NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Mount Airy, 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
15 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Mount Airy, North Carolina since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 35 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 15
- Tornadoes
- 35
- 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 Mount Airy
None of the 15 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Mount Airy; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1893, a tropical storm with 71 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Mount Airy begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 11 miles away. Of the 15 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 83% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Mount Airy. The highest rating among the 35 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2 or EF2, reached 4 times; the most recent, on March 23, 2022, came within 14 miles. Of the 35, one had a path 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 April 28, 2023. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 84% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Mount Airy. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 97 times since 1955, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Mount Airy has more hail reports within 10 miles than 81% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
Compare Mount Airy's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Mount Airy
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (71 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 70 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 Mount Airy: 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 Mount Airy
By decade
- 2020s4
- 2010s8
- 2000s5
- 1990s6
- 1980s2
- 1970s4
- 1960s4
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 23, 2022 | EF2 | 14 mi | 1.92 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 2017 | EF2 | 17 mi | 16.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 19 mi | 4.92 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Aug 21, 1977 | F2 | 17 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 5, 2022 | EF1 | 21 mi | 2.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 26, 2022 | EF1 | 12 mi | 2.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 24, 2016 | EF1 | 10 mi | 1.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 21, 2013 | EF1 | 21 mi | 0.53 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 2011 | EF1 | 7 mi | 2.68 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 27, 2010 | EF1 | 22 mi | 0.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 26, 2010 | EF1 | 21 mi | 2.25 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF1 | 22 mi | 0.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 35, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Mount Airy
The Storm Prediction Center has 97 hail reports within 10 miles of Mount Airy since 1955, made on 69 separate days. Of these, 56 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on June 5, 1985. 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 Mount Airy
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Mt Airy 2 W, NC, 2 miles west of Mount Airy at 1,080 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 47°F and 25°F. July is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 50.4 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (26.1 of 50.4 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 15 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (7); a normal September there has highs of 79°F and 4.3 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 24 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 111 nights a year. Snowfall averages 8.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 50.4 inches is more than at 71 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (51%). Lowgap, 13 miles west, has its own station (Galax Wtp, VA): 51.2 inches a year, 0.8 more than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47 | 25 | 4.0 | 7 | 3.1 |
| Feb | 51 | 27 | 3.1 | 6 | 2.2 |
| Mar | 58 | 33 | 4.2 | 7 | 1.2 |
| Apr | 69 | 41 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 50 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 59 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 63 | 5.2 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 56 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 70 | 43 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 59 | 33 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 50 | 28 | 4.2 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Year | 68 | 43 | 50.4 | 86 | 8.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Mt Airy 2 W, NC (1,080 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 Mount Airy
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 370 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Mount Airy: 290 thunderstorm wind reports, 45 flash floods, 15 floods, 13 heavy rain events and 7 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $3.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 6, 2022. August has had the most flash floods, 8 of 45. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 439 have had fewer than Mount Airy.
June 24, 2012: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Mount Airy — 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
April 11, 2024: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Mount Airy — 1 injured, $11,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds downed a large tree at the intersection of Stanley Road and Pentecostal Holiness Church Road on the northeast side of Mt. Airy.”
August 20, 2009: lightning strike 5 miles from the centre of Mount Airy — 1 injured.
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 Mount Airy's ZIP code 27030 have filed 70 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $1.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1980, with 25. 10% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 263 North Carolina cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 169 have fewer than Mount Airy.
Surry County, which includes Mount Airy, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 4 snowstorms, 3 tropical storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Surry County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and lightning; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $26.9 million a year, the 45th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $14.6 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.