NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Vansant, 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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Vansant, Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 7 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 7
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Vansant
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Vansant; the strongest was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 20 miles away. The record near Vansant begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 72 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1930s, with 2 systems. Of the 5 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site, 95% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Vansant. The highest rating among the 7 tornadoes within 25 miles is EF2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 8, 2009, came within 24 miles. Of the 7, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on May 8, 2009. Of the 364 Virginia cities, 96% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Vansant. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 24 times since 1995, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 364 Virginia cities, 81% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Vansant.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Vansant
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Vansant: 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 Vansant
By decade
- 2000s5
- 1990s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 20 mi | 1.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 24 mi | 1.71 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 19, 1996 | F1 | 22 mi | 3.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1974 | F1 | 12 mi | 7.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF0 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF0 | 19 mi | 0.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 11, 2009 | EF0 | 15 mi | 4.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 7 of 7, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Vansant
The Storm Prediction Center has 24 hail reports within 10 miles of Vansant since 1995, made on 17 separate days. Of these, 14 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 3 days, most recently April 9, 2011. The most recent report is from May 19, 2022. May has the most reports, 11.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Vansant
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Grundy, VA, 6 miles north of Vansant at 1,157 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 24°F. July is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 46.9 inches over 94 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 112 nights a year. Snowfall averages 16.0 inches a year, most of it in January. That 46.9 inches is more than at 69 of the 109 Virginia stations used on this site (63%). Haysi, 10 miles west, has its own station (Clintwood 1W, VA): 49.2 inches a year, 2.3 more than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 24 | 3.3 | 8 | 6.2 |
| Feb | 47 | 27 | 3.3 | 7 | 4.2 |
| Mar | 56 | 32 | 4.0 | 8 | 2.6 |
| Apr | 67 | 40 | 4.3 | 9 | 0.2 |
| May | 74 | 50 | 4.8 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 59 | 4.8 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 5.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 63 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 56 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 44 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 56 | 33 | 2.6 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Dec | 46 | 28 | 3.7 | 8 | 2.4 |
| Year | 65 | 43 | 46.9 | 94 | 16.0 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Grundy, VA (1,157 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 Vansant
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 106 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Vansant: 80 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 floods, 12 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 2 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $5.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 63 mph, on February 11, 2009. August has had the most flash floods, 3 of 12. Of the 364 Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 101 have had fewer than Vansant.
March 4, 2015: flood 8 miles from the centre of Vansant — 1 killed, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “Small streams started to flood by evening on the 4th. Guess Fork flooded roads around Hurley.”
May 16, 2023: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Vansant — 1 killed.
June 13, 2021: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Vansant — 1 injured, $5,000 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Vansant's ZIP code 24656 have filed 29 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $566,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1984: 11 claims (38% of all) and $35,000. 48% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 183 Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 67 have fewer than Vansant.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1984 | 11 | $35,000 |
Buchanan County, which includes Vansant, has been named in 27 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 severe storms, 6 floods, 4 snowstorms, 3 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storms and Flooding, on April 4, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Buchanan County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes, hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.7 million a year, the 50th highest of 133 Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.5 million (80%), 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 Vansant
- Oakwood, VA7 mi
- Grundy, VA8 mi
- Haysi, VA10 mi
- Raven, VA13 mi
- Honaker, VA14 mi
- Hurley, VA16 mi
- Elkhorn City, KY17 mi
- Clintwood, VA18 mi
- Richlands, VA19 mi
- Phelps, KY21 mi
- Cedar Bluff, VA22 mi
- Lebanon, VA22 mi
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