29 reports, 5 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch26*
  • reports
  • days with hail of 1 inch or more
  • * 2026 runs to June only
Lancaster County: NOAA hail reports by calendar month, 2014 to June 2026January: 0 reports0JanFebruary: 0 reports0FebMarch: 2 reports2MarApril: 44 reports44AprMay: 39 reports39MayJune: 57 reports57JunJuly: 14 reports14JulAugust: 6 reports6AugSeptember: 21 reports21SepOctober: 3 reports3OctNovember: 0 reports0NovDecember: 0 reports0Dec

Reports by calendar month, all years together. Peak: June, 57 reports.

The same numbers as a table (years with at least one report)
YearReportsDays, 1 inch or moreDays, 1.75 inch or moreLargest stoneDamage reported
201415523.5 in–
201517522.5 in–
201620635 in–
201721542.5 in–
20181111.75 in–
201918511.75 in–
20206312 in–
202227653.5 in–
202314522.5 in–
20248412.5 in–
202510412 in–
2026 (to June)29522.5 in–

Biggest hail days in Lancaster County

DateLargest stoneReports that dayDamage reportedNear
May 9, 20165 in9none recordedCheneys
June 14, 20223.5 in5none recordedMalcolm
June 16, 20143.5 in1none recordedRaymond
June 11, 20262.5 in9none recordedAgnew
September 6, 20152.5 in4none recordedLincoln

Where large hail was reported

FEMA scores the county as a whole. NOAA’s reports show where inside Lancaster County the big stones fell.

Reported hail locations, Lancaster County

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  • 941 to 1.74 in
  • 421.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
  • 42.75 in and up, baseball

Largest plotted stone: 5 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.

164 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates; the map shows the 140 largest. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.

Sources: NOAA, Census county outline

Wind and tornado records for Lancaster County

Fastest gusts in Lancaster County

DateGustNear
August 9, 2025100 mphBerks
July 1, 201898 mphHavelock
December 15, 202193 mph(Lnk)Lincoln Arpt
May 5, 201992 mphEmerald

Strongest tornado tracks in Lancaster County

DateScaleLengthInjured / killedNear
April 26, 2024EF35.25 mi3 / 0Havelock
December 15, 2021EF29.22 mi0 / 0Pleasant Dale
May 5, 2019EF20.55 mi0 / 0Lakeview
May 11, 2014EF22.5 mi0 / 0Raymond

17 tornado tracks in all since 2014; the strongest 4 are listed.

How old the roofs are

Census counts homes by the decade they were built. Under each bar is the number of hail days of 1 inch or more that an original roof from that decade has met, at Lancaster County’s 2014 to 2025 pace of 4.08 such days a year. Most roofs have been replaced since; the row shows what a roof that never was would have taken.

Lancaster County: share of homes by decade built, with the hail days at 1 inch or more that an original roof from each decade has met at the county's 2014 to 2025 ratepre-1940: 12.5% of homes12.5%<19403721940s: 3.1% of homes3.1%1940s3311950s: 9.6% of homes9.6%1950s2901960s: 8.8% of homes8.8%1960s2491970s: 14.7% of homes14.7%1970s2081980s: 9.8% of homes9.8%1980s1671990s: 13.7% of homes13.7%1990s1272000s: 14.5% of homes14.5%2000s862010s: 12.2% of homes12.2%2010s452020+: 1.1% of homes1.1%2020+12

Bars: share of 138,232 housing units by decade built. Figures under the decade: hail days met by an original roof, at the county’s 2014 to 2025 pace. The pace of earlier years is unknown.

Median year built1981
Built before 198048.6%
Built before 200072.1%
Built since 201013.4%
Owner-occupied58.8%
Median home value$258,900
Single-family permits, 2014 to 202512,752
Permits per 1,000 homes92.3

Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) and 25 to 30 years (architectural). Source: Census ACS 2019 to 2023 and Building Permits Survey.

Roofers and past disasters in Lancaster County

Roofing firms in Lancaster County

Roofing contractor establishments, 202345
Change since 2016+11 (+32%)
Homes per roofing firm3,072
Median across counties5,189
Employees, 2023465

Source for Lancaster County: Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 238160. Full roofing-market page for Lancaster County.

FEMA disaster declarations naming Lancaster County since 2014

Declarations naming Lancaster County5
Storm / flood / winter / fire3 / 1 / 1 / 0
Median NE county4
Rank among 85 NE counties26
Days from the latest to the data cutoff328

Source for Lancaster County: OpenFEMA, data to 2026-09-15. Declaration list for Lancaster County.

Nearby counties

The closest counties that have a risk page, by distance between county centres. Loss is per $1 million of buildings; the columns marked "times here" divide the neighbour's loss by Lancaster County's.

CountyMilesOverallHail lossHail, times hereWind lossWind, times hereNOAA hail reports
Sarpy County, NE37 Relatively Moderate $1450.83$460.4578
Douglas County, NE44 Relatively High $1921.11$430.42198
Hall County, NE95 Relatively Low $2081.20$340.3385
Buffalo County, NE125 Relatively Low $4982.87$1811.76136

All 194 counties, with a filter by state and sorting

Cities and ZIP areas in Lancaster County

1 city in this county is on PickARoofer. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are Census shapes that approximate ZIP codes; where we have a city’s ZIPs, the share is the part of each area’s land that lies in this county. 37 such areas have more than half their land here.

CityZIP areas (share of land in the county)Pages
Lincoln 68504 (100%), 68502 (100%), 68503 (100%), 68505 (100%), 68507 (100%) Roofers

Storm hit your roof in Lancaster County? A free inspection tells you if there is damage. One local roofer answers, not five.

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Questions

How high is storm risk in Lancaster County?

FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lancaster County an overall score of 90.74 (Relatively Moderate), 292nd of 3,144. Hail scores 98.76 (Relatively High), strong wind 99.24 (Very High) and tornado 98.76 (Relatively High).

In Lancaster County, how many hail reports has NOAA logged?

A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell. NOAA has 186 for Lancaster County between 2014 and June 2026, on 54 days with hail of 1 inch or more; the largest stone was 5 inches.

What do hail and wind cost a home in Lancaster County each year, on average?

Applying FEMA's county rates to its median home value of $258,900: FEMA's estimate is about $45 a year for hail and $27 for wind, before any deductible, against $5.79 and $5.27 at the U.S. median county rates. This is an average over many years and all buildings, not a prediction for one roof; one bad storm costs far more than the average year.

How does Lancaster County compare with the rest of Nebraska?

Per $1 million of buildings Lancaster County loses $174 to hail a year, against $175 in the median county of the state. Among 93 rated counties it is 4th for hail, 2nd for strong wind and 2nd for tornado.

How old are the roofs in Lancaster County?

The median home was built in 1981, 45 years ago, and 72.1% of the 138,232 housing units in Lancaster County date from before 2000. Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) or 25 to 30 years (architectural), so an original roof of either kind is past its rated life. The Census does not record when a roof was replaced.

What does expected annual loss mean?

It is FEMA's estimate of the average yearly loss from a hazard, in dollars, summed over the county. It is built for comparing counties at planning level, not for pricing one house.

Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?

No. The index compares counties and cannot say what will happen on your street. After a storm, a roof inspection is the only way to know.

Sources for Lancaster County: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database hail reports for Lancaster County; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020); Census ACS and Building Permits Survey, homes in Lancaster County; Census County Business Patterns, roofing firms in Lancaster County; OpenFEMA, declarations naming Lancaster County. Planning-level information about Lancaster County, not an inspection and not insurance advice.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).