NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Clayton, 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
12 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Clayton, Georgia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 54 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 12
- Tornadoes
- 54
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
7 deaths in all
What the records show for Clayton
None of the 12 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Clayton; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1949, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 70 miles away. The record near Clayton begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 6 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 12 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 405 Georgia cities on this site, 82% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Clayton. The highest rating among the 54 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 5 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2011, came within 2 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on March 27, 1994, killed 3 people. Of the 54, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 17 have come since 2000. March and April have had the most tornadoes, 8 each. The most recent tornado was on September 25, 2024. Of the 405 Georgia cities, 84% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Clayton. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 54 times since 1984, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 405 Georgia cities, 50% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Clayton.
Compare Clayton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Clayton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 24 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 62 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 Clayton: 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 Clayton
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s7(1 EF3+)
- 2000s7
- 1990s11(3 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s13
- 1960s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 18 mi | 23 mi | 3 / 15 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 12 mi | 44 mi | 3 / 45 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 2 mi | 36.99 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 11 mi | 28 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Nov 15, 1989 | F3 | 14 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Aug 29, 2005 | F2 | 20 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1994 | F2 | 22 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 5, 1989 | F2 | 18 mi | 10.5 mi | 0 / 15 |
| Apr 4, 1989 | F2 | 23 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1989 | F2 | 20 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 6 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 21, 1973 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 54, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Clayton
The Storm Prediction Center has 54 hail reports within 10 miles of Clayton since 1984, made on 43 separate days. Of these, 31 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 8 days, most recently April 27, 2011. The most recent report is from June 27, 2025. April has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Clayton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Clayton 1 SSW, GA, 1 mile east of Clayton at 1,965 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 50°F and 30°F. December is the wettest at 7.0 inches of precipitation on average and May the driest at 5.1 inches; the year adds up to 71.8 inches over 89 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 49% of the year's precipitation (35.1 of 71.8 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 12 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (6); a normal September there has highs of 79°F and 5.7 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 12 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 88 nights a year. Snowfall averages 2.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 71.8 inches is more than at 106 of the 108 Georgia stations used on this site (98%). Otto, NC, 12 miles north, has its own station (Coweeta Exp Stn, NC): 72.2 inches a year, 0.4 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 30 | 6.8 | 8 | 0.9 |
| Feb | 54 | 32 | 5.8 | 7 | 0.6 |
| Mar | 61 | 37 | 6.3 | 9 | 0.1 |
| Apr | 70 | 44 | 5.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 53 | 5.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 62 | 6.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 65 | 5.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 64 | 6.4 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 59 | 5.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 71 | 47 | 5.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 61 | 37 | 6.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 53 | 32 | 7.0 | 8 | 0.8 |
| Year | 69 | 47 | 71.8 | 89 | 2.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Clayton 1 SSW, GA (1,965 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 Clayton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 108 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Clayton: 84 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 8 floods, 2 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $558,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on August 24, 2007. Of the 392 Georgia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 242 have had fewer than Clayton.
July 2, 2022: lightning strike 4 miles from the centre of Clayton — 1 killed.
August 2, 2004: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Clayton — 1 injured, $2,000 damage.
May 15, 2010: lightning strike 4 miles from the centre of Clayton — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck a 7000-square foot lodge on Tuts Mountain Rd, destroying the structure.”
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 Clayton's ZIP code 30525 have filed 15 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2004, and were paid $304,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 53% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 154 Georgia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 25 have fewer than Clayton.
Rabun County, which includes Clayton, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tornadoes). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Helene, on September 30, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Rabun County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.0 million a year, the 73rd highest of 159 Georgia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.9 million (59%), 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.