Wake County tornado history

40 tornadoes touched Wake County, North Carolina between 1950 and 2025 — about 0.5 a year. The strongest was rated F4 (Nov 27, 1988). Tornadoes here killed 11 and injured 300 people.

40tornadoes since 1950

F4strongest rating

11killed · 300 injured

83 milongest path · 1988

(E)F0(E)F1(E)F2(E)F3(E)F4(E)F5· dots = start point only

By rating

(E)F019

(E)F112

(E)F27

(E)F31

(E)F41

(E)F50

By month

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: March.

By decade

’50’60’70’80’90’00’10’20

Strongest tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
Nov 27, 1988	F4	83 mi	400 yd	154	4
Apr 16, 2011	EF3	65.2 mi	500 yd	103	6
Nov 2, 1966	F2	64.5 mi	77 yd	9	0
May 13, 2019	EF2	17.2 mi	385 yd	0	0
Apr 5, 1952	F2	6.9 mi	300 yd	0	0
Jun 16, 1982	F2	5 mi	100 yd	0	0
Feb 11, 1981	F2	1.9 mi	800 yd	2	0
Mar 20, 1998	F2	1.5 mi	100 yd	2	0
Mar 18, 1956	F2	0.3 mi	100 yd	0	0
Jun 13, 1982	F1	0.3 mi	13 yd	0	1
May 28, 1973	F1	6.4 mi	10 yd	2	0
Apr 15, 1996	F1	3 mi	50 yd	26	0

Most recent tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
Aug 3, 2024	EF1	1.5 mi	30 yd	0	0
Dec 10, 2023	EF1	1.9 mi	250 yd	0	0
Jul 23, 2019	EF0	1.2 mi	175 yd	0	0
May 13, 2019	EF2	17.2 mi	385 yd	0	0
Apr 15, 2018	EF1	0.7 mi	100 yd	0	0
Mar 29, 2014	EF0	0.2 mi	145 yd	0	0
Mar 29, 2014	EF0	0.1 mi	75 yd	0	0
Sep 18, 2012	EF0	0.5 mi	30 yd	0	0
Apr 16, 2011	EF3	65.2 mi	500 yd	103	6
Mar 6, 2011	EF0	2.3 mi	50 yd	1	0
Apr 25, 2010	EF0	3.9 mi	75 yd	0	0
Sep 14, 2007	EF0	0.1 mi	25 yd	0	0

Deadliest: Apr 16, 2011, EF3, 6 killed.

Nearby counties

Durham County, NC11 Johnston County, NC25 Franklin County, NC13 Harnett County, NC27 Orange County, NC12 Chatham County, NC12 Granville County, NC9 Lee County, NC6

Questions

How many tornadoes has Wake County, North Carolina had?

40 tornadoes touched Wake County, North Carolina between 1950 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database — about 0.5 per year.

What was the strongest tornado in Wake County?

The strongest rating recorded was F4 on Nov 27, 1988, with an 83-mile path and 4 deaths.

When is tornado season in Wake County?

Most of its tornadoes happened in March (11 of 40). 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.