NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lavalette, WV
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
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lavalette, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 28 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 28
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Lavalette
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Lavalette; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 37 miles away. The record near Lavalette begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 57 miles away. None of the 7 systems has come since 2000. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site, 45% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Lavalette. The highest rating among the 28 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 2, 2012, came within 16 miles. Of the 28, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 16 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 9. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2024. Lavalette has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 66% of the 161 West Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 107 times since 1962, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Lavalette has more hail reports within 10 miles than 93% of the 161 West Virginia cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lavalette
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lavalette: 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 Lavalette
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s5(1 EF3+)
- 2000s2
- 1990s4
- 1980s4
- 1970s3
- 1960s1(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 16 mi | 84.99 mi | 10 / 118 |
| Apr 8, 1965 | F3 | 4 mi | 6.9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF2 | 16 mi | 1.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 2016 | EF2 | 15 mi | 2.63 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jul 12, 1980 | F2 | 14 mi | 29.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 11 mi | 4.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.44 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 5 mi | 0.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 21 mi | 1.09 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 17 mi | 1.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 22 mi | 7.88 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 28, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lavalette
The Storm Prediction Center has 107 hail reports within 10 miles of Lavalette since 1962, made on 63 separate days. Of these, 55 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on July 23, 1962. The most recent report is from April 29, 2025. May has the most reports, 32.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lavalette
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Huntington Tri State Airport, WV, 7 miles northwest of Lavalette at 824 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 26°F. July is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 45.3 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 25 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 90 nights a year. Snowfall averages 19.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 45.3 inches is more than at 33 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (44%). Huntington, 7 miles north, has its own station (Huntington Swg Pl, WV): 45.2 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 26 | 3.1 | 7 | 6.0 |
| Feb | 47 | 29 | 3.4 | 7 | 5.8 |
| Mar | 57 | 36 | 4.2 | 8 | 4.3 |
| Apr | 69 | 46 | 3.9 | 8 | 0.3 |
| May | 76 | 54 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 62 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 66 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 65 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 58 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 69 | 46 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 57 | 37 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.5 |
| Dec | 47 | 30 | 3.6 | 7 | 2.7 |
| Year | 67 | 46 | 45.3 | 86 | 19.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Huntington Tri State Airport, WV (824 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 Lavalette
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 306 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lavalette: 210 thunderstorm wind reports, 50 flash floods, 37 floods, 7 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 3 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $6.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on April 2, 2024. July has had the most flash floods, 20 of 50. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 134 have had fewer than Lavalette.
May 6, 2022: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Lavalette — 1 killed, $900,000 damage.
July 14, 2016: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Lavalette — 1 killed, $500,000 damage.
July 25, 2005: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Lavalette — 1 killed, $1,000 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 Lavalette's ZIP code 25535 have filed 61 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $633,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 23 claims (38% of all) and $271,000. 48% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 131 West Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 61 have fewer than Lavalette.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 23 | $271,000 |
Wayne County, which includes Lavalette, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 26 of them major disasters (by incident: 14 severe storms, 9 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on February 26, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Wayne County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $30.9 million a year, the 8th highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $26.4 million (85%), 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 Lavalette
- Wayne, WV5 mi
- Huntington, WV7 mi
- Prichard, WV9 mi
- Kenova, WV9 mi
- Chesapeake, OH10 mi
- Catlettsburg, KY10 mi
- Barboursville, WV11 mi
- South Point, OH11 mi
- Proctorville, OH12 mi
- Fort Gay, WV15 mi
- Branchland, WV15 mi
- Ona, WV15 mi
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