NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Cross Lanes, 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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Cross Lanes, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Hugo in 1989. Since 1950, 29 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 29
- 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 Cross Lanes
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Cross Lanes; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 45 miles away. The record near Cross Lanes begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm 2 miles away. None of the 6 systems has come since 2000. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site, 68% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Cross Lanes. The strongest of the 29 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF2 on April 2, 2024; its path passed within a mile of the city centre. Of the 29, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 17 have come since 2000. April and June have had the most tornadoes, 8 each. The most recent tornado was on May 26, 2024. Cross Lanes has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 68% of the 161 West Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 127 times since 1965, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Cross Lanes has more hail reports within 10 miles than 98% of the 161 West Virginia cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Cross Lanes
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Cross Lanes: 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 Cross Lanes
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s7
- 2000s2
- 1990s5
- 1980s2
- 1970s3
- 1960s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF2 | in town | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.78 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 19 mi | 2.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 14 mi | 5.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 4 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 7 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 24, 2019 | EF1 | 8 mi | 7.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 2016 | EF1 | 16 mi | 0.06 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 4, 2014 | EF1 | 25 mi | 0.51 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF1 | 18 mi | 16.02 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 13, 1999 | F1 | 16 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1998 | F1 | 11 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 29, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Cross Lanes
The Storm Prediction Center has 127 hail reports within 10 miles of Cross Lanes since 1965, made on 64 separate days. Of these, 65 were 1 inch across or larger, and 5 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently June 21, 2016. The most recent report is from May 5, 2025. June has the most reports, 41.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Cross Lanes
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Charleston WFO, WV, 8 miles south of Cross Lanes at 918 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 23°F. July is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and October and November the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 48.2 inches over 96 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 23 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 116 nights a year. That 48.2 inches is more than at 50 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (67%). Nitro, 4 miles west, has its own station (Winfield Locks, WV): 39.5 inches a year, 8.7 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 23 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Feb | 46 | 25 | 3.3 | 8 |
| Mar | 56 | 31 | 4.4 | 9 |
| Apr | 68 | 41 | 4.1 | 9 |
| May | 76 | 51 | 5.2 | 10 |
| Jun | 83 | 60 | 4.4 | 9 |
| Jul | 86 | 64 | 5.8 | 9 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 3.7 | 7 |
| Sep | 80 | 55 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Oct | 68 | 42 | 3.1 | 7 |
| Nov | 57 | 32 | 3.1 | 7 |
| Dec | 47 | 27 | 4.1 | 8 |
| Year | 66 | 43 | 48.2 | 96 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Charleston WFO, WV (918 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 Cross Lanes
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 510 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Cross Lanes: 380 thunderstorm wind reports, 70 flash floods, 40 floods, 11 heavy rain events and 9 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 19, and the NWS estimated $15.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on June 24, 2019. July has had the most flash floods, 18 of 70. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 152 have had fewer than Cross Lanes.
August 4, 2010: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Cross Lanes — 1 killed, 1 injured, $200,000 damage.
July 25, 2005: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Cross Lanes — 1 killed, $5,000 damage.
June 6, 2013: heavy rain event 5 miles from the centre of Cross Lanes — 9 injured, $200,000 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 Cross Lanes's ZIP code 25313 have filed 197 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $2.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 11 claims (6% of all) and $128,000. The year with the most claims was 2004, with 39. 11% 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, 104 have fewer than Cross Lanes.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 11 | $128,000 |
Kanawha County, which includes Cross Lanes, has been named in 35 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 27 of them major disasters (by incident: 14 severe storms, 10 floods, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on October 7, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kanawha County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail and heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes and tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $142.9 million a year, the highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $132.7 million (93%), 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 Cross Lanes
- Nitro, WV4 mi
- Dunbar, WV4 mi
- Saint Albans, WV5 mi
- Poca, WV5 mi
- South Charleston, WV6 mi
- Scott Depot, WV8 mi
- Charleston, WV10 mi
- Winfield, WV10 mi
- Sissonville, WV10 mi
- Red House, WV11 mi
- Hurricane, WV12 mi
- Elkview, WV16 mi
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