NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit The Plains, VA
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
25 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of The Plains, Virginia since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 85 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 22
- Tornadoes
- 85
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for The Plains
The strongest storm to pass near The Plains was an unnamed storm in 1878, a Category 1 hurricane with 92 mph winds when its centre passed 30 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Hazel in 1954, whose centre came within 11 miles. The record near The Plains begins with an unnamed storm in 1876; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 64 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 5 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 25 systems, 3 have come since 2000. The Plains has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 33% of the 364 Virginia cities on this site. The strongest of the 85 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on September 24, 2001; its path came within 12 miles. Of the 85, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. September has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on August 8, 2024. The Plains has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 84% of the 364 Virginia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 57 times since 1982, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). The Plains has more hail reports within 10 miles than 62% of the 364 Virginia cities.
Compare The Plains's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near The Plains
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2006 | ErnestoSep 2 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2003 | IsabelSep 19 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1955 | DianeAug 18 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1955 | ConnieAug 13 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1954 | HazelOct 15 | 11 mi | Category 1 (84 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | overhead | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1945 | Unnamed 1945 stormSep 18 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormAug 2 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1943 | Unnamed 1943 stormOct 1 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 19 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1933 | Unnamed 1933 stormAug 24 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (62 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1929 | Unnamed 1929 stormOct 2 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormSep 20 | overhead | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1899 | Unnamed 1899 stormNov 1 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormSep 30 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (70 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 23 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 14 | 17 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormOct 13 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormOct 23 | 30 mi | Category 1 (92 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1876 | Unnamed 1876 stormSep 18 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in The Plains: 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 The Plains
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s17
- 2000s28(2 EF3+)
- 1990s18
- 1980s8
- 1970s4(1 EF3+)
- 1960s1
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 24, 2001 | F4 | 12 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F3 | 18 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 1, 1973 | F3 | 24 mi | 9.8 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F2 | 18 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F2 | 2 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 17, 2004 | F2 | 11 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 8, 2004 | F2 | 22 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 24, 1996 | F2 | 13 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Sep 27, 1993 | F2 | 7 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Nov 16, 1989 | F2 | 25 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 28, 1981 | F2 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 3, 1980 | F2 | 9 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 85, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in The Plains
The Storm Prediction Center has 57 hail reports within 10 miles of The Plains since 1982, made on 37 separate days. Of these, 43 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 23, 1999. The most recent report is from September 7, 2023. May and June have the most reports, 14 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in The Plains
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Mt Wx, VA, 14 miles northwest of The Plains at 1,659 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 22°F. September is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 46.5 inches over 77 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 53% of the year's precipitation (24.5 of 46.5 inches); the other six months are drier. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 105 nights a year. That 46.5 inches is more than at 63 of the 109 Virginia stations used on this site (58%). Haymarket, 6 miles east, has its own station (Washington Dc Dulles Airport, VA): 43.2 inches a year, 3.3 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 22 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Feb | 43 | 24 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Mar | 50 | 30 | 3.7 | 6 |
| Apr | 62 | 41 | 3.4 | 7 |
| May | 70 | 51 | 4.9 | 8 |
| Jun | 79 | 61 | 4.8 | 8 |
| Jul | 82 | 65 | 4.0 | 7 |
| Aug | 81 | 64 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Sep | 75 | 57 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Oct | 64 | 46 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Nov | 53 | 36 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Dec | 43 | 27 | 3.7 | 6 |
| Year | 62 | 44 | 46.5 | 77 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Mt Wx, VA (1,659 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 The Plains
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 318 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of The Plains: 265 thunderstorm wind reports, 31 floods, 21 flash floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $2.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on June 22, 2022. May has had the most flash floods, 5 of 21. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 194 have had fewer than The Plains.
May 13, 2000: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of The Plains — 3 injured, $50,000 damage.
June 11, 2026: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of The Plains — 1 injured.
June 22, 2022: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of The Plains — $500,000 damage.
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
Fauquier County, which includes The Plains, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 hurricanes, 5 severe storms, 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm, on March 11, 2022. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Fauquier County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $22.2 million a year, the 24th highest of 133 Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $16.2 million (73%), 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.