How Likely Is a Tornado in Scott County, VA?
Scott County, VA: what NOAA's tornado record says
Scott County has recorded 4 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 18.9 years - our Minimal band. Put another way: Scott County sees more tornado activity than 13% of US counties. Virginia has 133 counties in this dataset; Scott County ranks 79 of them by frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
4 weak and 0 significant tornadoes make up Scott County's 4-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Scott County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Virginia has no state rebate program confirmed here; FEMA's underlying 75% cost-share exists nationwide, but applying through a state program is what usually makes it real, and none was found for Virginia this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
21,388 people live in Scott County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Virginia than the tracks themselves touch. A portable battery unit is the faster, no-fuel way to bridge that outage.
What this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Scott County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 536 square miles, so a single touch counts the same as one in a county a fraction of that size. Weaker pre-1990s tornadoes are also documented as undercounted in NOAA's own record. Scott County has about 21,388 residents.