NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Pfafftown, 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
20 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Pfafftown, North Carolina since 1851, 1 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 55 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 1
- Tropical storms
- 19
- Tornadoes
- 55
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Pfafftown
The strongest storm to pass near Pfafftown was an unnamed storm in 1896, a Category 1 hurricane with 79 mph winds when its centre passed 69 miles away. The record near Pfafftown begins with an unnamed storm in 1859; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 37 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 4 systems. Of the 20 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 65% have more hurricanes within 75 miles than Pfafftown. The highest rating among the 55 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 5 times; the most recent, on March 28, 2010, came within 22 miles. The deadliest, an EF2 on May 8, 2008, killed 1 person. Of the 55, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 26 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 20. The most recent tornado was on May 26, 2022. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 55% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Pfafftown. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 90 times since 1970, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Pfafftown has more hail reports within 10 miles than 76% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Pfafftown
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 69 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 45 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 Pfafftown: 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 Pfafftown
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s8(1 EF3+)
- 2000s17(1 EF3+)
- 1990s6(1 EF3+)
- 1980s10(2 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s4
- 1950s5
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 2010 | EF3 | 22 mi | 3.46 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2008 | EF3 | 12 mi | 2.9 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 7, 1998 | F3 | 11 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 5, 1989 | F3 | 9 mi | 10.5 mi | 0 / 30 |
| May 22, 1985 | F3 | 8 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2008 | EF2 | 21 mi | 3.85 mi | 1 / 3 |
| May 24, 2017 | EF2 | 7 mi | 16.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 2017 | EF2 | 13 mi | 5.94 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 8, 2008 | EF2 | 14 mi | 0.34 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2008 | EF2 | 14 mi | 3.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 7, 2005 | F2 | 22 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1989 | F2 | 9 mi | 5.5 mi | 0 / 10 |
The strongest 12 of 55, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Pfafftown
The Storm Prediction Center has 90 hail reports within 10 miles of Pfafftown since 1970, made on 66 separate days. Of these, 49 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on March 23, 2005. The most recent report is from May 7, 2024. June has the most reports, 27.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Pfafftown
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Winston Salem Rynlds Airport, NC, 9 miles southeast of Pfafftown at 970 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 31°F. August is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 43.3 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 52% of the year's precipitation (22.6 of 43.3 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 20 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (10); a normal September there has highs of 80°F and 3.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 33 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 64 nights a year. That 43.3 inches is more than at 5 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (4%). Lewisville, 7 miles southwest, has its own station (Yadkinville 6 E, NC): 46.7 inches a year, 3.4 more than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 31 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Feb | 53 | 33 | 2.9 | 6 |
| Mar | 61 | 40 | 3.6 | 7 |
| Apr | 71 | 48 | 3.7 | 7 |
| May | 78 | 57 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Jun | 85 | 65 | 3.6 | 7 |
| Jul | 88 | 69 | 4.2 | 8 |
| Aug | 86 | 68 | 4.5 | 7 |
| Sep | 80 | 61 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Oct | 71 | 49 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Nov | 60 | 39 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Dec | 52 | 34 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Year | 69 | 50 | 43.3 | 76 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Winston Salem Rynlds Airport, NC (970 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 Pfafftown
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 349 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Pfafftown: 303 thunderstorm wind reports, 39 flash floods, 4 floods, 2 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $4.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on April 22, 2006. July has had the most flash floods, 9 of 39. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 421 have had fewer than Pfafftown.
March 5, 1997: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Pfafftown — 1 killed, 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
October 11, 2018: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Pfafftown — $1.4 million damage.
June 13, 2013: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Pfafftown — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Widespread trees and power-lines were blown down throughout the county. Northwestern portions of the county were the hardest hit.”
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
Forsyth County, which includes Pfafftown, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 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 Forsyth County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $104.1 million a year, the 10th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $71.9 million (69%), 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 Pfafftown
- Tobaccoville, NC4 mi
- Rural Hall, NC5 mi
- Lewisville, NC7 mi
- King, NC8 mi
- Winston Salem, NC9 mi
- East Bend, NC9 mi
- Germanton, NC11 mi
- Clemmons, NC11 mi
- Walkertown, NC11 mi
- Pinnacle, NC11 mi
- Walnut Cove, NC15 mi
- Kernersville, NC16 mi
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