NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bruceton Mills, WV
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 Bruceton Mills, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Sandy in 2012. Since 1950, 37 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 37
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Bruceton Mills
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Bruceton Mills; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1896, a tropical storm with 68 mph winds when its centre passed 56 miles away. The record near Bruceton Mills begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Sandy in 2012, a tropical storm 62 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1970s, with 2 systems. Of the 10 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Bruceton Mills has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 80% of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site. The highest rating among the 37 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on June 3, 1980, came within 14 miles. The deadliest, an F1 on June 16, 1982, killed 1 person. Of the 37, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 17 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 13. The most recent tornado was on March 16, 2025. Bruceton Mills has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 85% of the 161 West Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 22 times since 1990, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 91% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Bruceton Mills.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bruceton Mills
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | SandyOct 30 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 29 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bruceton Mills: 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 Bruceton Mills
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s7
- 2000s2
- 1990s3
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s4(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 1967 | F3 | 23 mi | 0.3 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1980 | F3 | 14 mi | 29.8 mi | 0 / 19 |
| Aug 25, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 1.96 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 2, 1998 | F2 | 4 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1998 | F2 | 24 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 1, 1986 | F2 | 18 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 20, 1977 | F2 | 12 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jul 13, 1971 | F2 | 3 mi | 16 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jun 16, 1982 | F1 | 19 mi | 2.5 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Mar 16, 2025 | EF1 | 21 mi | 1.62 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 11, 2024 | EF1 | 13 mi | 3.11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 11, 2024 | EF1 | 8 mi | 3.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 37, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bruceton Mills
The Storm Prediction Center has 22 hail reports within 10 miles of Bruceton Mills since 1990, made on 14 separate days. Of these, 15 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on August 7, 2023, the most recent report. August has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bruceton Mills
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chalk Hill 2 ENE, PA, 14 miles north of Bruceton Mills at 1,980 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 79°F and low of 56°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 15°F. June is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.8 inches; the year adds up to 55.6 inches over 112 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 49% of the year's precipitation (27.5 of 55.6 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (5); a normal September there has highs of 71°F and 4.7 inches of precipitation. Highs of 90°F are rare: fewer than one day a year on average. Lows fall below freezing on about 138 nights a year. Snowfall averages 88.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 55.6 inches is more than at 69 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (92%). Albright, 8 miles south, has its own station (Terra Alta #1, WV): 57.1 inches a year, 1.5 more than here, and a July average high of 77°F against 79°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 15 | 4.6 | 11 | 26.9 |
| Feb | 38 | 17 | 4.1 | 9 | 18.0 |
| Mar | 48 | 24 | 5.0 | 10 | 15.5 |
| Apr | 61 | 33 | 4.7 | 10 | 3.7 |
| May | 69 | 43 | 5.2 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 75 | 52 | 5.7 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 79 | 56 | 4.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 77 | 54 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 71 | 47 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 36 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.9 |
| Nov | 49 | 27 | 4.1 | 8 | 6.2 |
| Dec | 39 | 20 | 4.5 | 10 | 17.6 |
| Year | 58 | 35 | 55.6 | 112 | 88.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chalk Hill 2 ENE, PA (1,980 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 Bruceton Mills
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 83 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bruceton Mills: 67 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 floods, 7 flash floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $649,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on June 22, 2022. June has had the most flash floods, 4 of 7. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 10 have had fewer than Bruceton Mills.
July 8, 2014: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Bruceton Mills — 1 injured, $25,000 damage.
NWS: “The public reported multiple trees down and a tent collapse. One minor injury.”
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
Preston County, which includes Bruceton Mills, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 6 floods, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on May 22, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Preston County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.1 million a year, the 37th highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.5 million (82%), 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 Bruceton Mills
- Albright, WV8 mi
- Friendsville, MD10 mi
- Farmington, PA10 mi
- Masontown, WV12 mi
- Kingwood, WV13 mi
- Terra Alta, WV14 mi
- Fairchance, PA15 mi
- Reedsville, WV15 mi
- Smithfield, PA15 mi
- Accident, MD15 mi
- Hopwood, PA17 mi
- Point Marion, PA17 mi
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