North Carolina tornado history

1,550 tornadoes in North Carolina from 1950 to 2025, killing 148 people. Choose a county to see every track on a map.

Carteret County81Robeson County50Onslow County49Pender County48Brunswick County44Duplin County42Dare County41Beaufort County40Craven County40Wake County40Columbus County33New Hanover County33Pitt County33Bertie County30Bladen County30Lenoir County30Wayne County30Cleveland County29Mecklenburg County29Harnett County27Cumberland County25Johnston County25Sampson County25Union County24Iredell County23Jones County23Lincoln County23Gaston County21Hyde County21Martin County21Catawba County20Greene County20Pasquotank County20Wilson County20Nash County19Hertford County18Northampton County17Pamlico County17Randolph County17Stanly County17Tyrrell County17Cabarrus County16Edgecombe County16Forsyth County16Guilford County16Halifax County16Moore County16Davidson County15Chowan County14Perquimans County14Rowan County14Franklin County13Hoke County13Rockingham County13Rutherford County13Washington County13Chatham County12Orange County12Wilkes County12Alamance County11Alexander County11Caldwell County11Durham County11Person County11Scotland County11Burke County10Cherokee County10Currituck County10Stokes County10Surry County10Yadkin County10Granville County9Vance County9Anson County8Montgomery County8Buncombe County7Caswell County7Davie County7Gates County7Camden County6Lee County6McDowell County6Warren County6Clay County5Jackson County5Madison County5Henderson County4Macon County4Polk County4Richmond County4Swain County4Watauga County4Alleghany County3Transylvania County3Yancey County3Avery County2Haywood County2Ashe County1Graham County1

By decade

’50’60’70’80’90’00’10’20

Deadliest tornadoes in North Carolina

DateRatingPathWidthInjuredKilled
Mar 28, 1984F428 mi1,223 yd15316
Apr 16, 2011EF317.9 mi1,300 yd5812
Mar 28, 1984F340 mi1,407 yd10112
Nov 16, 2006F32.1 mi300 yd208
Mar 28, 1984F417 mi2,113 yd1007
Mar 28, 1984F36 mi880 yd196
Apr 16, 2011EF365.2 mi500 yd1036
May 5, 1989F414 mi800 yd524
Apr 3, 1974F424 mi400 yd264
Apr 8, 1957F4121.4 mi150 yd704