How Likely Is a Tornado in Sussex County, DE?
Sussex County's tornado history, by the numbers
Sussex County has recorded 25 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 3 years - our Elevated band. Put another way: Sussex County sees more tornado activity than 61% of US counties. Within Delaware alone, Sussex County ranks 2 of 3 counties for tornado frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
21 weak and 4 significant tornadoes make up Sussex County's 25-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Sussex County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Delaware 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 Delaware this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
271,134 people live in Sussex County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Delaware 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 Sussex County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 936 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. Sussex County has about 271,134 residents.