NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit White Sulphur Springs, WV
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
8 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 6 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 8
- Tornadoes
- 6
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for White Sulphur Springs
None of the 8 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed White Sulphur Springs; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1893, a tropical storm with 67 mph winds when its centre passed 70 miles away. The record near White Sulphur Springs begins with an unnamed storm in 1878; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 60 miles away. Of the 8 systems, one has come since 2000. White Sulphur Springs has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 54% of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site. The strongest of the 6 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F3 on April 4, 1974; its path came within 17 miles, and it killed 1 person. Of the 6, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 2 have come since 2000. The most recent tornado was on September 25, 2024. Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 89% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than White Sulphur Springs. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 31 times since 1960, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 161 West Virginia cities, 81% have more hail reports within 10 miles than White Sulphur Springs.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near White Sulphur Springs
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1979 | DavidSep 6 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1952 | AbleSep 1 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1949 | Unnamed 1949 stormAug 29 | 51 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 4 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormAug 29 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1878 | Unnamed 1878 stormSep 13 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in White Sulphur Springs: 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 White Sulphur Springs
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s1
- 1990s1
- 1970s2(1 EF3+)
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 1974 | F3 | 17 mi | 32.2 mi | 1 / 11 |
| Jun 22, 1990 | F2 | 17 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 24, 1975 | F2 | 14 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 15, 2018 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 21, 1962 | F1 | 12 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 25, 2024 | Unrated | 19 mi | 2.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 6 of 6, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in White Sulphur Springs
The Storm Prediction Center has 31 hail reports within 10 miles of White Sulphur Springs since 1960, made on 23 separate days. Of these, 14 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on May 26, 1960. The most recent report is from April 14, 2025. April has the most reports, 9.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in White Sulphur Springs
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is White Sulphur Springs, WV, 6 miles southwest of White Sulphur Springs at 1,919 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 60°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 21°F. May is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 41.2 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 6 days a year, almost all from July to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 139 nights a year. Snowfall averages 18.1 inches a year, most of it in February. That 41.2 inches is more than at 12 of the 75 West Virginia stations used on this site (16%). Lewisburg, 12 miles west, has its own station (Lewisburg 3 N, WV): 41.6 inches a year, 0.4 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 | 41 | 21 | 3.1 | 7 | 5.6 |
| Feb | 45 | 23 | 2.8 | 6 | 6.3 |
| Mar | 53 | 28 | 3.7 | 8 | 3.4 |
| Apr | 65 | 37 | 3.7 | 8 | 0.3 |
| May | 73 | 47 | 4.5 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 79 | 55 | 3.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 60 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 59 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 52 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 66 | 39 | 2.7 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 55 | 29 | 2.6 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Dec | 44 | 24 | 3.3 | 7 | 2.0 |
| Year | 64 | 40 | 41.2 | 86 | 18.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at White Sulphur Springs, WV (1,919 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 White Sulphur Springs
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 98 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of White Sulphur Springs: 52 thunderstorm wind reports, 20 floods, 13 flash floods, 10 heavy rain events and 3 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $7.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on June 8, 2014. June has had the most flash floods, 4 of 13. Of the 161 West Virginia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 30 have had fewer than White Sulphur Springs.
June 23, 2016: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of White Sulphur Springs — 3 injured, $6.1 million damage.
NWS: “Flash flooding was first reported in Alleghany County at 215 PM EDT (115 PM EST) as Indian Draft Road (Route 600) was closed. Numerous additional reports and social media reports continued to be received through the afternoon.”
June 29, 2012: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of White Sulphur Springs — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm wind downed hundreds, and possibly thousands, of trees across the county. Some vehicles were damaged by the falling trees.”
June 8, 2014: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of White Sulphur Springs — $255,000 damage.
NWS: “Local emergency management survey indicated a couple hundred trees were blown down over a length of 1000 yards by a suspected microburst in the Blue Bend area along Anthony Road, roughly two miles west of the intersection of Anthony Road and WV92. Most trees were uprooted, and some were snapped.”
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 White Sulphur Springs's ZIP code 24986 have filed 126 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $3.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Summer severe storms in 2016: 95 claims (75% of all) and $3.5 million, then Flooding in 1996 with 16. 89% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 131 West Virginia cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 88 have fewer than White Sulphur Springs.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Summer severe storms2016 | 95 | $3.5 million |
| Flooding1996 | 16 | $103,000 |
Greenbrier County, which includes White Sulphur Springs, has been named in 27 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 floods, 7 severe storms, 3 hurricanes, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on February 26, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Greenbrier County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for hail and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, tornadoes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $25.5 million a year, the 12th highest of 55 West Virginia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $18.2 million (71%), 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 White Sulphur Springs
- Lewisburg, WV12 mi
- Covington, VA13 mi
- Ronceverte, WV15 mi
- Hot Springs, VA20 mi
- Clifton Forge, VA24 mi
- Alderson, WV25 mi
- New Castle, VA25 mi
- Marlinton, WV25 mi
- Eagle Rock, VA27 mi
- Richwood, WV30 mi
- Rainelle, WV31 mi
- Fincastle, VA31 mi
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