NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cave Spring, 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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cave Spring, Georgia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 64 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 14 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 64
- EF3 or stronger
- 14
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
62 deaths in all
What the records show for Cave Spring
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Cave Spring; the strongest was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm with 60 mph winds when its centre passed 4 miles away. The record near Cave Spring begins with an unnamed storm in 1898; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 10 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 405 Georgia cities on this site, 90% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Cave Spring. The highest rating among the 64 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2011, came within 3 miles. Of the 64, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 29 have come since 2000. March has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on May 27, 2024. Of the 405 Georgia cities, 72% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Cave Spring. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 91 times since 1957, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Cave Spring has more hail reports within 10 miles than 75% of the 405 Georgia cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cave Spring
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 5 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cave Spring: 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 Cave Spring
By decade
- 2020s5(1 EF3+)
- 2010s10(3 EF3+)
- 2000s14(2 EF3+)
- 1990s12(5 EF3+)
- 1980s6
- 1970s8(2 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s4(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 3 mi | 97.33 mi | 22 / 85 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F4 | 8 mi | 50 mi | 22 / 150 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F4 | 18 mi | 49 mi | 3 / 20 |
| Mar 25, 2021 | EF3 | 15 mi | 38.17 mi | 6 / 10 |
| Mar 15, 2008 | EF3 | 13 mi | 16.93 mi | 2 / 2 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 9 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 35 |
| Apr 4, 1977 | F3 | 9 mi | 8.8 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Mar 19, 2018 | EF3 | 23 mi | 35.22 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 17 mi | 29.02 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Dec 16, 2000 | F3 | 22 mi | 12.8 mi | 0 / 14 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 3 mi | 21 mi | 0 / 30 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 11 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 64, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cave Spring
The Storm Prediction Center has 91 hail reports within 10 miles of Cave Spring since 1957, made on 59 separate days. Of these, 53 were 1 inch across or larger, and 11 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on March 27, 1994. The most recent report is from April 10, 2025. April has the most reports, 25.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cave Spring
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cedartown, GA, 7 miles southeast of Cave Spring 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. October has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (5); a normal October there has highs of 75°F and 3.6 inches of precipitation. 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%). Lindale, 10 miles northeast, has its own station (Rome, GA): 55.2 inches a year, 2.4 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 Cave Spring
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 137 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cave Spring: 118 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 flash floods, 4 lightning strikes, 2 floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 7, and the NWS estimated $27.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on March 25, 2021. July has had the most flash floods, 4 of 12. Of the 392 Georgia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 223 have had fewer than Cave Spring.
March 18, 2013: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Cave Spring — 1 killed, 1 injured, $15,000 damage.
April 27, 2011: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Cave Spring — 4 injured, $20.0 million damage.
NWS: “The Floyd County Emergency Management Director reported that strong thunderstorm winds, likely well in excess of 60 mph, caused widespread and extensive damage across the county. Some of the worst damage was in the Cave Spring area.”
April 25, 2003: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Cave Spring — 2 injured, $100,000 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Cave Spring's ZIP code 30124 have filed 14 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $143,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. Of the 154 Georgia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 19 have fewer than Cave Spring.
Floyd County, which includes Cave Spring, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 4 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 29, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Floyd County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $39.7 million a year, the 15th highest of 159 Georgia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $18.6 million (47%), 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 Cave Spring
- Cedartown, GA9 mi
- Lindale, GA10 mi
- Silver Creek, GA11 mi
- Rome, GA13 mi
- Centre, AL15 mi
- Aragon, GA16 mi
- Cedar Bluff, AL18 mi
- Lyerly, GA18 mi
- Rockmart, GA19 mi
- Gaylesville, AL19 mi
- Piedmont, AL20 mi
- Buchanan, GA20 mi
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