--- title: "Floods stranded Plains drivers as tornadoes damaged North Carolina homes" url: "https://bepreparedsolutions.co/reports/alert-pulse/2026-10" description: "Every emergency alert sent across the United States in October 2026, and what happened behind them. Figures for the month, with the data behind them." source: "BePrepared Solutions" --- [BePrepared](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/)[Alert Pulse](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/reports/alert-pulse) [](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/reports/alert-pulse/2026-09 "September 2026")[Try freeFree 7\-day trial](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/trial?source=alert-pulse&utm_source=alert-pulse&utm_medium=report&utm_campaign=2026-10&utm_content=masthead&returnTo=%2Freports%2Falert-pulse%2F2026-10) Alert Pulse · Monthly report · October 2026 # Floods stranded Plains drivers as tornadoes damaged North Carolina homes October flooding forced boat evacuations and road closures across the Plains. In Raleigh, a homeowner said a phone warning sent him to shelter before part of his roof collapsed. [1](#flood-2026-10-01-ks "Flash flooding in the Southern Plains and Northern Plains, October 1")[2](#severe-2026-10-11-nc "Tornadoes and severe storms in North Carolina and South Carolina, October 11")[3](#flood-2026-10-15-tx "Flash flooding in the Southern Plains and Texas, October 14 to 15") October 2026 · 15,623 warningsSeptember 2026 · 24,439 warnings−38% per day vs September 2026Each story below, on the day it peaked - Flash flooding · Oct 21–28 the Southwest 8 orders to leave came from county agencies - Flash flooding · Oct 1 the Southern Plains A flash flood emergency was declared - Flash flooding · Oct 9–11 the Southeast A flash flood emergency was declared - Flash flooding · Oct 14–15 Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas A county agency told people to leave - Tornadoes and severe storms · Oct 11 North Carolina and South Carolina 10 tornadoes were seen on the ground Named in the warnings: Washington, Grifton, Calico Warnings prompted shelter and told drivers to avoid flooded streets, but they could not keep water off roads or roofs from collapsing. [Read the month](#flood-2026-10-01-ks) Floods stranded Plains drivers as tornadoes damaged North Carolina homes (video)[Watch on its own page](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/videos/alert-pulse-2026-10) ## Where the month happened Each numbered area is one of the stories below, drawn over the counties its warnings covered. - Flash flooding in the Southern Plains, Oct 1 - Tornadoes and severe storms in North Carolina and South Carolina, Oct 11 - Flash flooding in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, Oct 14–15 Fig. 1. The counties each story covered, numbered as the report tells them. Colour groups the hazard: water, heat and fire, storms. Counties are the smallest area these warnings describe. The same areas as a list - **1.** Flash flooding in the Southern Plains and Northern Plains, October 1 · Water · 143 counties drawn - **2.** Tornadoes and severe storms in North Carolina and South Carolina, October 11 · Storms · 39 counties drawn - **3.** Flash flooding in the Southern Plains and Texas, October 14 to 15 · Water · 68 counties drawn Figure 02 ### When it happened Each square is one day of the month, shaded by how many warnings went out.Shade is warnings that day. A number is the story it belongs to on the map. A ring marks a day on which news or officials reported what the event did to people. - Fewer warnings - More warnings - Impact on people reported View as a table | Day | Warnings | Story on the map | Documented impact on people | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 1 | 898 | 1 | Yes | | Oct 2 | 550 | — | — | | Oct 3 | 345 | — | — | | Oct 4 | 481 | — | — | | Oct 5 | 435 | — | — | | Oct 6 | 290 | — | — | | Oct 7 | 295 | — | — | | Oct 8 | 410 | — | — | | Oct 9 | 630 | — | — | | Oct 10 | 767 | — | — | | Oct 11 | 783 | 2 | Yes | | Oct 12 | 344 | — | — | | Oct 13 | 402 | — | — | | Oct 14 | 791 | 3 | Yes | | Oct 15 | 670 | 3 | Yes | | Oct 16 | 686 | — | — | | Oct 17 | 500 | — | — | | Oct 18 | 337 | — | — | | Oct 19 | 270 | — | — | | Oct 20 | 271 | — | — | | Oct 21 | 509 | — | — | | Oct 22 | 920 | — | — | | Oct 23 | 822 | — | — | | Oct 24 | 515 | — | — | | Oct 25 | 435 | — | — | | Oct 26 | 412 | — | — | | Oct 27 | 295 | — | — | | Oct 28 | 375 | — | — | | Oct 29 | 367 | — | — | | Oct 30 | 485 | — | — | | Oct 31 | 333 | — | — | ## [1](#the-map)Floodwater forced boat evacuations in Lincoln and rescues in Dodge City 1. OCT 1, 12 AM UTC First warning Franklin County, Nebraska 2. OCT 1, 3 AM UTC Considerable threat Lancaster County, Nebraska 3. OCT 1, 7 PM UTC Catastrophic threat Ford County, Kansas 4. OCT 1, 7 PM UTC Particularly dangerous Ford County, Kansas 5. OCT 1, 7 PM UTC Emergency declared Ford County, Kansas 6. OCT 1, 9 PM UTC County order Ford County, Kansas 7. OCT 11, 3 AM UTC Last warning Clinton County, Iowa - Flash flooding — coloured as water. 143 counties in the Southern Plains, Oct 1. In Lincoln, overnight flooding into October 1 forced Domino’s manager and part owner Fang Yu to leave by boat after rescuers ordered her out, she told KLKN-TV. “Because the waters kept going and fast, and I don’t think I can stand in there.” Her evacuation was part of the Plains flooding marked 1 on the map, where rising water left people needing help beyond a warning to stay clear. The warnings had begun the previous evening in Franklin County, Nebraska, before a flash flood warning identified a considerable damage threat in Lancaster County later that night. By morning, Lincoln firefighters were putting life jackets on four people in two partially submerged minivans near South First Street and Harwood Court. KOLN / 10/11 NOW reported that firefighters brought the occupants to safety. Archived alert · October 2026Sent October 1, 2026 · NWS Dodge City KS > This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW! Life threatening flash flooding of low water crossings, small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses. In Dodge City on October 1, the weather service escalated its warning at 2:32 p.m. Central time: “FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY FOR DODGE CITY AND CENTRAL FORD COUNTY”. The warning carried a catastrophic damage threat and a particularly dangerous situation designation. Ford County Communications later told residents: “Street level flooding in many areas of Dodge City and SW ford county please avoid travel”. The Weather Channel subsequently reported multiple water rescues there, while KSN reported transportation workers clearing debris and directing traffic away from washed-out roads. The damage outlasted the rising water. KLKN-TV reported that part of a road near Z-Trip in Lincoln collapsed into a creek. By October 2, the Seward County Road Department said 10 roads remained closed because of excessive damage or water still covering them, according to KLKN-TV. The closures included Camden Bridge and South Second Bridge. In Persia, Iowa, a road washout during the flooding injured one person, The Weather Channel reported on October 2. Elsewhere in western Iowa, KOLN / 10/11 NOW reported that a mudslide closed Old Lincoln Highway near Honey Creek and Loveland. The documented consequences included both people needing rescue and routes that drivers could no longer use. [Flood alerts by the numbers](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/flood-preparedness#flood-statistics): every published month, by state and county. ## [2](#the-map)Tornadoes damaged Raleigh homes and destroyed farm buildings in Clarendon 1. OCT 11, 12 PM UTC First warning Anson County, North Carolina 2. OCT 11, 3 PM UTC Tornado seen Cumberland County, North Carolina 3. OCT 11, 5 PM UTC Particularly dangerous Franklin County, North Carolina 4. OCT 11, 6 PM UTC Particularly dangerous Duplin County, North Carolina 5. OCT 11, 8 PM UTC Last warning Beaufort County, North Carolina - Tornadoes and severe storms — coloured as storms. 39 counties in North Carolina and South Carolina, Oct 11. In Raleigh on October 11, homeowner Eric Grubbs took shelter in another room after a phone alert sounded, before a living-room window broke and part of his roof collapsed. “I would have been sitting right there when that roof was collapsing,” he told WRAL. His account shows what a warning could change during the Carolina storms marked 2 on the map: where someone was when the damage happened. Warnings began that morning in Anson County and identified an observed tornado in Cumberland County by late morning. The weather service in Raleigh subsequently wrote: “At 1203 PM EDT, a confirmed tornado was located over Fayetteville, moving northeast at 35 mph.” Early that afternoon, tornado warnings in Franklin County and then Duplin County were marked as particularly dangerous situations. Archived alert · October 2026Sent October 11, 2026 · NWS Raleigh NC > At 118 PM EDT, a confirmed tornado was located near Wake Forest, or 9 miles northeast of Raleigh, moving northeast at 25 mph. The preliminary surveys documented damage separately from residents’ accounts. In Raleigh, the weather service traced the Perry Creek tornado’s discontinuous path of tree and structural damage from Stone Ridge into Neuse Crossing. In Clarendon, Wilmington weather service surveyors found several open farm buildings destroyed on Roseland Road. An empty grain bin had shifted off its foundation, and roofing and wooden building materials were scattered into trees and an adjacent field. Southwest of Louisburg, the weather service’s preliminary survey documented damage to trees, structures and fencing along a path crossing the highway just west of Timberlake Road. AOL also reported that downed trees and power lines blocked the highway after the storms. Franklin County emergency managers and sheriff’s personnel helped weather service staff survey the damage. A review of weather service surveys and reporting by WRAL and other news organizations found no deaths or injuries reported from these storms. That finding does not erase the damaged homes and farm buildings, but it distinguishes the documented human toll from the damage residents and surveyors described. [Tornado alerts by the numbers](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/tornado-preparedness#tornado-statistics): every published month, by state and county. ## [3](#the-map)Floodwater cut off Canadian County roads and stranded an SUV near El Reno 1. OCT 14, 2 AM UTC First warning Harper County, Kansas 2. OCT 14, 11 AM UTC Considerable threat Canadian County, Oklahoma 3. OCT 15, 8 PM UTC County order Lubbock County, Texas 4. OCT 21, 12 AM UTC Last warning Wichita County, Texas - Flash flooding — coloured as water. 68 counties in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, Oct 14–15. On Banner Road near El Reno on October 15, crews responded to a reported water rescue after an SUV became stranded in floodwater. Hoodline, citing KOCO 5, did not establish whether a rescue was completed. The incident put a vehicle on a flooded road at the centre of the Southern Plains flooding marked 3 on the map. The warnings had begun in Harper County, Kansas, the evening before the Oklahoma flooding. At 6:13 a.m. Central time on October 14, a flash flood warning identified a considerable damage threat in Canadian County. KOCO 5 reported that floodwater made county roads impassable that day. A separate weather service warning for the Canadian River near Mustang forecast minor flooding; it was a forecast, not a finding of completed damage. The road disruption extended into Texas. On October 15, the Texas Department of Transportation issued an emergency alert for Lubbock County: “FM 835 CLOSED DUE TO FLOODING SEEK ALTERNATE ROUTE”. The order applied there, not to the Oklahoma roads where crews had responded to the stranded SUV. In Norman, storm chaser Nick Smith described the October 14 flooding to KOCO 5 as “one of the worst times I've seen it flood”. Research across local reporting and official accounts found no deaths or injuries reported for this flooding. The following day, Cleveland County’s emergency manager urged residents to send information and photographs of storm and flood damage to the county and Oklahoma’s damage-reporting portal, according to the county government. He said he would assess the reported damage, moving the work from warning residents to documenting what the water had left behind. [Flood alerts by the numbers](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/flood-preparedness#flood-statistics): every published month, by state and county. ## How BePrepared monitors this, all year This report exists because we already monitor the whole country. Every couple of minutes, around the clock, we read the emergency alerts going out across all fifty states and territories, and we keep them. A month of that record is what you have just read. The national picture is the part most people never see. What matters to you is much smaller: which of these warnings would have reached your street, and what the risks around you look like on an ordinary day. That is what BePrepared is for. Put in your ZIP code and you get the picture for where you live — the flood, fire and storm history around you, the dams and facilities nearby, and a plan for your household rather than a general one. With a free account you can keep a watchlist of the places you care about, like your home, your parents' address, and your kids' school, and set what you want to hear about. ## Where it hit hardest Counted as distinct warnings, and as the days a county spent under one. A county is the smallest area these warnings describe. ### Warnings by region - Southwest557 - Texas290 - Southeast219 - Southern Plains210 - Upper Midwest92 ### Most days under a warning - San Diego County, CA24 days San Diego County, CA was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 17, Oct 18, Oct 23, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29 - Orange County, CA24 days Orange County, CA was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 17, Oct 18, Oct 23, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29 - Volusia County, FL23 days Volusia County, FL was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 12, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29, Oct 30, Oct 31 - Nassau County, FL22 days Nassau County, FL was under a warning on: Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 12, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 23, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29, Oct 30, Oct 31, Nov 1 - Lake County, FL20 days Lake County, FL was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 12, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29, Oct 30, Oct 31 - Los Angeles County, CA18 days Los Angeles County, CA was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 13, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 17, Oct 18, Oct 22 - San Bernardino County, CA18 days San Bernardino County, CA was under a warning on: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 12, Oct 14, Oct 15, Oct 16, Oct 17, Oct 21, Oct 22 - Clay County, FL17 days Clay County, FL was under a warning on: Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 23, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29, Oct 30, Oct 31, Nov 1 Figure 03[Embed this chart](#use-these-figures) ### Where the warnings landed Every county that received a warning this month, coloured and scaled by how many; the faint dots received none.3,006 of the country's counties received at least one warning; the faint dots are the counties that received none, and a quiet county is not a safe county. Each county wears its MOST frequent kind of warning and its dot scales with how many it received; the month's three biggest kinds carry color and every other kind wears gray, with the panels below giving each kind its own map. The full per-county mix is in the CSV. 644 warned areas — marine zones and territories — have no county position on this map, about 22% of county-level warning volume. They are still counted in every figure and table. - Flooding - Winter - Severe storms - Everything else Flooding13,509 warnings · 1,503 counties Winter5,492 warnings · 1,201 counties Severe storms3,876 warnings · 520 counties Hurricane & tropical2,622 warnings · 263 counties Fire1,838 warnings · 279 counties Tornadoes761 warnings · 222 counties Safety & civil679 warnings · 289 counties Extreme heat613 warnings · 51 counties View as a table | County | State | Warnings | Most frequent kind | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sandoval | NM | 176 | Severe storms | | Maricopa | AZ | 166 | Everything else | | Coconino | AZ | 160 | Severe storms | | Graham | AZ | 147 | Severe storms | | Okaloosa | FL | 146 | Flooding | | Navajo | AZ | 146 | Severe storms | | Gila | AZ | 146 | Severe storms | | San Juan | NM | 138 | Flooding | | Los Angeles | CA | 135 | Everything else | | Cibola | NM | 131 | Flooding | | Pinal | AZ | 128 | Everything else | | Santa Rosa | FL | 127 | Everything else | | Socorro | NM | 121 | Flooding | | San Diego | CA | 119 | Flooding | | Duval | FL | 117 | Flooding | | McKinley | NM | 115 | Flooding | | Volusia | FL | 114 | Flooding | | Lincoln | NM | 114 | Severe storms | | Rio Arriba | NM | 114 | Flooding | | Yavapai | AZ | 112 | Severe storms | The human record ## What it cost, and who reported it These figures are not ours. Our archive records that a warning was issued, never what happened next, so every number here comes from the organization named beside it and was retrieved on November 3, 2026. - Toll 1person injured The Weather Channel reported one person injured when a section of road washed out in Persia, Iowa, during the flooding. Source: [The Weather Channel](https://weather.com/2026/10/02/forecast/regional/hurricane-polo-southwest-plains-flash-flooding?cm_ven=hp-slot-2) ArchiveOur records place this event in Iowa between 2026-10-01 and 2026-10-01. - Toll Reporting on October 1, The Reader said no deaths or serious injuries had been reported in the Omaha and Lincoln flooding. Source: [The Reader](https://thereader.com/2026/10/01/a-100-year-event-rain-brings-water-rescues-in-omaha-historic-rainfall-in-lincoln/) - Rescue 4people rescued At approximately 8 a.m. on October 1, Lincoln firefighters rescued four people from two partially submerged minivans near South First Street and Harwood Court, putting life jackets on the occupants before bringing them to safety. Source: [KOLN / 10/11 NOW](https://www.1011now.com/2026/10/01/historic-downpour-triggers-flooding-rescues-across-lincoln/) - Rescue The Weather Channel reported that multiple water rescues were needed in Dodge City during the flooding. Source: [The Weather Channel](https://weather.com/2026/10/02/forecast/regional/hurricane-polo-southwest-plains-flash-flooding?cm_ven=hp-slot-2) - In their words In an October 1 interview about the overnight flooding near 11th Street and Cornhusker Highway in Lincoln, Domino’s manager and part owner Fang Yu described being evacuated by boat after rescuers ordered her to leave. > “Because the waters kept going and fast, and I don’t think I can stand in there.” Fang Yu, Manager and part owner of the Domino’s near 11th Street and Cornhusker Highway in Lincoln, to KLKN-TV Source: [KLKN-TV](https://www.klkntv.com/flooding-impacts-lincoln-businesses-forces-boat-evacuation/) - Toll 0deaths 0injuries The National Weather Service's preliminary survey recorded no deaths or injuries from the October 11 Clarendon tornado in Columbus County. Source: [National Weather Service Wilmington, archived by Iowa Environmental Mesonet](https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?e=202610121704&pil=PNSILM) ArchiveOur records show tornadoes and severe storms warnings covering this area on October 11. - Toll 0deaths 0injuries The National Weather Service's preliminary survey recorded no deaths or injuries from the October 11 Carpenter tornado in Wake County. Source: [National Weather Service Raleigh, archived by Iowa Environmental Mesonet](https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?e=202610131916&pil=PNSRAH) ArchiveOur records show tornadoes and severe storms warnings covering this area on October 11. - Toll 0deaths 0injuries The National Weather Service's preliminary survey recorded no deaths or injuries from the October 11 Perry Creek tornado in Wake County. Source: [National Weather Service Raleigh, archived by Iowa Environmental Mesonet](https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?e=202610122007&pil=PNSRAH) ArchiveOur records show tornadoes and severe storms warnings covering this area on October 11. - Toll 0deaths 0injuries The National Weather Service's preliminary survey recorded no deaths or injuries from the October 11 Louisburg tornado in Franklin County. Source: [National Weather Service Raleigh, archived by Iowa Environmental Mesonet](https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?e=202610122215&pil=PNSRAH) ArchiveOur records show tornadoes and severe storms warnings covering this area on October 11. - In their words Raleigh homeowner Eric Grubbs told WRAL that a phone alert prompted him to take shelter in another room before a living-room window broke and part of his roof collapsed. > “I would have been sitting right there when that roof was collapsing” Eric Grubbs, Raleigh homeowner whose home was damaged, to WRAL Source: [WRAL](https://www.wral.com/news/local/raleigh-fayetteville-north-carolina-tornado-damage-october-2026/) - Rescue Crews responded to a reported water rescue on October 15 after an SUV became stranded in floodwater on Banner Road near State Highway 66 between Yukon and El Reno, but the report did not establish a rescue outcome. Source: [Hoodline, citing KOCO 5](https://hoodline.com/2026/10/suv-stranded-as-flooded-river-swamps-banner-road-near-el-reno/) - In their words Nick Smith described flooding in Norman. > “one of the worst times I've seen it flood” Nick Smith, First Alert Storm Chaser, to KOCO 5 Source: [KOCO 5](https://www.koco.com/article/norman-flooding-oklahoma-weather-storms/74131993) - Closed Floodwater made Canadian County roads impassable on October 14. Source: [KOCO 5](https://www.koco.com/article/oklahoma-city-flooding-after-heavy-rain-sky-5/74135298) ArchiveOur records show flash flooding warnings covering this area on October 14. - Closed The Texas Department of Transportation issued an October 15 emergency alert closing FM 835 because of flooding and directing drivers to seek an alternate route, with the alert identifying Lubbock County rather than the Oklahoma counties. Source: [Texas Department of Transportation, alert reproduced by GovOneStop](https://govonestop.com/eas/texas-severe-local-area-emergency-effective-10-15-2026-1331) ArchiveOur records show flash flooding warnings covering this area on October 15. - Response Cleveland County Emergency Manager George Mauldin urged residents to submit information and photographs of storm and flood damage to the county and Oklahoma's damage-reporting portal, and said he would assess reported damage. Source: [Cleveland County government](https://clevelandcountyok.com/m/NewsFlash/Home/Detail/128) ArchiveOur records place this event in Oklahoma between 2026-10-14 and 2026-10-15. For 2 of these stories, research looked for reported deaths and injuries and found none. As far as the record shows, no one was hurt. BePrepared ## 15,623 warnings across the country in October 2026. See which reach your street. We read the emergency alerts going out across all fifty states, around the clock. That is where this report comes from. Enter your ZIP and get the version that matters to you: the flood, fire and storm history around your address, what sits nearby, and a plan built for your household. [Start your free 7-day trial](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/trial?source=alert-pulse&utm_source=alert-pulse&utm_medium=report&utm_campaign=2026-10&utm_content=card&returnTo=%2Freports%2Falert-pulse%2F2026-10) No card. It ends on its own. [Or just look up your ZIP](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/zip) The numbers behind this report Every warning counted once, by type, place, day and hour, with the method below and the whole table downloadable at the end of the page. Distinct warnings 15,623 carried by 36,616 messages (2.34× echo) Counties reached 3,650 across 54 states and territories Overnight 4,274 10pm–6am local · 82 of the most severe Effective on arrival 99% take effect the moment they are sent ### What was warned about | Alert type | Warnings | Messages | | --- | --- | --- | | Small Craft Advisory | 2,422 | 11,492 | | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | 1,639 | 1,639 | | Flood Warning | 1,367 | 1,832 | | Special Weather Statement | 1,299 | 1,316 | | Flood Advisory | 1,278 | 1,286 | | Flash Flood Warning | 851 | 851 | | Dense Fog Advisory | 521 | 767 | | Flood Watch | 498 | 654 | ### Where | State | Warnings | | --- | --- | | TX | 1,271 | | NM | 999 | | FL | 897 | | AZ | 870 | | CA | 833 | | AK | 499 | | NC | 497 | | KS | 496 | The busiest hour of the period was 6pm local time, with 919 warnings. ### Counties reached most often | County | State | Warnings | | --- | --- | --- | | Sandoval | NM | 176 | | Maricopa | AZ | 166 | | Coconino | AZ | 160 | | Graham | AZ | 147 | | Okaloosa | FL | 146 | | Navajo | AZ | 146 | | Gila | AZ | 146 | | San Juan | NM | 138 | | Los Angeles | CA | 135 | | Cibola | NM | 131 | A county with no alerts is not a county with no risk. It can mean a quiet period, or a hazard that this feed does not carry. Figure 04[Embed this chart](#use-these-figures) ### When the warnings arrived Distinct warnings by the local hour they were sent, across the whole period.Local time in the place each alert was sent to. 4,274 arrived between 10pm and 6am, 82 of them at the highest severity. View as a table | Local hour | Warnings | Of which most severe | | --- | --- | --- | | 12am | 444 | 8 | | 1am | 530 | 4 | | 2am | 651 | 13 | | 3am | 491 | 8 | | 4am | 448 | 6 | | 5am | 466 | 17 | | 6am | 527 | 6 | | 7am | 441 | 8 | | 8am | 593 | 9 | | 9am | 620 | 18 | | 10am | 599 | 28 | | 11am | 734 | 41 | | 12pm | 638 | 37 | | 1pm | 799 | 54 | | 2pm | 817 | 47 | | 3pm | 768 | 54 | | 4pm | 743 | 49 | | 5pm | 824 | 55 | | 6pm | 919 | 46 | | 7pm | 855 | 56 | | 8pm | 753 | 26 | | 9pm | 719 | 24 | | 10pm | 612 | 12 | | 11pm | 632 | 14 | Figure 05[Embed this chart](#use-these-figures) ### The feed repeats itself How many messages the feed carried, how many distinct warnings they represent, and how many counties those reached.An echo rate of 2.34× — for every warning issued, 2.34 messages carried it. Reporting messages as warnings would overstate this month by 20,993. View as a table | Stage | Count | | --- | --- | | Messages received | 36,616 | | Of which updates | 21,544 | | Of which cancels | 0 | | Distinct warnings | 15,623 | | Counties reached | 3,650 | Figure 06[Embed this chart](#use-these-figures) ### How severe they were Distinct warnings by the severity the issuing agency assigned. - Minor - Moderate - Severe - Extreme - Not classified View as a table | Severity | Warnings | | --- | --- | | Minor | 5,060 | | Moderate | 3,709 | | Severe | 6,122 | | Extreme | 640 | | Not classified | 92 | Figure 07[Embed this chart](#use-these-figures) ### What people were told to do The share of warnings carrying each instruction to the public.These are response counts. They record the instruction an alert carried, not the hazard behind it. - Avoid - Follow instructions - Shelter - Everything else Where those instructions came from - Shelter (1,940) — 380 corroborated as flood, 592 corroborated as tornado, 7 corroborated as wildfire, 3 corroborated as hurricane, 958 with no hazard stated in the alert text - Evacuate (30) — 14 corroborated as flood, 10 corroborated as wildfire, 6 with no hazard stated in the alert text View as a table | Response | Warnings | Share | | --- | --- | --- | | Avoid | 7,527 | 48.2% | | Follow instructions | 2,925 | 18.7% | | Shelter | 1,940 | 12.4% | | Prepare | 1,712 | 11.0% | | Monitor | 1,226 | 7.8% | | Unstated | 238 | 1.5% | | Evacuate | 30 | 0.2% | | All clear | 25 | 0.2% | ### What this report cannot tell you - This report records the warnings that were sent: when, where, and what people were told to do. It cannot say whether anyone received them, whether they acted, or whether they had anywhere to go. - Deaths, injuries, damage and acreage come from the news organizations and agencies named beside each figure. Our own records measure warnings, never outcomes, and are never the source for a toll. - A county is the smallest area these alerts describe, so "a county was warned" does not mean every street in it was at risk. - Where no figure has been reported, this report says so rather than estimating. ## How these numbers were counted Counted OCT 1, 2026 – NOV 1, 2026 · Frozen at publish The alert figures in this report — how many warnings, where, when, and how severe — come from the alerts this archive received from FEMA IPAWS and the National Weather Service between October 1, 2026 and November 1, 2026, counted once and frozen when the report was published. Deaths, damage and acreage are **not** ours and are never drawn from this archive. Each is attributed to the organization that reported it, above. ### What was counted - cap\_status = 'Actual' (tests, exercises and demos excluded) - SAME test codes RWT/RMT/DMO/NPT/NAT excluded, and any event type containing "test" - An event is the first message of a CAP identifier chain; updates and cancels are counted separately - Alert time is cap\_sent, falling back to ingest time when the feed omits it - Counties come from the alert geocodes (SAME/FIPS); statewide codes are not counted as counties ### What these numbers cannot tell you - Lead time is the gap between when an alert was sent and when it takes effect. This archive collapses CAP onset into effective, so for many products those are the same instant by design — it is not a measure of forecast warning time. - 167 alerts expire exactly 24 hours after they were sent because the feed omitted an expiry and the ingest substitutes a default. They are excluded from the duration distribution rather than charted as real forecasts. - Evacuation and shelter figures are RESPONSE counts. They record what people were told to do, not what caused it; where the alert text does not name a hazard, the row is reported as unstated. - Hour-of-day figures use each alert’s own local time, resolved from its state. Alerts spanning several states resolve to the first state in their geocodes. - National Weather Service alerts began arriving in volume on 2026-06-12. Earlier months hold only the handful that reached this archive by other routes, so they undercount weather alerts badly and cannot be compared with later months. - Population figures are not available for these counties, so alert counts are reported per county and never per resident. ### This archive Collection began 2026-03-27. National Weather Service alerts began arriving in volume on 2026-06-12 (a small number reached the archive by other routes from 2026-03-31). Months from 2026-07-01 onward can be compared with each other; earlier ones cannot. For newsrooms and researchers ## Use these figures Figures v1 · Frozen Journalists, emergency managers and researchers are welcome to reuse anything in this report, including the underlying counts, with attribution. Version 1 of these figures is frozen: if a correction changes them, it appears above as a dated note rather than silently replacing what you cited. [Download the figures (CSV)](https://bepreparedsolutions.co/reports/alert-pulse/2026-10/data.csv?v=1)[Ask about the data](mailto:hello@bepreparedsolutions.co?subject=Alert%20Pulse%20data%20question) Cite this report BePreparedSolutions.co. "Floods stranded Plains drivers as tornadoes damaged North Carolina homes." Alert Pulse, November 3, 2026. https://bepreparedsolutions.co/reports/alert-pulse/2026-10 Attribution line for a chart or table Source: BePrepared Solutions, Alert Pulse (2026). Alert counts from FEMA IPAWS and National Weather Service feeds; casualty and damage figures as attributed in the report. Embed a chartWhere the warnings landedWhen the warnings arrivedMessages, warnings, countiesHow severe they wereWhat people were told to do Paste this where the chart should appear The embed updates itself if we publish a correction, so it never goes stale the way a screenshot does. The CSV carries the same frozen figures as this page, keyed to version 1. --- _Guidance here is general and cannot account for your circumstances. In an active emergency, official instructions from local authorities take precedence over anything published by BePrepared Solutions._