Storm risk in Richland County, South Carolina

FEMA rates Richland County Relatively Moderate for natural-hazard risk overall, 218th of 3,144 rated counties. For a roof the three that matter are hail (Relatively Moderate), strong wind (Relatively High) and tornado (Relatively High). NOAA logged 57 hail reports here from 2014 to June 2026.

FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. Planning-level county ratings.

Richland County: FEMA National Risk Index scores for overall risk, hail, strong wind and tornado, each on a scale of 0 to 100Overall riskOverall risk: score 93.1, Relatively Moderate, 218th of 3,144 rated counties93Relatively Moderate, 218th of 3,144HailHail: score 89.8, Relatively Moderate, 322nd of 3,126 rated counties90Relatively Moderate, 322nd of 3,126Strong windStrong wind: score 95.1, Relatively High, 155th of 3,121 rated counties95Relatively High, 155th of 3,121TornadoTornado: score 95.0, Relatively High, 158th of 3,144 rated counties95Relatively High, 158th of 3,144

Each dot is the county’s score from 0 to 100 against all rated U.S. counties; the bar colour is FEMA’s rating band.

Hazard by hazard

HazardRatingScore (0 to 100)Rank in U.S.Rank in SCExpected yearly loss
OverallRelatively Moderate 93.12187 of 46$101,513,368buildings
HailRelatively Moderate 89.83223 of 46$907,064buildings
Strong windRelatively High 95.11552 of 46$351,812buildings
TornadoRelatively High 95.01585 of 46$12,482,488all exposure

Rank 1 is the highest score. Expected annual loss is a county total in dollars per year, not a figure per home; the overall, hail and wind rows count buildings only, the tornado row all exposure.

Richland County in plain numbers

  • FEMA's overall rating for Richland County is Relatively Moderate, score 93.1 of 100, 218th of 3,144 rated counties.
  • Hail: Relatively Moderate (score 89.8), 322nd nationwide and 3rd of 46 counties in South Carolina.
  • Expected yearly hail loss to buildings: $907,064 for the whole county, about $9.89 per $1 million of building value.
  • NRI's hail record averages 3.9 hail events a year in the county.
  • Strong wind: Relatively High (score 95.1), 155th nationwide; expected yearly loss to buildings $351,812, about $3.84 per $1 million of building value.
  • Tornado: Relatively High (score 95.0), 158th nationwide; total expected yearly loss $12,482,488.
  • Buildings in the county are valued at 91.7 billion dollars in the index; population 415,644.
  • Social vulnerability is rated Relatively Low and community resilience Relatively High.
  • NOAA logged 57 hail reports in Richland County from 2014 to June 2026; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 13 days and the largest stone was 2.75 inches.
  • 1 of our cities is in the county: Columbia.
  • 18 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have more than half of their land area in Richland County.
  • Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Columbia is $6,090 to $13,485.
  • NOAA lists 8 tornado tracks in the county since 2014.

Where large hail was reported

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

Reported hail locations, Richland County

1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1.25 in hail1.5 in hail1.5 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail2.75 in hail Columbia
  • 191 to 1.74 in
  • 21.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
  • 12.75 in and up, baseball

Largest plotted stone: 2.75 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.

22 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.

Sources: NOAA, Census county outline

Cities and ZIP areas in Richland 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. 18 such areas have more than half their land here.

CityZIP areas (share of land in the county)Pages
Columbia 29201 (100%), 29203 (100%), 29204 (100%), 29205 (100%), 29209 (100%) Roofers

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Questions

How high is storm risk in Richland County?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Richland County Relatively Moderate overall. By peril: hail Relatively Moderate, strong wind Relatively High, tornado Relatively High. The highest-scoring of the three for this county is strong wind (score 95.1).

How many hail reports has NOAA logged in Richland County?

57 reports between 2014 and June 2026 in NOAA's Storm Events Database. A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell.

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 a county total, not a figure per home, and it is built for comparing counties, not for pricing one house.

Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?

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

How does Richland County compare with the rest of South Carolina?

For hail it ranks 3rd of 46 rated counties in the state; for strong wind 2nd of 46; for tornado 5th of 46.

Other South Carolina counties

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020). 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). Planning-level information, not an inspection and not insurance advice.