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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Hayes, VA

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

70 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Hayes, Virginia since 1851, 12 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Elsa in 2021. Since 1950, 74 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
12

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
58

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
74

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
4

2 deaths in all

What the records show for Hayes

The strongest storm to pass near Hayes was an unnamed storm in 1879, a Category 2 hurricane with 105 mph winds when its centre passed 55 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1933, whose centre came within 7 miles. The record near Hayes begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Elsa in 2021, a tropical storm 14 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 8 systems. Of the 70 systems, 12 have come since 2000. Hayes has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 91% of the 364 Virginia cities on this site. The highest rating among the 74 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 16, 2011, came within 5 miles. Of the 74, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 43 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on November 9, 2025. Hayes has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 76% of the 364 Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 45 times since 1957, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Hayes has more hail reports within 10 miles than 50% of the 364 Virginia cities.

Compare Hayes's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Hayes

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Hayes, Virginia, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2021ElsaJul 914 miTropical storm (54 mph)Category 1
2020ZetaOct 2963 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 3
2020IsaiasAug 427 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1
2019NestorOct 2016 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
2018MichaelOct 1228 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 5
2013AndreaJun 76 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
2011IreneAug 2855 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 3
2008HannaSep 628 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 1
2006ErnestoSep 224 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
2004GastonAug 312 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
2004CharleyAug 1541 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 4
2000HeleneSep 2462 miTropical storm (47 mph)Tropical storm
1999FloydSep 1635 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 4
1997DannyJul 2451 miTropical storm (48 mph)Category 1
1996BerthaJul 1310 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 3
1992DanielleSep 2557 miTropical storm (63 mph)Tropical storm
1986CharleyAug 1858 miCategory 1 (78 mph)Category 1
1983DeanSep 3029 miTropical storm (41 mph)Tropical storm
1971DoriaAug 2826 miTropical storm (69 mph)Tropical storm
1970AlmaMay 2762 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1969CamilleAug 2012 miTropical storm (41 mph)Category 5
1967DoriaSep 1655 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 2
1964CleoSep 168 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 4
1963Unnamed 1963 stormJun 323 miTropical storm (52 mph)Tropical storm
1961Unnamed 1961 stormSep 1429 miTropical storm (52 mph)Tropical storm
1960BrendaJul 309 miTropical storm (58 mph)Tropical storm
1959CindyJul 1024 miTropical storm (47 mph)Category 1
1956Unnamed 1956 stormOct 1866 miTropical storm (52 mph)Tropical storm
1955IoneSep 2064 miCategory 1 (75 mph)Category 4
1955ConnieAug 1317 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 4
1953BarbaraAug 1461 miCategory 1 (87 mph)Category 1
1945Unnamed 1945 stormSep 1866 miTropical storm (41 mph)Category 4
1944Unnamed 1944 stormOct 214 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 4
1944Unnamed 1944 stormAug 259 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 1
1943Unnamed 1943 stormOct 151 miTropical storm (62 mph)Tropical storm
1935Unnamed 1935 stormSep 627 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 5
1933Unnamed 1933 stormAug 237 miCategory 1 (76 mph)Category 4
1929Unnamed 1929 stormOct 257 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 4
1928Unnamed 1928 stormSep 1949 miTropical storm (66 mph)Category 5
1928Unnamed 1928 stormAug 1237 miTropical storm (48 mph)Category 2
1924Unnamed 1924 stormSep 3018 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 1
1916Unnamed 1916 stormMay 1711 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1907Unnamed 1907 stormJun 3054 miTropical storm (51 mph)Tropical storm
1904Unnamed 1904 stormSep 1515 miTropical storm (68 mph)Category 1
1902Unnamed 1902 stormOct 1244 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1902Unnamed 1902 stormJun 1619 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1899Unnamed 1899 stormOct 3156 miTropical storm (59 mph)Category 2
1894Unnamed 1894 stormOct 1039 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 3
1893Unnamed 1893 stormOct 2359 miTropical storm (52 mph)Tropical storm
1893Unnamed 1893 stormJun 1764 miTropical storm (63 mph)Category 1
1889Unnamed 1889 stormSep 255 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2
1888Unnamed 1888 stormSep 1132 miTropical storm (40 mph)Tropical storm
1887Unnamed 1887 stormOct 2166 miTropical storm (43 mph)Category 1
1886Unnamed 1886 stormJul 212 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1883Unnamed 1883 stormSep 1272 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 3
1882Unnamed 1882 stormSep 2326 miTropical storm (46 mph)Tropical storm
1882Unnamed 1882 stormSep 1119 miTropical storm (52 mph)Category 3
1881Unnamed 1881 stormSep 1033 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 2
1879Unnamed 1879 stormAug 1855 miCategory 2 (105 mph)Category 3
1878Unnamed 1878 stormOct 2334 miCategory 2 (98 mph)Category 2
1877Unnamed 1877 stormOct 422 miTropical storm (60 mph)Category 3
1876Unnamed 1876 stormSep 1745 miCategory 1 (74 mph)Category 3
1874Unnamed 1874 stormSep 298 miTropical storm (58 mph)Category 1
1872Unnamed 1872 stormOct 256 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 1
1863Unnamed 1863 stormSep 1823 miTropical storm (58 mph)Tropical storm
1861Unnamed 1861 stormSep 2724 miTropical storm (69 mph)Category 1
1859Unnamed 1859 stormSep 1713 miTropical storm (61 mph)Category 1
1856Unnamed 1856 stormAug 2032 miTropical storm (58 mph)Tropical storm
1854Unnamed 1854 stormSep 1046 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3
1851Unnamed 1851 stormAug 2570 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 3

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Hayes: 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 Hayes

By decade

  • 2020s8
  • 2010s17(1 EF3+)
  • 2000s18
  • 1990s14(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s5(1 EF3+)
  • 1970s6(1 EF3+)
  • 1960s2
  • 1950s4
Strongest tornadoes near Hayes, Virginia
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Apr 16, 2011EF35 mi26.47 mi2 / 24
Aug 6, 1993F321 mi2.9 mi0 / 0
Oct 14, 1986F324 mi5 mi0 / 0
Sep 5, 1979F322 mi2.5 mi0 / 2
Aug 4, 2020EF225 mi15.61 mi0 / 5
Apr 16, 2011EF218 mi2.8 mi0 / 0
Apr 16, 2011EF220 mi22.61 mi0 / 0
Sep 4, 1999F220 mi1 mi0 / 6
May 8, 1984F221 mi15 mi0 / 0
Sep 5, 1979F220 mi0.5 mi0 / 9
Aug 4, 2020EF17 mi4.7 mi0 / 0
Aug 4, 2020EF122 mi0.8 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 74, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Hayes

The Storm Prediction Center has 45 hail reports within 10 miles of Hayes since 1957, made on 32 separate days. Of these, 23 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 30, 1995. The most recent report is from May 22, 2025. May has the most reports, 12.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Hayes

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is N, VA, 10 miles north of Hayes at 4 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 47°F and 29°F. July is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 51.9 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 56% of the year's precipitation (28.9 of 51.9 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 70 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (27); a normal September there has highs of 78°F and 5.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 16 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 77 nights a year. Snowfall averages 8.5 inches a year, most of it in January. That 51.9 inches is more than at 102 of the 109 Virginia stations used on this site (94%). Seaford, 7 miles southeast, has its own station (Newport News International Airport, VA): 45.5 inches a year, 6.4 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 85°F.

Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Yorktown USCG Training Center, VA, 4 miles south, averaged 81°F in July and 43°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from July to August. Sea level at the Yorktown tide gauge, 4 miles from Hayes, has risen 1.91 ± 0.06 inches per decade from 1950 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 19.1 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 116 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at N, VA
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Snow inWater °F
Jan47294.074.243
Feb49302.962.343
Mar56363.970.350
Apr66463.970.359
May73564.470.068
Jun81654.570.076
Jul85705.880.081
Aug83685.570.081
Sep78635.160.077
Oct69514.760.068
Nov59403.350.058
Dec51333.971.448
Year664951.9808.563

Averages for 1991–2020 at N, VA (4 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Yorktown USCG Training Center, VA, from NOAA Tides & Currents. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.

Virginia weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Hayes

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 214 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Hayes: 109 thunderstorm wind reports, 75 heavy rain events, 20 flash floods, 8 floods and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $679,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on March 5, 2025. August has had the most flash floods, 9 of 20. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 184 have had fewer than Hayes.

  • January 31, 2013: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Hayes — 2 injured, $25,000 damage.

  • May 2, 2002: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Hayes — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.

    NWS: “Several trees and power lines down. Structural damage to several homes and trailers.”

  • October 8, 2016: flood 6 miles from the centre of Hayes — $200,000 damage.

    NWS: “Heavy rain caused an extended period of significant flooding across much of the county. Numerous roads were impassable or closed for two days, and many homes and businesses were impacted.”

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 Hayes's ZIP code 23072 have filed 869 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $16.7 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Isabel in 2003: 431 claims (50% of all) and $12.9 million, then November 2009 Nor'easter in 2009 with 115 and Hurricane Irene in 2011 with 59. 84% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 183 Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 172 have fewer than Hayes.

Flood insurance claims in Hayes by named event
EventClaimsPaid
Hurricane Isabel2003431$12.9 million
November 2009 Nor'easter2009115$1.5 million
Hurricane Irene201159$559,000
Tropical Storm Ernesto200659$578,000
Flooding199823$71,000
Hurricane Sandy201214$111,000

Gloucester County, which includes Hayes, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 2, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Gloucester County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for coastal flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hail and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.0 million a year, the 63rd highest of 133 Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.4 million (38%), 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 Hayes