Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Fletcher, NC

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Asheville Regional Airport, NC, 3 miles west of Fletcher at 2,117 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 29°F. August is the wettest at 5.0 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.4 inches; the year adds up to 49.6 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (25.7 of 49.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 11 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (7); a normal September there has highs of 79°F and 4.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 88 nights a year. Snowfall averages 10.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 49.6 inches is more than at 66 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (47%). Mills River, 6 miles southwest, has its own station (Asheville 13 S, NC): 51.6 inches a year, 2.0 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 85°F.

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 206 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Fletcher: 129 thunderstorm wind reports, 38 flash floods, 26 floods, 11 lightning strikes and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 2 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $988,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on May 3, 2009. January has had the most flash floods, 7 of 38. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 416 have had fewer than Fletcher.

Flood insurance policyholders in Fletcher's ZIP code 28732 have filed 60 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $7.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Helene in 2024: 39 claims (65% of all) and $7.1 million. 80% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 263 North Carolina cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 152 have fewer than Fletcher.