NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Hays, NC
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
14 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Hays, North Carolina since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 28 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 14
- Tornadoes
- 28
- 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 Hays
None of the 14 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Hays; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1893, a tropical storm with 72 mph winds when its centre passed 60 miles away. The record near Hays begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 8 miles away. Of the 14 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 85% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Hays. The highest rating among the 28 tornadoes within 25 miles is EF2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 26, 2022, came within 24 miles. Of the 28, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 17 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on September 26, 2024. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 88% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Hays. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 57 times since 1984, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 58% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Hays.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Hays
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Hays: 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 Hays
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s5
- 2000s3
- 1990s1
- 1980s1
- 1970s5
- 1960s2
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 26, 2022 | EF2 | 24 mi | 5.97 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 18 mi | 4.92 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Sep 26, 2024 | EF1 | 8 mi | 0.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 11, 2024 | EF1 | 8 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 5, 2022 | EF1 | 21 mi | 2.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 2022 | EF1 | 22 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 23, 2022 | EF1 | 22 mi | 6.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 23, 2017 | EF1 | 3 mi | 8.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 23, 2017 | EF1 | 21 mi | 8.17 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 8, 2017 | EF1 | 18 mi | 7.08 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 5, 2011 | EF1 | 5 mi | 1.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF1 | 17 mi | 0.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 28, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Hays
The Storm Prediction Center has 57 hail reports within 10 miles of Hays since 1984, made on 46 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 5 days, most recently April 30, 2012. The most recent report is from May 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Hays
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is N Wilkesboro, NC, 11 miles south of Hays at 1,120 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 48°F and 27°F. August is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.3 inches; the year adds up to 51.8 inches over 84 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 50% of the year's precipitation (26.1 of 51.8 inches). September has brought the most of the 14 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (6); a normal September there has highs of 79°F and 4.3 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 32 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 104 nights a year. Snowfall averages 5.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 51.8 inches is more than at 86 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (61%). Millers Creek, 9 miles southwest, has its own station (W Kerr Scott Resv, NC): 52.6 inches a year, 0.8 more than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 27 | 4.4 | 7 | 2.0 |
| Feb | 52 | 29 | 3.3 | 7 | 1.4 |
| Mar | 60 | 36 | 4.4 | 8 | 0.3 |
| Apr | 70 | 44 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 77 | 53 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 62 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 66 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 65 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 58 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 71 | 46 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 60 | 35 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 51 | 30 | 4.4 | 7 | 1.9 |
| Year | 69 | 46 | 51.8 | 84 | 5.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at N Wilkesboro, NC (1,120 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 Hays
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 144 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Hays: 115 thunderstorm wind reports, 17 flash floods, 5 heavy rain events, 4 lightning strikes and 3 floods. They killed 2 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $5.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on August 30, 2003. August has had the most flash floods, 6 of 17. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 247 have had fewer than Hays.
June 13, 2013: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Hays — 1 killed, $75,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorms along a squall line produced damaging winds that downed trees along a swath that included the communities of Roaring River, Hays, and Pleasant Hill. There was tremendous damage in the Pleasant Hill region.”
June 13, 2013: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Hays — 1 killed, $500 damage.
September 27, 2024: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Hays — $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “Runoff from continued heavy rain resulted in numerous roads becoming flooded and impassible across Alleghany County per reports from the public and from the Alleghany County 911 Dispatch Center.”
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
Wilkes County, which includes Hays, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 3 floods, 3 snowstorms, 3 tropical storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Wilkes County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes and hail; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $33.1 million a year, the 39th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $25.5 million (77%), 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 Hays
- Traphill, NC6 mi
- Millers Creek, NC9 mi
- Roaring River, NC10 mi
- North Wilkesboro, NC10 mi
- Wilkesboro, NC13 mi
- Sparta, NC13 mi
- Ronda, NC13 mi
- State Road, NC15 mi
- Purlear, NC16 mi
- Elkin, NC16 mi
- Moravian Falls, NC17 mi
- Jefferson, NC18 mi
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