NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Fort Mill, SC
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
39 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Fort Mill, South Carolina since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Debby in 2024. Since 1950, 84 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 36
- Tornadoes
- 84
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
5 deaths in all
What the records show for Fort Mill
The strongest storm to pass near Fort Mill was an unnamed storm in 1896, a Category 1 hurricane with 86 mph winds when its centre passed 70 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Hugo in 1989, whose centre came within 12 miles. The record near Fort Mill begins with an unnamed storm in 1854; the most recent system was Debby in 2024, a tropical storm 42 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 5 systems. Of the 39 systems, 5 have come since 2000. Of the 246 South Carolina cities on this site, 55% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Fort Mill. The strongest of the 84 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 5, 1989; its path came within 13 miles, and it killed 1 person. The deadliest, an EF2 on November 16, 2011, killed 3 people. Of the 84, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 35 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on March 5, 2025. Fort Mill has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 55% of the 246 South Carolina cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 132 times since 1955, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Fort Mill has more hail reports within 10 miles than 84% of the 246 South Carolina cities.
Compare Fort Mill's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Fort Mill
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | DebbyAug 8 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 8 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2019 | NestorOct 20 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2006 | AlbertoJun 14 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 12 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1970 | AlmaMay 26 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 16 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 42 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1946 | Unnamed 1946 stormOct 9 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 20 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormSep 5 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1927 | Unnamed 1927 stormOct 3 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1913 | Unnamed 1913 stormOct 10 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 18 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 29 | 70 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 4 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 16 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 10 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 12 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormSep 9 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Fort Mill: 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 Fort Mill
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s13
- 2000s11
- 1990s16(2 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s11
- 1960s8
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 1989 | F4 | 13 mi | 13 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 10 mi | 18.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 18, 1990 | F3 | 16 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Nov 16, 2011 | EF2 | 14 mi | 5.8 mi | 3 / 5 |
| Apr 15, 1994 | F2 | 24 mi | 3 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Feb 6, 2020 | EF2 | 21 mi | 8.66 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 3, 2012 | EF2 | 22 mi | 2.94 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 9, 2008 | EF2 | 19 mi | 18.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 7, 2004 | F2 | 4 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 10, 1992 | F2 | 7 mi | 3.4 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Mar 6, 1983 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 9 |
| May 28, 1973 | F2 | 10 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 84, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Fort Mill
The Storm Prediction Center has 132 hail reports within 10 miles of Fort Mill since 1955, made on 86 separate days. Of these, 66 were 1 inch across or larger, and 10 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on April 24, 1955. The most recent report is from June 25, 2025. May has the most reports, 37.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Fort Mill
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rock Hill York Co Airport, SC, 6 miles southwest of Fort Mill at 669 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 52°F and 31°F. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 51% of the year's precipitation (21.7 of 42.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 39 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (14); a normal September there has highs of 83°F and 3.4 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 55 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 65 nights a year. That 42.6 inches is more than at 3 of the 78 South Carolina stations used on this site (4%). Pineville, NC, 6 miles northeast, has its own station (Charlotte Douglas Airport, NC): 43.7 inches a year, 1.1 more than here, and the same July average high, 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 52 | 31 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Feb | 57 | 34 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Mar | 64 | 40 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Apr | 74 | 48 | 3.6 | 6 |
| May | 80 | 57 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Jun | 87 | 66 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Jul | 90 | 69 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Aug | 89 | 68 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 83 | 62 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Oct | 73 | 49 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Nov | 63 | 39 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Dec | 55 | 33 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Year | 72 | 50 | 42.6 | 69 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rock Hill York Co Airport, SC (669 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 Fort Mill
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 207 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Fort Mill: 153 thunderstorm wind reports, 27 flash floods, 17 floods, 7 lightning strikes and 3 heavy rain events. They killed 2 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $4.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on April 20, 2024. January has had the most flash floods, 6 of 27. Of the 241 South Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 213 have had fewer than Fort Mill.
February 6, 2020: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Fort Mill — 1 killed, $25,000 damage.
May 13, 2002: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Fort Mill — 1 killed, $3,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous trees and powerlines were blown down in the Tega Cay area. An 86-year-old woman was killed on the morning of the 14th, when a tree, apparently weakened by the strong winds, fell on her.”
November 12, 2020: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Fort Mill — $1.0 million 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 Fort Mill's 2 ZIP codes have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1997, and were paid $121,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 25% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 110 South Carolina cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 11 have fewer than Fort Mill.
York County, which includes Fort Mill, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms, 2 severe storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Helene, on September 29, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives York County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $99.2 million a year, the 9th highest of 46 South Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $51.5 million (52%), 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.