NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bland, VA
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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Bland, Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 5 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 5
- 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 Bland
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Bland; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1949, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 51 miles away. The record near Bland begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 38 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1930s, with 2 systems. Of the 10 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site, 88% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Bland. The highest rating among the 5 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2 or EF2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 8, 2011, came within 15 miles. Of the 5, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 4 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on August 9, 2019. Of the 364 Virginia cities, 98% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Bland. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 21 times since 1993, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 364 Virginia cities, 84% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Bland.
Compare Bland's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bland
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 12 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bland: 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 Bland
By decade
- 2010s4
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 8, 2011 | EF2 | 15 mi | 1.9 mi | 0 / 9 |
| Apr 12, 1965 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 2019 | EF1 | 15 mi | 0.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 7, 2014 | EF1 | 22 mi | 5.54 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 8, 2011 | EF1 | 17 mi | 3.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 5 of 5, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bland
The Storm Prediction Center has 21 hail reports within 10 miles of Bland since 1993, made on 19 separate days. Of these, 12 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), fell on April 13, 2004. The most recent report is from May 3, 2022. April has the most reports, 8.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bland
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Bland, VA, 3 miles west of Bland at 2,000 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 21°F. May is the wettest at 4.4 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 2.5 inches; the year adds up to 43.5 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 48% of the year's precipitation (20.9 of 43.5 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (4); a normal September there has highs of 76°F and 3.6 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 141 nights a year. Snowfall averages 26.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 43.5 inches is more than at 25 of the 109 Virginia stations used on this site (23%). Wytheville, 11 miles south, has its own station (Wytheville, VA): 41.8 inches a year, 1.7 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | 21 | 3.5 | 7 | 8.6 |
| Feb | 45 | 23 | 3.1 | 6 | 7.0 |
| Mar | 53 | 28 | 4.1 | 8 | 4.2 |
| Apr | 64 | 36 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.9 |
| May | 72 | 45 | 4.4 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 78 | 54 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 58 | 4.0 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 56 | 3.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 76 | 50 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 66 | 38 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 55 | 29 | 2.5 | 5 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 46 | 24 | 3.6 | 7 | 5.4 |
| Year | 63 | 38 | 43.5 | 86 | 26.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Bland, VA (2,000 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 Bland
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 70 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bland: 58 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 floods, 4 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $1.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on July 4, 2006.
February 15, 2025: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Bland — 1 killed, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “A vehicle with a single occupant was pushed off of Kimberling Road into deeper water as Kimberling Creek flooded at least 2 feet over the roadway. The occupant attempted to abandon the vehicle, but was swept away by the flooding and passed away.”
June 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Bland — $450,000 damage.
July 4, 1997: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Bland — $300,000 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
Bland County, which includes Bland, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1976, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms and Flooding, on April 4, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Bland County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $5.0 million a year, the 98th highest of 133 Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.1 million (62%), 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 Bland
- Wytheville, VA11 mi
- Max Meadows, VA14 mi
- Bluefield, WV15 mi
- Pulaski, VA16 mi
- Princeton, WV17 mi
- Draper, VA17 mi
- Bluefield, VA17 mi
- Rural Retreat, VA20 mi
- Narrows, VA21 mi
- Dublin, VA21 mi
- Rock, WV22 mi
- Pearisburg, VA22 mi
All Virginia cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Bland with another place →