NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lincolnton, 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
21 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lincolnton, North Carolina since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 100 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 20
- Tornadoes
- 100
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Lincolnton
The strongest storm to pass near Lincolnton was an unnamed storm in 1893, a Category 1 hurricane with 76 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Lincolnton begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 55 miles away. Of the 21 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 65% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Lincolnton. The strongest of the 100 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 5, 1989; its path came within 16 miles, and it killed 4 people. Of the 100, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 59 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on May 3, 2025. Lincolnton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 91% of the 475 North Carolina cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 132 times since 1962, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Lincolnton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 92% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
Compare Lincolnton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lincolnton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1927 | Unnamed 1927 stormOct 3 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 41 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lincolnton: 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 Lincolnton
By decade
- 2020s15
- 2010s21
- 2000s23
- 1990s17(1 EF3+)
- 1980s3(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16(1 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 1989 | F4 | 16 mi | 14 mi | 4 / 52 |
| Mar 27, 1994 | F3 | 24 mi | 18.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 27, 1973 | F3 | 24 mi | 60.2 mi | 0 / 40 |
| Feb 6, 2020 | EF2 | 20 mi | 8.66 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 23, 2017 | EF2 | 20 mi | 4.87 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 11, 2012 | EF2 | 19 mi | 4.15 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Oct 26, 2010 | EF2 | 17 mi | 2.53 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 26, 2010 | EF2 | 13 mi | 2.58 mi | 0 / 11 |
| May 9, 2008 | EF2 | 16 mi | 18.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 15, 2006 | F2 | 9 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 7, 2005 | F2 | 25 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 7, 1998 | F2 | 10 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 100, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lincolnton
The Storm Prediction Center has 132 hail reports within 10 miles of Lincolnton since 1962, made on 89 separate days. Of these, 68 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently May 11, 2008. The most recent report is from August 1, 2025. May has the most reports, 59.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lincolnton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lincolnton 4 W, NC, 5 miles west of Lincolnton at 887 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 51°F and 30°F. August is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.5 inches; the year adds up to 49.6 inches over 78 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 51% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 49.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 21 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (9); a normal September there has highs of 82°F and 4.2 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 35 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 76 nights a year. Snowfall averages 5.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 49.6 inches is more than at 63 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (45%). Dallas, 10 miles south, has its own station (Gastonia, NC): 44.1 inches a year, 5.5 less than here, and a July average high of 91°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 51 | 30 | 3.9 | 6 | 2.6 |
| Feb | 56 | 33 | 3.5 | 6 | 1.0 |
| Mar | 64 | 39 | 4.5 | 7 | 0.8 |
| Apr | 73 | 47 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 79 | 56 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 86 | 64 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 89 | 67 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 67 | 4.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 82 | 60 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 48 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 62 | 38 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Dec | 54 | 33 | 4.1 | 7 | 1.1 |
| Year | 71 | 48 | 49.6 | 78 | 5.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lincolnton 4 W, NC (887 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 Lincolnton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 160 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lincolnton: 140 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 3 floods, 2 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on August 18, 2000. August has had the most flash floods, 6 of 14. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 201 have had fewer than Lincolnton.
July 28, 1997: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Lincolnton — 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “A roof was blown off a building and landed on a car. Trees and power lines were blown down across the city, some onto cars.”
July 13, 2010: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of Lincolnton — 1 injured.
NWS: “Lightning struck and injured a man on Bethel Church Rd.”
February 6, 2020: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Lincolnton — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “Newspaper reported flash flooding developed along the South Fork Catawba River and at least one of its tributaries after around 5 inches of rain fell across the area in 24 hours, with much of that falling during the morning and early afternoon of the 6th.”
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
Lincoln County, which includes Lincolnton, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tornadoes). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lincoln County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $32.2 million a year, the 40th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $22.6 million (70%), 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.