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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Burke, VA

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

31 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Burke, Virginia since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 104 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
3

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
28

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
104

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
5

7 deaths in all

What the records show for Burke

The strongest storm to pass near Burke was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 93 mph winds when its centre passed 5 miles away. The record near Burke begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 49 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 31 systems, 4 have come since 2000. Burke has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 33% of the 364 Virginia cities on this site. The strongest of the 104 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 28, 2002; its path came within 17 miles, and it killed 3 people. Of the 104, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 62 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on June 5, 2024. Burke has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 96% of the 364 Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 145 times since 1967, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Burke has more hail reports within 10 miles than 93% of the 364 Virginia cities.

Compare Burke's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Burke

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Burke, Virginia, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2020ZetaOct 2949 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 3
2020IsaiasAug 453 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 1
2008HannaSep 667 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
2006ErnestoSep 231 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1996BerthaJul 1372 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1979DavidSep 670 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 5
1963Unnamed 1963 stormJun 371 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1955DianeAug 1829 miTropical storm (44 mph)Category 2
1955ConnieAug 1340 miTropical storm (59 mph)Category 4
1954HazelOct 1515 miCategory 1 (84 mph)Category 4
1952AbleSep 124 miTropical storm (55 mph)Category 2
1949Unnamed 1949 stormAug 2937 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1945Unnamed 1945 stormSep 1833 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 4
1944Unnamed 1944 stormAug 251 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1943Unnamed 1943 stormOct 133 miTropical storm (47 mph)Tropical storm
1934Unnamed 1934 stormJun 1924 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2
1933Unnamed 1933 stormAug 245 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 4
1929Unnamed 1929 stormOct 225 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1928Unnamed 1928 stormSep 2024 miTropical storm (53 mph)Category 5
1928Unnamed 1928 stormAug 1275 miTropical storm (49 mph)Category 2
1915Unnamed 1915 stormAug 411 miTropical storm (47 mph)Category 1
1902Unnamed 1902 stormOct 1268 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1899Unnamed 1899 stormNov 130 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 2
1896Unnamed 1896 stormSep 3072 miTropical storm (70 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormOct 2333 miTropical storm (44 mph)Tropical storm
1893Unnamed 1893 stormOct 1443 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormAug 2917 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 3
1888Unnamed 1888 stormSep 1169 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1885Unnamed 1885 stormOct 1341 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1878Unnamed 1878 stormOct 235 miCategory 1 (93 mph)Category 2
1876Unnamed 1876 stormSep 1811 miTropical storm (67 mph)Category 3

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Burke: 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 Burke

By decade

  • 2020s8
  • 2010s27
  • 2000s27(2 EF3+)
  • 1990s21
  • 1980s6
  • 1970s9(3 EF3+)
  • 1960s2
  • 1950s4
Strongest tornadoes near Burke, Virginia
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Apr 28, 2002F417 mi38 mi3 / 122
Sep 24, 2001F319 mi17.5 mi2 / 55
Sep 5, 1979F39 mi17.9 mi1 / 6
Jan 26, 1978F320 mi0.7 mi1 / 10
Apr 1, 1973F32 mi9.8 mi0 / 37
Sep 17, 2004F28 mi15 mi0 / 1
Sep 17, 2004F214 mi4 mi0 / 0
Sep 17, 2004F225 mi13 mi0 / 0
Apr 28, 2002F224 mi3 mi0 / 0
Jun 24, 1996F23 mi20 mi0 / 1
Oct 5, 1995F218 mi2.5 mi0 / 3
Sep 27, 1993F221 mi3 mi0 / 2

The strongest 12 of 104, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Burke

The Storm Prediction Center has 145 hail reports within 10 miles of Burke since 1967, made on 76 separate days. Of these, 101 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on August 11, 2004. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 44.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Radar-estimated hail days in Burke since 2019 →

Weather by month in Burke

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Vienna, VA, 7 miles north of Burke at 418 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 23°F. May and July are the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 43.5 inches over 77 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (22.7 of 43.5 inches); the other six months are drier. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 99 nights a year. Snowfall averages 18.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 43.5 inches is more than at 25 of the 109 Virginia stations used on this site (23%). Lorton, 8 miles southeast, has its own station (Oxon Hill, MD): 47.1 inches a year, 3.6 more than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 84°F.

Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Washington, DC, 15 miles northeast, averaged 84°F in July and 39°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Washington tide gauge, 15 miles from Burke, has risen 1.40 ± 0.05 inches per decade from 1924 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 14.0 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 84 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Vienna, VA
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Snow inWater °F
Jan42233.376.539
Feb45242.667.541
Mar53323.872.050
Apr65413.470.060
May72524.380.069
Jun80614.180.077
Jul84674.360.084
Aug82653.560.082
Sep76574.260.076
Oct65453.550.066
Nov56353.150.154
Dec46283.472.442
Year644443.57718.562

Averages for 1991–2020 at Vienna, VA (418 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Washington, DC, from NOAA Tides & Currents. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.

Virginia weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Burke

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 897 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Burke: 494 thunderstorm wind reports, 245 floods, 154 flash floods, 3 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 6 people and injured 7, and the NWS estimated $12.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on May 13, 2000. July has had the most flash floods, 64 of 154. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 351 have had fewer than Burke.

  • May 16, 2025: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Burke — 1 killed, $25,000 damage.

  • June 4, 2008: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Burke — 1 killed, $10,000 damage.

  • September 8, 2011: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Burke — 1 killed.

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 Burke's ZIP code 22015 have filed 45 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1989, and were paid $36,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 16% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 183 Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 89 have fewer than Burke.

Fairfax County, which includes Burke, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 hurricanes, 5 snowstorms, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 2, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Fairfax County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for lightning; Relatively High for hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes; Relatively Low for tornadoes and coastal flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $219.1 million a year, the highest of 133 Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $154.7 million (71%), 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 Burke