Caldwell County tornado history

11 tornadoes touched Caldwell County, North Carolina between 1950 and 2025 — about 0.1 a year. The strongest was rated F4 (May 7, 1998).

11tornadoes since 1950
F4strongest rating
0killed · 3 injured
15 milongest path · 1989
(E)F0(E)F1(E)F2(E)F3(E)F4(E)F5· dots = start point only

By rating

(E)F04
(E)F14
(E)F22
(E)F30
(E)F41
(E)F50

By month

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: May.

By decade

’50’60’70’80’90’00’10’20

Strongest tornadoes

DateRatingPathWidthInjuredKilled
May 7, 1998F44 mi1,320 yd20
May 5, 1989F215 mi73 yd00
Apr 4, 1974F25.7 mi10 yd00
May 27, 1973F110.4 mi100 yd00
Oct 8, 2017EF16.7 mi400 yd00
Oct 23, 2017EF16.5 mi750 yd00
Apr 28, 2011EF14.5 mi100 yd10
Oct 8, 2017EF02.4 mi100 yd00
Aug 16, 1994F02 mi50 yd00
Jul 9, 1977F00.5 mi20 yd00
Jan 11, 2012EF00.1 mi75 yd00

Most recent tornadoes

DateRatingPathWidthInjuredKilled
Oct 23, 2017EF16.5 mi750 yd00
Oct 8, 2017EF02.4 mi100 yd00
Oct 8, 2017EF16.7 mi400 yd00
Jan 11, 2012EF00.1 mi75 yd00
Apr 28, 2011EF14.5 mi100 yd10
May 7, 1998F44 mi1,320 yd20
Aug 16, 1994F02 mi50 yd00
May 5, 1989F215 mi73 yd00
Jul 9, 1977F00.5 mi20 yd00
Apr 4, 1974F25.7 mi10 yd00
May 27, 1973F110.4 mi100 yd00

Nearby counties

Burke County, NC10Alexander County, NC11Watauga County, NC4Avery County, NC2Wilkes County, NC12Catawba County, NC20Ashe County, NC1McDowell County, NC6

Questions

How many tornadoes has Caldwell County, North Carolina had?

11 tornadoes touched Caldwell County, North Carolina between 1950 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database — about 0.1 per year.

What was the strongest tornado in Caldwell County?

The strongest rating recorded was F4 on May 7, 1998, with a 4-mile path.

When is tornado season in Caldwell County?

Most of its tornadoes happened in May (3 of 11). Tornadoes can occur in any month, so keep alerts on year-round.

Right now: live tornado warnings map · alerts for your location. Dates link to that day’s full storm reports where available (2004 onward).