NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Buchanan, 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
15 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Buchanan, Georgia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 88 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 14 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 15
- Tornadoes
- 88
- EF3 or stronger
- 14
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
59 deaths in all
What the records show for Buchanan
None of the 15 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Buchanan; the strongest was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm with 60 mph winds when its centre passed 23 miles away. The record near Buchanan begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 4 systems. Of the 15 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 405 Georgia cities on this site, 73% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Buchanan. The highest rating among the 88 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2011, came within 18 miles. Of the 88, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 36 have come since 2000. March has had the most tornadoes, 23. The most recent tornado was on May 27, 2025. Buchanan has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 405 Georgia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 67 times since 1985, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Buchanan has more hail reports within 10 miles than 57% of the 405 Georgia cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Buchanan
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 5 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 13 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 1 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 3 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 28 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 56 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 Buchanan: 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 Buchanan
By decade
- 2020s9(1 EF3+)
- 2010s11(3 EF3+)
- 2000s16(2 EF3+)
- 1990s14(5 EF3+)
- 1980s10
- 1970s9(1 EF3+)
- 1960s13(1 EF3+)
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 18 mi | 97.33 mi | 22 / 85 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F4 | 17 mi | 50 mi | 22 / 150 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F4 | 22 mi | 49 mi | 3 / 20 |
| Mar 25, 2021 | EF3 | 22 mi | 38.17 mi | 6 / 10 |
| Mar 15, 2008 | EF3 | 18 mi | 16.93 mi | 2 / 2 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 12 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 35 |
| Apr 4, 1977 | F3 | 22 mi | 8.8 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Mar 19, 2018 | EF3 | 9 mi | 35.22 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 2 mi | 29.02 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Feb 26, 2008 | EF3 | 19 mi | 7.21 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 18 mi | 21 mi | 0 / 30 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 15 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 88, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Buchanan
The Storm Prediction Center has 67 hail reports within 10 miles of Buchanan since 1985, made on 57 separate days. Of these, 28 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 11, 2013. The most recent report is from March 19, 2018. April has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Buchanan
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cedartown, GA, 15 miles north of Buchanan at 785 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 53°F and 32°F. March is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and August and October the driest at 3.6 inches; the year adds up to 52.8 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 46% of the year's precipitation (24.1 of 52.8 inches); the other six months are wetter. Highs reach 90°F on about 59 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 69 nights a year. That 52.8 inches is more than at 74 of the 108 Georgia stations used on this site (69%). Tallapoosa, 8 miles southwest, has its own station (Carrollton, GA): 53.6 inches a year, 0.8 more than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 32 | 4.9 | 7 |
| Feb | 58 | 35 | 5.1 | 7 |
| Mar | 66 | 42 | 5.3 | 8 |
| Apr | 75 | 49 | 4.4 | 7 |
| May | 82 | 58 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Jun | 88 | 67 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Jul | 91 | 70 | 4.9 | 7 |
| Aug | 91 | 69 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Sep | 85 | 63 | 3.7 | 4 |
| Oct | 75 | 50 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Nov | 64 | 39 | 4.4 | 6 |
| Dec | 56 | 35 | 5.0 | 8 |
| Year | 74 | 51 | 52.8 | 79 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cedartown, GA (785 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 Buchanan
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 115 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Buchanan: 103 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 3 floods and 3 lightning strikes. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on March 19, 2018. Of the 392 Georgia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 109 have had fewer than Buchanan.
January 11, 2020: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Buchanan — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous reports were received from the Paulding County Emergency Manager, the public and local news media of trees, power lines and signs blown down as well as wind damage to the roofs of some homes and businesses across the county in a swath at least 15 miles wide from just east of Draketown to east of Wood Valley.”
February 16, 2001: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Buchanan — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “The Haralson county Emergency Management Director and the Haralson Gateway Beacon newspaper reported extensive damage throughout the county caused by strong thunderstorm winds. On Estavanko Loop, outside Buchanan, a tree crashed through the residence of a home.”
May 2, 2003: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Buchanan — $175,000 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
Haralson County, which includes Buchanan, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 hurricanes, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Zeta, on January 12, 2021. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Haralson 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 $7.7 million a year, the 95th highest of 159 Georgia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.0 million (52%), 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 Buchanan
- Tallapoosa, GA8 mi
- Bremen, GA9 mi
- Temple, GA12 mi
- Cedartown, GA12 mi
- Rockmart, GA13 mi
- Waco, GA13 mi
- Aragon, GA17 mi
- Villa Rica, GA18 mi
- Carrollton, GA20 mi
- Cave Spring, GA20 mi
- Silver Creek, GA21 mi
- Dallas, GA21 mi
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