NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Brevard, 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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Brevard, North Carolina since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 32 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 32
- 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 Brevard
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Brevard; the strongest was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm with 67 mph winds when its centre passed 75 miles away. The record near Brevard begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 49 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 10 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 91% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Brevard. The highest rating among the 32 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2 or EF2, reached 8 times; the most recent, on March 23, 2022, came within 19 miles. Of the 32, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 18 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 7. The most recent tornado was on September 25, 2024. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 86% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Brevard. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 73 times since 1974, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Brevard has more hail reports within 10 miles than 60% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Brevard
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Brevard: 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 Brevard
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s6
- 2000s2
- 1990s5
- 1980s1
- 1970s8
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 23, 2022 | EF2 | 19 mi | 6.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 13, 2020 | EF2 | 15 mi | 7.97 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Oct 8, 2017 | EF2 | 21 mi | 8.42 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1994 | F2 | 18 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 28, 1976 | F2 | 25 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 10, 1975 | F2 | 3 mi | 4.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 1973 | F2 | 20 mi | 23.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 1973 | F2 | 19 mi | 22.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 8, 2024 | EF1 | 21 mi | 1.52 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2024 | EF1 | 19 mi | 9.38 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 2022 | EF1 | 17 mi | 0.53 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 13, 2020 | EF1 | 18 mi | 3.97 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 32, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Brevard
The Storm Prediction Center has 73 hail reports within 10 miles of Brevard since 1974, made on 58 separate days. Of these, 24 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 24, 1986. The most recent report is from July 1, 2023. May and June have the most reports, 22 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Brevard
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Brevard, NC, 3 miles northeast of Brevard at 2,175 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 25°F. August is the wettest at 7.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 5.4 inches; the year adds up to 75.7 inches over 108 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 51% of the year's precipitation (38.9 of 75.7 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (6); a normal September there has highs of 77°F and 6.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 4 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 110 nights a year. Snowfall averages 7.1 inches a year, most of it in December. That 75.7 inches is more than at 136 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (97%). Pisgah Forest, 8 miles northeast, has its own station (Pisgah Forest 3 NE, NC): 65.1 inches a year, 10.6 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 25 | 7.0 | 8 | 1.7 |
| Feb | 53 | 27 | 5.4 | 8 | 1.4 |
| Mar | 60 | 33 | 5.9 | 9 | 0.8 |
| Apr | 69 | 41 | 5.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 75 | 50 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 58 | 6.8 | 12 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 62 | 6.3 | 12 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 62 | 7.6 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 55 | 6.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 69 | 43 | 6.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 59 | 32 | 5.9 | 7 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 51 | 28 | 7.1 | 9 | 3.0 |
| Year | 67 | 43 | 75.7 | 108 | 7.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Brevard, NC (2,175 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 Brevard
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 136 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Brevard: 63 thunderstorm wind reports, 37 floods, 30 flash floods, 5 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $61.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 63 mph, on June 25, 2010. January has had the most flash floods, 5 of 30. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 381 have had fewer than Brevard.
April 20, 2011: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of Brevard — 2 injured.
September 26, 2024: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Brevard — $50.0 million damage.
NWS: “Stream gauges and county comms reported major flash flooding developed along the headwaters of the French Broad basin after 15-22 inches of rain fell across much of the county over three days.”
August 16, 2021: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Brevard — $6.0 million damage.
NWS: “Stream gauges indicated and an NWS flood survey confirmed significant flash flooding developed near the upper reaches of the French Broad River after as much as a foot of rain fell in the headwaters in less than six hours.”
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 Brevard's ZIP code 28712 have filed 61 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $3.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Helene in 2024: 26 claims (43% of all) and $2.8 million. 44% 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, 153 have fewer than Brevard.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene2024 | 26 | $2.8 million |
Transylvania County, which includes Brevard, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1993, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 2 tropical storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Transylvania County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $17.9 million a year, the 60th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.8 million (49%), 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 Brevard
- Pisgah Forest, NC8 mi
- Lake Toxaway, NC10 mi
- Etowah, NC12 mi
- Horse Shoe, NC15 mi
- Zirconia, NC16 mi
- Marietta, SC16 mi
- Sunset, SC17 mi
- Mills River, NC18 mi
- Pickens, SC19 mi
- Hendersonville, NC20 mi
- Flat Rock, NC20 mi
- East Flat Rock, NC20 mi
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