NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rockingham, 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
57 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Rockingham, North Carolina since 1851, 8 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Debby in 2024. Since 1950, 40 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 8
- Tropical storms
- 49
- Tornadoes
- 40
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
15 deaths in all
What the records show for Rockingham
The strongest storm to pass near Rockingham was Hazel in 1954, a Category 3 hurricane with 115 mph winds when its centre passed 74 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1896, whose centre came within 6 miles. The record near Rockingham begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Debby in 2024, a tropical storm 26 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 6 systems. Of the 57 systems, 8 have come since 2000. Rockingham has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 64% of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site. The highest rating among the 40 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on March 28, 1984, came within 22 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on March 28, 1984, killed 7 people. Of the 40, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 18 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on April 13, 2020. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 79% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rockingham. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 35 times since 1980, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 84% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Rockingham.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rockingham
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | DebbyAug 8 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2022 | IanOct 1 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 8 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2021 | ClaudetteJun 21 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2019 | NestorOct 20 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 7 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2006 | AlbertoJun 14 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1998 | EarlSep 4 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1996 | FranSep 6 | 63 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | AllisonJun 6 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 70 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1985 | BobJul 25 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1984 | DianaSep 14 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 5 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 21 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1970 | AlmaMay 26 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 16 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1956 | FlossySep 26 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 74 mi | Category 3 (115 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleAug 31 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1952 | Unnamed 1952 stormAug 28 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 24 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 20 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormSep 6 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | overhead | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 19 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1927 | Unnamed 1927 stormOct 3 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1920 | Unnamed 1920 stormSep 23 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 16 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1913 | Unnamed 1913 stormOct 10 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 14 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | overhead | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormJul 13 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormOct 31 | 50 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 29 | 6 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 13 | 60 mi | Category 2 (98 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 4 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 28 | 50 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 10 | overhead | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJul 1 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 72 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1867 | Unnamed 1867 stormJun 23 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1856 | Unnamed 1856 stormSep 1 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormSep 9 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormOct 10 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormAug 25 | 45 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 Rockingham: 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 Rockingham
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s3
- 2000s13
- 1990s4
- 1980s8(3 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s4(2 EF3+)
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 1984 | F4 | 20 mi | 17 mi | 7 / 100 |
| Mar 28, 1984 | F4 | 23 mi | 40 mi | 4 / 395 |
| Apr 8, 1957 | F4 | 12 mi | 121.4 mi | 4 / 70 |
| Mar 28, 1984 | F4 | 22 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 24 |
| Apr 18, 1969 | F3 | 21 mi | 77.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Aug 29, 1964 | F3 | 2 mi | 21.9 mi | 0 / 15 |
| Apr 13, 2020 | EF2 | 13 mi | 0.19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 11, 1981 | F2 | 18 mi | 5.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 9, 1976 | F2 | 22 mi | 6.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 15, 1976 | F2 | 12 mi | 12.8 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 13, 2020 | EF1 | 8 mi | 8.82 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 14, 2012 | EF1 | 7 mi | 1.98 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 40, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rockingham
The Storm Prediction Center has 35 hail reports within 10 miles of Rockingham since 1980, made on 28 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 4 days, most recently August 2, 2008. The most recent report is from May 2, 2025. May has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rockingham
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Hamlet, NC, 5 miles southeast of Rockingham at 350 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 33°F. July is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and April the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 49.6 inches over 77 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 57% of the year's precipitation (28.4 of 49.6 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 57 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (22); a normal September there has highs of 84°F and 5.7 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 70 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 71 nights a year. Snowfall averages 0.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 49.6 inches is more than at 63 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (45%). Ellerbe, 11 miles north, has its own station (Jackson Springs 5 WNW, NC): 48.3 inches a year, 1.3 less than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 33 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Feb | 59 | 35 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Mar | 66 | 42 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 76 | 51 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 83 | 60 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 89 | 68 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 92 | 72 | 5.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 90 | 70 | 5.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 64 | 5.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 75 | 51 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 40 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 57 | 35 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.2 |
| Year | 74 | 52 | 49.6 | 77 | 0.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Hamlet, NC (350 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 Rockingham
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 119 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rockingham: 109 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods, 1 flood and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $507,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on May 2, 2003. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 81 have had fewer than Rockingham.
June 18, 2011: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Rockingham — 1 killed.
April 13, 2020: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Rockingham — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Trees and power lines were reported down through the county, including in Rockingham where a structure collapsed.”
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 Rockingham's ZIP code 28379 have filed 22 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1987, and were paid $316,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 64% 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, 72 have fewer than Rockingham.
Richmond County, which includes Rockingham, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tropical storms, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 25, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Richmond County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hurricanes, tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $15.8 million a year, the 67th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.1 million (38%), 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 Rockingham
- Hamlet, NC6 mi
- Ellerbe, NC11 mi
- Laurel Hill, NC14 mi
- Morven, NC16 mi
- Wadesboro, NC19 mi
- Jackson Springs, NC19 mi
- Pinebluff, NC19 mi
- Cheraw, SC19 mi
- Bennettsville, SC20 mi
- Laurinburg, NC20 mi
- Wagram, NC20 mi
- Mc Coll, SC22 mi
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