Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Branchburg, NJ

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wertsville 4 NE, NJ, 5 miles southwest of Branchburg at 283 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 22°F. July is the wettest at 5.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 51.1 inches over 87 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (26.9 of 51.1 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 42 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (15); a normal September there has highs of 77°F and 4.5 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 118 nights a year. Snowfall averages 23.9 inches a year, most of it in February. That 51.1 inches is more than at 45 of the 51 New Jersey stations used on this site (88%). Somerville, 5 miles northeast, has its own station (Somerville 4 NW, NJ): 46.8 inches a year, 4.3 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 85°F.

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 429 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Branchburg: 246 thunderstorm wind reports, 96 floods, 60 flash floods, 18 heavy rain events and 9 lightning strikes. They killed 7 people and injured 11, and the NWS estimated $189.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on September 4, 2001. July has had the most flash floods, 20 of 60. Of the 455 New Jersey cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 204 have had fewer than Branchburg.

Flood insurance policyholders in Branchburg's ZIP code 08853 have filed 42 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1989, and were paid $2.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Floyd in 1999: 10 claims (24% of all) and $434,000. The year with the most claims was 2021, with 10. 86% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 395 New Jersey cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 129 have fewer than Branchburg.