NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Roanoke, AL
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
21 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Roanoke, Alabama since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 81 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 21
- Tornadoes
- 81
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
27 deaths in all
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Roanoke
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 15 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 8 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 4 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 13 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 1 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 3 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 23 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 28 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 10 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 28 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 27 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Roanoke: 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 Roanoke
By decade
- 2020s13(3 EF3+)
- 2010s16(1 EF3+)
- 2000s16
- 1990s6
- 1980s17
- 1970s9(2 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 19 mi | 44.18 mi | 7 / 30 |
| May 1, 1953 | F4 | 24 mi | 12.1 mi | 7 / 12 |
| Mar 25, 2021 | EF4 | 12 mi | 38.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF3 | 12 mi | 82.31 mi | 7 / 16 |
| Mar 19, 1970 | F3 | 25 mi | 2 mi | 2 / 14 |
| Jan 26, 1974 | F3 | 4 mi | 21.3 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Mar 26, 2023 | EF3 | 21 mi | 21.54 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 11 mi | 34.04 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Aug 29, 2005 | F2 | 24 mi | 5.5 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Mar 5, 1989 | F2 | 7 mi | 45.5 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 21 mi | 35.82 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 10 mi | 20.74 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 81, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
How to read this page
A storm is listed when the centre of its track passed within 75 miles of Roanoke while it was at least a tropical storm, which is the reach of damaging wind and rain for a typical hurricane. Being on the list does not mean the city took a direct hit; the "closest" column says how near the centre came. Tornadoes are counted when any part of the path came within 25 miles.
Tornado records before the 1990s are thinner, because weak tornadoes in open country often went unreported before Doppler radar and mobile phones. A rise in the decade counts is mostly better reporting, not a change in the weather.
Tracks come from the National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database, tornadoes from the Storm Prediction Center's database. Both are the official federal records and both are revised as old storms are re-analysed.