NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Spruce Pine, 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
10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Spruce Pine, North Carolina since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 19 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 10
- Tornadoes
- 19
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Spruce Pine
None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Spruce Pine; the strongest was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm with 63 mph winds when its centre passed 21 miles away. The record near Spruce Pine begins with an unnamed storm in 1901; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 6 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 3 systems. Of the 10 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 475 North Carolina cities on this site, 91% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Spruce Pine. The strongest of the 19 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on July 10, 1980; its path came within 23 miles. Of the 19, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 9 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 6. The most recent tornado was on May 8, 2024. Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 93% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Spruce Pine. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 45 times since 1969, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Of the 475 North Carolina cities, 72% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Spruce Pine.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Spruce Pine
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1959 | GracieSep 30 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 28 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 15 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 3 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 23 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Spruce Pine: 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 Spruce Pine
By decade
- 2020s4
- 2010s3
- 2000s2
- 1990s2
- 1980s2(1 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s1
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 10, 1980 | F3 | 23 mi | 1.9 mi | 0 / 12 |
| May 7, 1998 | F2 | 21 mi | 3.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1989 | F2 | 22 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 9, 1965 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 14, 2023 | EF1 | 23 mi | 2.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 7, 2023 | EF1 | 14 mi | 6.23 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 27, 2010 | EF1 | 24 mi | 2.59 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 6, 1977 | F1 | 16 mi | 18.1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Feb 18, 1976 | F1 | 22 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F1 | 24 mi | 6.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 1973 | F1 | 23 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 8, 1956 | F1 | 15 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 19, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Spruce Pine
The Storm Prediction Center has 45 hail reports within 10 miles of Spruce Pine since 1969, made on 36 separate days. Of these, 22 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on June 10, 1969. The most recent report is from June 25, 2025. June has the most reports, 16.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Spruce Pine
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Celo 2 S, NC, 9 miles southwest of Spruce Pine at 2,700 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 79°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 23°F. April and September are the wettest at 6.0 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 4.3 inches; the year adds up to 64.4 inches over 90 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 50% of the year's precipitation (32.0 of 64.4 inches). September has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (4); a normal September there has highs of 73°F and 6.0 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 2 days a year. Lows fall below freezing on about 117 nights a year. Snowfall averages 12.7 inches a year, most of it in January. That 64.4 inches is more than at 130 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (93%). Bakersville, 10 miles northwest, has its own station (Burnsville Ag, NC): 45.9 inches a year, 18.5 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 79°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 23 | 5.9 | 7 | 4.2 |
| Feb | 49 | 26 | 4.6 | 7 | 2.3 |
| Mar | 56 | 32 | 5.3 | 8 | 3.3 |
| Apr | 65 | 40 | 6.0 | 8 | 0.5 |
| May | 71 | 48 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 76 | 56 | 5.8 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 79 | 59 | 5.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 78 | 58 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 73 | 52 | 6.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 41 | 4.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 56 | 31 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 48 | 26 | 4.7 | 7 | 2.2 |
| Year | 63 | 41 | 64.4 | 90 | 12.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Celo 2 S, NC (2,700 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 Spruce Pine
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 81 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Spruce Pine: 46 thunderstorm wind reports, 27 flash floods, 7 floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 16 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $150.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 63 mph, on July 8, 2001. September has had the most flash floods, 9 of 27. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 358 have had fewer than Spruce Pine.
September 26, 2024: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Spruce Pine — 9 killed, $75.0 million damage.
September 26, 2024: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Spruce Pine — 6 killed, $40.0 million damage.
NWS: “A stream gauge on the North Toe River in Newland indicated devastating flash flooding developed along the stream in Newland and vicinity as rainfall rates intensified during the evening of the 26th.”
September 27, 2024: flash flood 4 miles from the centre of Spruce Pine — 1 killed, $30.0 million damage.
NWS: “Extensive flooding of the North Toe and Nolichucky Rivers, and their tributaries, including Cane Creek developed during the overnight and early morning hours of the 27th as rainfall rates began to intensify again during the evening of the 26th.”
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 Spruce Pine's ZIP code 28777 have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1980, and were paid $642,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 42% 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, 19 have fewer than Spruce Pine.
Mitchell County, which includes Spruce Pine, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 3 floods, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Helene, on September 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Mitchell County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.9 million a year, the 94th highest of 100 North Carolina counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.1 million (59%), 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 Spruce Pine
- Bakersville, NC10 mi
- Newland, NC12 mi
- Burnsville, NC13 mi
- Marion, NC14 mi
- Nebo, NC19 mi
- Roan Mountain, TN19 mi
- Elk Park, NC20 mi
- Old Fort, NC21 mi
- Banner Elk, NC22 mi
- Barnardsville, NC22 mi
- Morganton, NC23 mi
- Unicoi, TN24 mi
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