Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Salisbury, MD

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Salisbury, MD, in Salisbury at 10 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 47°F and 29°F. August is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 48.0 inches over 77 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 54% of the year's precipitation (26.0 of 48.0 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 61 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (24); a normal September there has highs of 81°F and 4.3 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 31 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 71 nights a year. That 48.0 inches is more than at 34 of the 41 Maryland stations used on this site (83%). Parsonsburg, 7 miles east, has its own station (Salisbury Wicomico Regional Airport, MD): 47.6 inches a year, 0.4 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 89°F.

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 222 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Salisbury: 128 thunderstorm wind reports, 64 heavy rain events, 17 flash floods, 8 floods and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $796,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 76 mph, on June 13, 1998. July has had the most flash floods, 9 of 17. Of the 239 Maryland cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 57 have had fewer than Salisbury.

Flood insurance policyholders in Salisbury's 2 ZIP codes have filed 134 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $4.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Sandy in 2012: 29 claims (22% of all) and $1.1 million. 32% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 150 Maryland cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 121 have fewer than Salisbury.