NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Meadow Bridge, 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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Meadow Bridge, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Hugo in 1989. Since 1950, 18 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 18
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Meadow Bridge
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Meadow Bridge; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1878, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 68 miles away. The record near Meadow Bridge begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm 51 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1930s, with 2 systems. None of the 5 systems has come since 2000. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site, 89% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Meadow Bridge. The highest rating among the 18 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 4, 1974, came within 18 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on April 4, 1974, killed 1 person. Of the 18, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 2 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 10. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2024. Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 56% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Meadow Bridge. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 26 times since 1980, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 88% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Meadow Bridge.
Compare Meadow Bridge's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Meadow Bridge
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Meadow Bridge: 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 Meadow Bridge
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s1
- 1990s1
- 1980s1
- 1970s7(2 EF3+)
- 1960s6
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 1974 | F3 | 1 mi | 32.2 mi | 1 / 11 |
| Apr 4, 1974 | F3 | 18 mi | 9.2 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF2 | 16 mi | 5.31 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Oct 7, 2014 | EF2 | 24 mi | 3.01 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 22, 1990 | F2 | 22 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 11, 1976 | F2 | 23 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 24, 1975 | F2 | 21 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 1965 | F2 | 25 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 25, 1961 | F2 | 19 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 9, 1980 | F1 | 19 mi | 4.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1974 | F1 | 19 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 1967 | F1 | 22 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 18, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Meadow Bridge
The Storm Prediction Center has 26 hail reports within 10 miles of Meadow Bridge since 1980, made on 23 separate days. Of these, 17 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on June 5, 2001. The most recent report is from April 8, 2020. July has the most reports, 8.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Meadow Bridge
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Alderson, WV, 13 miles southeast of Meadow Bridge at 1,552 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 22°F. May is the wettest at 4.4 inches of precipitation on average and October and November the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 40.7 inches over 85 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 20 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 127 nights a year. Snowfall averages 12.2 inches a year, most of it in February. That 40.7 inches is more than at 10 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (13%). Rainelle, 8 miles north, has its own station (Rupert 4 N, WV): 53.3 inches a year, 12.6 more than here, and a July average high of 77°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 41 | 22 | 3.0 | 7 | 3.6 |
| Feb | 45 | 24 | 2.9 | 6 | 4.2 |
| Mar | 54 | 30 | 3.8 | 8 | 2.0 |
| Apr | 66 | 39 | 3.6 | 8 | 0.1 |
| May | 75 | 49 | 4.4 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 58 | 3.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 62 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 60 | 3.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 54 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 68 | 41 | 2.6 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 55 | 30 | 2.6 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 45 | 25 | 3.4 | 7 | 2.0 |
| Year | 65 | 41 | 40.7 | 85 | 12.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Alderson, WV (1,552 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 Meadow Bridge
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 73 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Meadow Bridge: 42 thunderstorm wind reports, 16 floods, 13 flash floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 16 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $44.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 87 mph, on June 29, 2012. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 30 have had fewer than Meadow Bridge.
June 23, 2016: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Meadow Bridge — 16 killed, $40.0 million damage.
June 23, 2016: flood 10 miles from the centre of Meadow Bridge — $2.0 million damage.
June 23, 2016: flash flood in Meadow Bridge — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Flash flooding was less severe in Summers County than in neighboring Greenbrier as rainfall was considerably less, ranging generally from 2 to 4 inches over the northeastern sections of the county.”
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
Summers County, which includes Meadow Bridge, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 severe storms, 6 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 droughts). 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 Summers County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.2 million a year, the 40th highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.8 million (71%), 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 Meadow Bridge
- Rainelle, WV8 mi
- Hinton, WV13 mi
- Alderson, WV13 mi
- Shady Spring, WV13 mi
- Beaver, WV16 mi
- Daniels, WV17 mi
- Oak Hill, WV19 mi
- Mount Hope, WV19 mi
- Beckley, WV20 mi
- Fayetteville, WV20 mi
- Cool Ridge, WV21 mi
- Ronceverte, WV22 mi
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