NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Blairsville, GA
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
8 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Blairsville, Georgia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 43 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 8
- Tornadoes
- 43
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
18 deaths in all
What the records show for Blairsville
None of the 8 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Blairsville; the strongest was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 9 miles away. The record near Blairsville begins with an unnamed storm in 1901; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 23 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 8 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 405 Georgia cities on this site, 94% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Blairsville. The highest rating among the 43 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 3, 1974, came within 25 miles. Of the 43, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 15 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 13. The most recent tornado was on May 8, 2024. Of the 405 Georgia cities, 94% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Blairsville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 43 times since 1986, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 405 Georgia cities, 60% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Blairsville.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Blairsville
Of the 8 tracks on the map, 5 were moving northeast as they passed Blairsville, 2 northwest and 1 north. Zeta (2020), the strongest pass, was heading northeast; its centre passed 9 miles northwest of Blairsville. None made landfall within 75 miles of Blairsville; 5 of the 8 were hurricanes at their peak, none at their closest to the city. In the last 30 seasons (1996–2025), 2 came near Blairsville: 0.7 a decade, against 0.4 a decade from 1851 to 1995.
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 24 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Blairsville: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Check hail and hurricane history for any address
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Blairsville
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s9(1 EF3+)
- 2000s4
- 1990s13(3 EF3+)
- 1980s1
- 1970s11(2 EF3+)
- 1960s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 25 mi | 17.7 mi | 6 / 30 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 14 mi | 24 mi | 4 / 26 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 19 mi | 23 mi | 3 / 15 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 20 mi | 44 mi | 3 / 45 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 14 mi | 36.99 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 18 mi | 10 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 16 mi | 21.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 29, 2005 | F2 | 19 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 18 mi | 15.6 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 8, 2024 | EF1 | 15 mi | 2.33 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 17, 2018 | EF1 | 14 mi | 5.06 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 2017 | EF1 | 25 mi | 4.61 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 43, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Blairsville
The Storm Prediction Center has 43 hail reports within 10 miles of Blairsville since 1986, made on 31 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on May 7, 1998. The most recent report is from July 25, 2020. May has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Blairsville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Blairsville Exp Stn, GA, 4 miles southeast of Blairsville at 1,949 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 25°F. January is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 4.2 inches; the year adds up to 60.6 inches over 93 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 8 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 104 nights a year. Snowfall averages 3.1 inches a year, most of it in December. That 60.6 inches is more than at 103 of the 108 Georgia stations used on this site (95%). Murphy, NC, 16 miles north, has its own station (Murphy 4ESE, NC): 59.5 inches a year, 1.1 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 25 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.5 |
| Feb | 53 | 28 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.4 |
| Mar | 60 | 34 | 5.6 | 9 | 1.0 |
| Apr | 69 | 41 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 50 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 82 | 59 | 5.6 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 62 | 4.9 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 61 | 5.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 55 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 70 | 43 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 61 | 33 | 4.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 53 | 29 | 5.5 | 8 | 1.2 |
| Year | 69 | 43 | 60.6 | 93 | 3.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Blairsville Exp Stn, GA (1,949 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 Blairsville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 93 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Blairsville: 64 thunderstorm wind reports, 17 flash floods, 7 floods and 5 lightning strikes. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on June 13, 2013. March has had the most flash floods, 8 of 17. Of the 392 Georgia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 284 have had fewer than Blairsville.
April 4, 2011: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Blairsville — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “The Union County Emergency Management Director reported that hundreds of trees and dozens of power lines were down throughout the county. Four homes sustained minor to moderate damage from downed trees.”
May 26, 2011: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Blairsville — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “The Union County 911 Center reported that lightning struck a structure on the northwest side of Blairsville on Jewell Mason Road. The home was destroyed from the resulting fire.”
March 15, 2025: lightning strike 8 miles from the centre of Blairsville — $200,000 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 Blairsville's ZIP code 30512 have filed 54 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1990, and were paid $660,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Zeta in 2020: 11 claims (20% of all) and $121,000, then Tropical Storm Ivan in 2004 with 11. 48% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 154 Georgia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 86 have fewer than Blairsville.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Zeta2020 | 11 | $121,000 |
| Tropical Storm Ivan2004 | 11 | $212,000 |
Union County, which includes Blairsville, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1990, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 hurricanes, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tropical storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Zeta, on January 12, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Union County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.6 million a year, the 68th highest of 159 Georgia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.8 million (50%), 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 Blairsville
- Young Harris, GA10 mi
- Morganton, GA12 mi
- Murphy, NC16 mi
- Hiawassee, GA16 mi
- Mineral Bluff, GA17 mi
- Hayesville, NC18 mi
- Blue Ridge, GA18 mi
- Marble, NC19 mi
- Sautee Nacoochee, GA22 mi
- Dahlonega, GA23 mi
- Mc Caysville, GA23 mi
- Copperhill, TN23 mi
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