NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Spring Lake, 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
66 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Spring Lake, North Carolina since 1851, 5 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ian in 2022. Since 1950, 72 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 5
- Tropical storms
- 61
- Tornadoes
- 72
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
22 deaths in all
What the records show for Spring Lake
The strongest storm to pass near Spring Lake was Hazel in 1954, a Category 2 hurricane with 108 mph winds when its centre passed 32 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was an unnamed storm in 1899, whose centre came within 14 miles. The record near Spring Lake begins with an unnamed storm in 1851; the most recent system was Ian in 2022, a tropical storm 36 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1880s, with 7 systems. Of the 66 systems, 12 have come since 2000. Spring Lake has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 54% of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site. The highest rating among the 72 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 28, 1984, came within 20 miles. The deadliest, an EF3 on April 16, 2011, killed 6 people. Of the 72, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 30 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 14. The most recent tornado was on January 3, 2022. Spring Lake has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 66% of the 475 North Carolina cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 77 times since 1973, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Spring Lake has more hail reports within 10 miles than 63% of the 475 North Carolina cities.
Compare Spring Lake's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Spring Lake
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | IanOct 1 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2021 | ElsaJul 8 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2021 | ClaudetteJun 21 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2020 | IsaiasAug 4 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2019 | NestorOct 20 | overhead | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2013 | AndreaJun 7 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | HannaSep 6 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 1 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2006 | AlbertoJun 14 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2004 | CharleyAug 14 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2000 | HeleneSep 23 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1999 | DennisSep 5 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1998 | EarlSep 4 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1996 | JosephineOct 8 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1996 | FranSep 6 | 15 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | AllisonJun 6 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1984 | DianaSep 14 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1972 | AgnesJun 21 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1971 | GingerOct 1 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1970 | AlmaMay 26 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 16 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1964 | IsbellOct 16 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1960 | BrendaJul 30 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1956 | FlossySep 26 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1955 | DianeAug 17 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 32 mi | Category 2 (108 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | Unnamed 1952 stormAug 28 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 25 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormOct 20 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 2 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1935 | Unnamed 1935 stormSep 6 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 19 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1924 | Unnamed 1924 stormSep 30 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1920 | Unnamed 1920 stormSep 23 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormSep 6 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormMay 16 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1913 | Unnamed 1913 stormSep 3 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1904 | Unnamed 1904 stormSep 14 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 16 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormJul 13 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormOct 31 | 14 mi | Category 1 (77 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 29 | 26 mi | Category 1 (82 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormOct 9 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 13 | 23 mi | Category 1 (91 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 4 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormJun 16 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 24 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormSep 10 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJul 2 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormJun 22 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1883 | Unnamed 1883 stormSep 12 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 11 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 12 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormOct 4 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1874 | Unnamed 1874 stormSep 29 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1867 | Unnamed 1867 stormJun 23 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 17 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1856 | Unnamed 1856 stormSep 1 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1854 | Unnamed 1854 stormSep 9 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormOct 10 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1851 | Unnamed 1851 stormAug 25 | 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 Spring Lake: 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 Spring Lake
By decade
- 2020s2
- 2010s6(2 EF3+)
- 2000s22
- 1990s10(1 EF3+)
- 1980s12(1 EF3+)
- 1970s10(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s3(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 1984 | F4 | 20 mi | 40 mi | 4 / 395 |
| Apr 8, 1957 | F4 | 23 mi | 121.4 mi | 4 / 70 |
| Apr 16, 2011 | EF3 | 19 mi | 65.23 mi | 6 / 103 |
| Apr 16, 2011 | EF3 | 5 mi | 52.86 mi | 2 / 176 |
| Feb 22, 1971 | F3 | 9 mi | 85.7 mi | 2 / 60 |
| Nov 23, 1992 | F3 | 24 mi | 160 mi | 0 / 44 |
| Apr 18, 1969 | F3 | 17 mi | 77.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Sep 29, 1963 | F2 | 23 mi | 85.8 mi | 3 / 12 |
| Feb 11, 1981 | F2 | 11 mi | 12.4 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Mar 27, 2009 | EF2 | 21 mi | 2.02 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 19, 1986 | F2 | 12 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jun 16, 1982 | F2 | 24 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 72, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Spring Lake
The Storm Prediction Center has 77 hail reports within 10 miles of Spring Lake since 1973, made on 54 separate days. Of these, 46 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 24, 2009. The most recent report is from May 29, 2025. May has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Spring Lake
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Fayetteville (Pwc), NC, 12 miles southeast of Spring Lake at 96 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 32°F. July is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 47.9 inches over 78 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 57% of the year's precipitation (27.3 of 47.9 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 66 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (27); a normal September there has highs of 84°F and 4.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 53 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 63 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 47.9 inches is more than at 43 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (31%). Linden, 10 miles east, has its own station (Dunn 4 NW, NC): 50.2 inches a year, 2.3 more than here, and a July average high of 92°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 32 | 3.4 | 7 | 0.6 |
| Feb | 58 | 33 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Mar | 65 | 40 | 3.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 74 | 48 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 81 | 58 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 88 | 67 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 71 | 5.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 69 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 63 | 4.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 75 | 51 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 40 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 57 | 34 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.3 |
| Year | 73 | 51 | 47.9 | 78 | 1.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Fayetteville (Pwc), NC (96 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 Spring Lake
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 130 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Spring Lake: 98 thunderstorm wind reports, 20 flash floods, 7 lightning strikes, 3 heavy rain events and 2 floods. They killed 5 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $150.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 74 mph, on July 8, 2015. September has had the most flash floods, 7 of 20. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 284 have had fewer than Spring Lake.
October 9, 2016: flood 6 miles from the centre of Spring Lake — 4 killed, $82.1 million damage.
NWS: “Torrential rainfall of 12 to 15 inches caused widespread flash flooding across the county. The heavy rains caused at least 8 dams to breach in Cumberland County.”
April 9, 2015: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Spring Lake — 1 killed.
NWS: “A woman was out walking her 2 dogs when lightning struck her and her dogs just outside her home. The dogs died instantly, while she passed away several days later.”
September 25, 2009: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Spring Lake — 2 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 Spring Lake's ZIP code 28390 have filed 22 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1996, and were paid $650,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Florence in 2018: 11 claims (50% of all) and $492,000. 68% 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 Spring Lake.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Florence2018 | 11 | $492,000 |
Cumberland County, which includes Spring Lake, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1984, 10 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tropical storms, 1 fire). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 25, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cumberland County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hurricanes, tornadoes and lightning; Relatively Moderate for hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $90.2 million a year, the 12th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $40.6 million (45%), 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 Spring Lake
- Fort Bragg, NC8 mi
- Linden, NC10 mi
- Cameron, NC11 mi
- Bunnlevel, NC11 mi
- Fayetteville, NC12 mi
- Wade, NC14 mi
- Lillington, NC15 mi
- Broadway, NC15 mi
- Vass, NC15 mi
- Erwin, NC18 mi
- Hope Mills, NC18 mi
- Sanford, NC18 mi
All North Carolina cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Spring Lake with another place →