NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Buckhannon, 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
8 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Buckhannon, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Isabel in 2003. Since 1950, 15 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 8
- Tornadoes
- 15
- 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 Buckhannon
None of the 8 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Buckhannon; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1878, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 43 miles away. The record near Buckhannon begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Isabel in 2003, a tropical storm 52 miles away. Of the 8 systems, one has come since 2000. Buckhannon has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 54% of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site. The highest rating among the 15 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2, reached 3 times; the most recent, on August 22, 1970, came within 21 miles. Of the 15, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 4 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 7. The most recent tornado was on June 23, 2017. Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 64% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Buckhannon. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 44 times since 1975, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 62% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Buckhannon.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Buckhannon
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 29 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 43 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 Buckhannon: 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 Buckhannon
By decade
- 2010s4
- 1990s1
- 1980s2
- 1970s5
- 1960s1
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 22, 1970 | F2 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 7, 1967 | F2 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 7, 1956 | F2 | 20 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 23, 2017 | EF1 | 22 mi | 4.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 21, 2016 | EF1 | 17 mi | 0.36 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 17, 2015 | EF1 | 11 mi | 1.77 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 2014 | EF1 | 9 mi | 1.07 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 1998 | F1 | 24 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 5, 1989 | F1 | 13 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 9, 1980 | F1 | 23 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 1978 | F1 | 14 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 19, 1975 | F1 | 14 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 15, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Buckhannon
The Storm Prediction Center has 44 hail reports within 10 miles of Buckhannon since 1975, made on 28 separate days. Of these, 25 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on May 4, 2025. The most recent report is from October 21, 2025. June has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Buckhannon
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Buckhannon, WV, 1 mile southwest of Buckhannon at 1,455 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 21°F. July is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 49.2 inches over 102 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 11 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 133 nights a year. Snowfall averages 39.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 49.2 inches is more than at 56 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (75%). French Creek, 10 miles south, has its own station (Rock Cave 2 NE, WV): 56.7 inches a year, 7.5 more than here, and a July average high of 80°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 41 | 21 | 3.6 | 9 | 11.9 |
| Feb | 44 | 23 | 3.3 | 8 | 11.3 |
| Mar | 53 | 29 | 4.2 | 9 | 6.7 |
| Apr | 66 | 38 | 3.8 | 9 | 0.7 |
| May | 74 | 49 | 5.2 | 11 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 57 | 5.1 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 62 | 5.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 60 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 53 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 41 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 55 | 31 | 3.0 | 7 | 1.8 |
| Dec | 45 | 26 | 3.9 | 9 | 6.9 |
| Year | 64 | 41 | 49.2 | 102 | 39.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Buckhannon, WV (1,455 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 Buckhannon
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 198 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Buckhannon: 141 thunderstorm wind reports, 31 floods, 24 flash floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $2.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on July 27, 2014. June has had the most flash floods, 15 of 24. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 92 have had fewer than Buckhannon.
April 5, 2010: lightning strike in Buckhannon — 1 injured, $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck a petroleum container at a water treatment facility. An oil fire was ignited that caused considerable damage.”
June 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Buckhannon — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Numerous trees and large branches were blown down. Over 11,000 customers lost electricity.”
June 21, 2001: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Buckhannon — $150,000 damage.
NWS: “A thunderstorm moved northeast, through Volga, Indian Fork, Spaw Lick, Cherry Hill, Philippi, Hacker Creek, and Adaland. A house near Volga was damaged by a fallen tree.”
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 Buckhannon's ZIP code 26201 have filed 392 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $2.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1985: 60 claims (15% of all) and $556,000, then 2026-07-West Virginia-Flooding in 2026 with 32. The year with the most claims was 1996, with 127. 24% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 131 West Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 120 have fewer than Buckhannon.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1985 | 60 | $556,000 |
| 2026-07-West Virginia-Flooding2026 | 32 | $328,000 |
Upshur County, which includes Buckhannon, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 6 floods, 3 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on August 3, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Upshur County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.6 million a year, the 32nd highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $10.1 million (87%), 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 Buckhannon
- French Creek, WV10 mi
- Lost Creek, WV14 mi
- Jane Lew, WV14 mi
- Belington, WV14 mi
- Weston, WV15 mi
- Philippi, WV15 mi
- Mount Clare, WV15 mi
- Flemington, WV19 mi
- Elkins, WV20 mi
- Bridgeport, WV21 mi
- Beverly, WV21 mi
- Clarksburg, WV21 mi
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