Storm Damage Prediction with XGBoost
Natural Disaster Damage Estimation
Issue: 2/18/26
The model currently does not incorporate synonyms of words in the training data, which can lead to poor damage estimates when using unique words. Synonym detection is planned for an upcoming update to improve this issue.
Storm Description
Weather System/Pattern
Optional - Describe the meteorological setup
Example: "A cold front moved through with strong upper-level support and instability across the region"
Observed Damage/Impact
*
Required - Minimum 10 characters. Describe the actual damage and impacts
Example: "70mph winds knocked down trees and power lines across Harris County, causing widespread power outages and roof damage to several homes"
Basic Details
Month
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
State
*
Select state
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Event Type
*
Select event type
Blizzard
Coastal Flood
Cold/Wind Chill
Debris Flow
Dense Fog
Drought
Excessive Heat
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Flash Flood
Flood
Frost/Freeze
Funnel Cloud
Hail
Heat
Heavy Rain
Heavy Snow
High Surf
High Wind
Ice Storm
Lake-Effect Snow
Lightning
Marine Thunderstorm Wind
Strong Wind
Thunderstorm Wind
Tornado
Tropical Storm
Waterspout
Wildfire
Winter Storm
Winter Weather
County/Zone Name
*
County Zone Type
County (C)
Zone (Z)
Source
Public
Emergency Manager
Trained Spotter
Law Enforcement
Broadcast Media
NWS Storm Survey
Fire Department/Rescue
COOP Observer
911 Call Center
Amateur Radio
CoCoRaHS
County Official
Department of Highways
Local Official
Mesonet
NWS Employee
Newspaper
Official NWS Observations
Storm Chaser
Unknown
Duration (minutes)
*
Magnitude
*
Wind speed or other intensity measure
Flood Cause
Unknown
Heavy Rain
Heavy Rain / Snow Melt
Heavy Rain / Tropical System
Dam / Levee Break
Ice Jam
Heavy Rain / Burn Area
Planned Dam Release
Tornado Details
Tornado F-Scale
None / EF0
EF1
EF2
EF3
EF4
EF5
Tornado Length (miles)
Tornado Width (yards)
Casualties
Direct Injuries
Indirect Injuries
Direct Deaths
Indirect Deaths
Predict Damage