NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Irmo, 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
53 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Irmo, South Carolina since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Debby in 2024. Since 1950, 116 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 50
- Tornadoes
- 116
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
12 deaths in all
What the records show for Irmo
The strongest storm to pass near Irmo was an unnamed storm in 1896, a Category 1 hurricane with 90 mph winds when its centre passed 57 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1893, whose centre came within 10 miles. The record near Irmo begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Debby in 2024, a tropical storm 58 miles away. The 1850s and the 1880s were the busiest decades, with 6 systems each. Of the 53 systems, 7 have come since 2000. Of the 246 South Carolina cities on this site, 55% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Irmo. The strongest of the 116 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on March 28, 1984; its path came within 18 miles, and it killed 5 people. Of the 116, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 64 have come since 2000. March has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on June 9, 2025. Irmo has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 94% of the 246 South Carolina cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 107 times since 1967, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Irmo has more hail reports within 10 miles than 76% of the 246 South Carolina cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Irmo
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | DebbyAug 8 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 8 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2019 | NestorOct 20 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2018 | FlorenceSep 16 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 7 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2006 | AlbertoJun 14 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1998 | EarlSep 4 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1995 | AllisonJun 6 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 28 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1976 | Unnamed 1976 stormSep 15 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 21 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1970 | AlmaMay 26 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 16 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1964 | CleoAug 30 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1959 | CindyJul 9 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1956 | FlossySep 26 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 24 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1946 | Unnamed 1946 stormOct 9 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 17 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 20 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormSep 5 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1927 | Unnamed 1927 stormOct 3 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1913 | Unnamed 1913 stormOct 9 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 18 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 15 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 18 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 29 | 57 mi | Category 1 (90 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 4 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 10 mi | Category 1 (85 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 10 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJul 1 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 12 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1856 | Unnamed 1856 stormSep 1 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormSep 9 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormOct 10 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 27 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormAug 24 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Irmo: 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 Irmo
By decade
- 2020s21
- 2010s19
- 2000s24(1 EF3+)
- 1990s30(4 EF3+)
- 1980s8(2 EF3+)
- 1970s7(1 EF3+)
- 1960s3
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 1984 | F4 | 18 mi | 21 mi | 5 / 49 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F3 | 14 mi | 67 mi | 1 / 9 |
| Dec 13, 1973 | F3 | 15 mi | 17.3 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Mar 15, 2008 | EF3 | 7 mi | 27.51 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Nov 2, 1995 | F3 | 22 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1994 | F3 | 14 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1994 | F3 | 6 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 40 |
| Mar 28, 1984 | F3 | 15 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Mar 13, 1955 | F2 | 24 mi | 9.9 mi | 2 / 10 |
| Sep 27, 2004 | F2 | 19 mi | 2 mi | 1 / 13 |
| Jul 23, 1997 | F2 | 19 mi | 3.5 mi | 1 / 6 |
| May 15, 1976 | F2 | 13 mi | 3.8 mi | 1 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 116, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Irmo
The Storm Prediction Center has 107 hail reports within 10 miles of Irmo since 1967, made on 66 separate days. Of these, 55 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 1, 2012. The most recent report is from February 23, 2024. July has the most reports, 22.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Irmo
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cedar Creek 2E, SC, 10 miles northeast of Irmo at 338 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 29°F. August is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and April the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 45.7 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (23.7 of 45.7 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 53 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (20); a normal September there has highs of 83°F and 3.8 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 71 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 94 nights a year. Snowfall averages 0.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 45.7 inches is more than at 19 of the 78 South Carolina stations used on this site (24%). Chapin, 8 miles west, has its own station (Little Mountain, SC): 45.8 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and a July average high of 91°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 29 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.8 |
| Feb | 58 | 31 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 65 | 37 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 74 | 45 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| May | 81 | 55 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 87 | 64 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 90 | 68 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 68 | 5.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 83 | 60 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 74 | 47 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 64 | 36 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 56 | 31 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Year | 73 | 48 | 45.7 | 74 | 0.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cedar Creek 2E, SC (338 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 Irmo
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 457 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Irmo: 391 thunderstorm wind reports, 43 flash floods, 12 heavy rain events, 6 lightning strikes and 5 floods. They killed 3 people and injured 26, and the NWS estimated $10.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 110 mph, on April 15, 2018. October has had the most flash floods, 11 of 43. Of the 241 South Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 223 have had fewer than Irmo.
October 4, 2015: flash flood 9 miles from the centre of Irmo — 1 killed, 1 injured, $810,000 damage.
June 22, 2000: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Irmo — 1 killed, 1 injured.
NWS: “Sheriff reported trees down. One man was killed when a tree fell on his vehicle.”
February 13, 2020: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Irmo — 1 killed.
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 Irmo's ZIP code 29063 have filed 80 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $706,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from October severe storms in 2015: 35 claims (44% of all) and $579,000. 48% 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, 70 have fewer than Irmo.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| October severe storms2015 | 35 | $579,000 |
Richland County, which includes Irmo, has been named in 26 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 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 Richland County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hurricanes, tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $137.8 million a year, the 7th highest of 46 South Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $74.1 million (54%), 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 Irmo
- Chapin, SC8 mi
- Lexington, SC11 mi
- Columbia, SC12 mi
- Little Mountain, SC12 mi
- West Columbia, SC12 mi
- Cayce, SC13 mi
- Blythewood, SC13 mi
- Gilbert, SC16 mi
- Prosperity, SC18 mi
- Pomaria, SC18 mi
- Winnsboro, SC18 mi
- Leesville, SC20 mi
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