Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Wilson, NC

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wilson 3 SW, NC, 3 miles south of Wilson at 110 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 52°F and 33°F. September is the wettest at 6.1 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 50.4 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 56% of the year's precipitation (28.0 of 50.4 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 85 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (37); a normal September there has highs of 83°F and 6.1 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 51 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 60 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.9 inches a year, most of it in January. That 50.4 inches is more than at 71 of the 140 North Carolina stations used on this site (51%). Elm City, 7 miles northeast, has its own station (Rocky Mt Wilson Airport, NC): 44.4 inches a year, 6.0 less than here, and a July average high of 91°F against 90°F.

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 192 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Wilson: 148 thunderstorm wind reports, 35 flash floods, 6 heavy rain events, 2 lightning strikes and 1 flood. They killed 2 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $79.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on May 20, 2022. November has had the most flash floods, 11 of 35. Of the 472 North Carolina cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 408 have had fewer than Wilson.

Flood insurance policyholders in Wilson's 2 ZIP codes have filed 426 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $10.7 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Floyd in 1999: 164 claims (38% of all) and $4.8 million, then Hurricane Matthew in 2016 with 73 and Mid-spring storms in 2014 with 20. 71% 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, 218 have fewer than Wilson.