NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Barnardsville, NC
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
9 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Barnardsville, North Carolina since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 13 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 13
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Barnardsville
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Barnardsville; the strongest was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm with 63 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Barnardsville begins with an unnamed storm in 1901; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 6 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 9 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 93% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Barnardsville. The highest rating among the 13 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1 or EF1, reached 9 times; the most recent, on August 7, 2023, came within 19 miles. Of the 13, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 4 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 4. The most recent tornado was on May 8, 2024. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 98% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Barnardsville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 80 times since 1980, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Barnardsville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 68% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Barnardsville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Barnardsville: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Barnardsville
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s2
- 1990s3
- 1970s5
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 7, 2023 | EF1 | 19 mi | 6.23 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 1999 | F1 | 14 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 7, 1998 | F1 | 25 mi | 1.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1977 | F1 | 13 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1977 | F1 | 3 mi | 18.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 6, 1977 | F1 | 4 mi | 28.5 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Feb 18, 1976 | F1 | 20 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 18, 1976 | F1 | 1 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 8, 1956 | F1 | 9 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2024 | EF0 | 9 mi | 2.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 14, 2014 | EF0 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 9, 2011 | EF0 | 21 mi | 1.04 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 13, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Barnardsville
The Storm Prediction Center has 80 hail reports within 10 miles of Barnardsville since 1980, made on 53 separate days. Of these, 36 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on May 8, 2024. The most recent report is from May 26, 2024. May has the most reports, 23.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Barnardsville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Mt Mitchell, NC, 8 miles east of Barnardsville at 6,240 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 67°F and low of 52°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 17°F. September is the wettest at 8.8 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 5.5 inches; the year adds up to 81.2 inches over 118 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs of 90°F are rare: fewer than one day a year on average. Lows fall below freezing on about 136 nights a year. Snowfall averages 89.1 inches a year, most of it in December. That 81.2 inches is more than at 137 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (98%). Weaverville, 8 miles west, has its own station (Marshall, NC): 41.7 inches a year, 39.5 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 67°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 17 | 7.5 | 10 | 19.2 |
| Feb | 36 | 19 | 5.6 | 9 | 18.6 |
| Mar | 41 | 24 | 7.2 | 11 | 18.5 |
| Apr | 50 | 32 | 6.5 | 10 | 7.1 |
| May | 58 | 41 | 6.1 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Jun | 64 | 49 | 5.5 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 67 | 52 | 6.9 | 12 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 66 | 51 | 7.7 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 61 | 46 | 8.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 54 | 37 | 6.3 | 7 | 0.7 |
| Nov | 45 | 28 | 6.2 | 8 | 3.9 |
| Dec | 38 | 21 | 6.9 | 10 | 19.7 |
| Year | 51 | 35 | 81.2 | 118 | 89.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Mt Mitchell, NC (6,240 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Barnardsville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 48 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Barnardsville: 39 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 1 flood, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $177,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on July 24, 1999. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 38 have had fewer than Barnardsville.
July 16, 2016: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Barnardsville — 1 killed.
NWS: “Newspaper reported a motorcyclist was killed after being struck by lightning at the intersection of Highway 128 and the Blue Ridge Parkway.”
May 29, 2018: flood 10 miles from the centre of Barnardsville — $100,000 damage.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Barnardsville's ZIP code 28709 have filed 58 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1992, and were paid $4.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Helene in 2024: 28 claims (48% of all) and $3.5 million. 74% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 263 North Carolina cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 148 have fewer than Barnardsville.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene2024 | 28 | $3.5 million |
Buncombe County, which includes Barnardsville, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 hurricanes, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Buncombe County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $82.4 million a year, the 14th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $48.1 million (58%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Barnardsville
- Weaverville, NC8 mi
- Mars Hill, NC10 mi
- Swannanoa, NC11 mi
- Burnsville, NC11 mi
- Black Mountain, NC12 mi
- Alexander, NC13 mi
- Asheville, NC14 mi
- Old Fort, NC16 mi
- Fairview, NC16 mi
- Marshall, NC17 mi
- Leicester, NC19 mi
- Arden, NC22 mi
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