Disaster Analysis 2023

NASS can now monitor agricultural disasters in near real-time and provide quantitative assessments using remotely sensed data and geospatial techniques. This page provides disaster assessments in geospatial data format, reports, and metadata as available. A flood monitoring methodology paper is located here.

Kentucky and Tennessee Tornadoes – December 2023

From December 9-11, 2023, a strong storm system and series of tornadoes moved through the eastern half of the United States, including Kentucky and Tennessee. Tornadoes of note include an EF1 tornado near Dresden, TN, an EF2 tornado in Hendersonville, TN, and an EF3 tornado in Clarksville, TN, and these tornadoes killed at least six people and injured 72 others. The United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) responded to inquiries regarding the extent of cropland potentially affected by the tornadoes in mid-December 2023. Preliminary storm track data was provided by NOAA National Weather Service (NWS). Land cover information was derived from the NASS 2022 Cropland Data Layer which was released in February 2022. Analysis was conducted in December 2023.

Files available for download: Synopsis | Event Report (PDF)
Map of Kentucky and Tennesse Tornatoes (December 2023)

Download higher resolution map: PNG

Hurricane Idalia – September 2023

Hurricane Idalia was a category 4 Atlantic hurricane affecting the southeastern United States in late August 2023. The hurricane made landfall in the United States on August 30 in Florida, and continued through Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) responded to inquiries regarding the extent of storm impact to agricultural land and activities. The map below identifies the extent of agriculture (2022 USDA NASS Cropland Data Layer) that intersects with wind swath data from the National Hurricane Center and Central Pacific Hurricane Center.

Files available for download: Hurricane Idalia Synopsis | Hurricane Idalia Report (PDF) | Hurricane Idalia Report (PPT)
Map of Hurricane Idalia (September 2023)

Download higher resolution map: PNG

Hawaii Wildfires – August 2023

Starting on August 8, 2023, a series of wildfires broke out in the state of Hawaii, primarily on the island of Maui. The wildfires were due partly to Hurricane Dora south of Hawaii and partly to dry, gusty wind conditions created by a high-pressure are north of Hawaii Between August 8 and August 10, the state of Hawaii issued an emergency declaration, activated the Hawaii National Guard and Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, issued a state of emergency for entire state, and was issued a Federal major Disaster Declaration. The United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) responded to inquiries regarding the extent of potential damage to agricultural land and activities in the state of Hawaii from this event. Using the 2020 Hawaii Statewide Agricultural Land Use Baseline layer and the Sentinel-2 MSI Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) data dated August 8-13, 2023, NASS identified agricultural areas that may have been affected by the wildfires. Burned area was visually confirmed using WorldView-3, WorldView-2, and GeoEye-1 © 2023 Maxar imagery.

Files available for download: Hawaii Fires Synopsis | Hawaii Fires Report (PDF) | Hawaii Fires Report (PPT) | Hawaii Fires Extents Zip File | Hawaii Fires Extents Impacted Land Cover Zip File
Map of Hawaii Fires (August 2023)

Download higher resolution map: PNG

Midwest Derecho – June 2023

On June 29, 2023, the Midwestern United States experienced a derecho event with widespread, destructive winds. Frequent winds of over 80 mph damaged several forested and agricultural areas, as well as many urban and agricultural structures. The United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) responded to inquiries regarding the extent of potential damage to cropland in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky from this event. Using NOAA Real-Time Mesoscale Analysis (RTMA) wind speed (gust) data and tornado track data dated June 29, 2023 from the NOAA National Weather Service and Sentinel-1 SAR data dated July 3 and July 8, 2023, NASS identified major planted cropland areas (defined by the 2022 Cropland Data Layer) that may have been affected by the derecho, and compared these estimates with 2022 official NASS estimates. Data and analysis are available at the following links.

Files available for download: Midwest Derecho Synopsis | Midwest Derecho Report (PDF) | Midwest Derecho Report (PPT)
Map of Midwest Derecho (June 2023)

Download higher resolution map: PNG

Previous Years:
Return to current year

Last Modified: 04/08/2024