List of Virginia hurricanes

Last updated

Satellite image of Hurricane Isabel entering the state in September 2003 TRC4isabel261 G12.jpg
Satellite image of Hurricane Isabel entering the state in September 2003

Since 1851, 122 tropical or subtropical cyclones have either directly or indirectly affected the state of Virginia, with the most recent being Helene in 2024. On average, around one tropical storm or its associated remnants can be expected to impact the state annually, with hurricane impacts averaging once every 2.3 years. Regardless of the month, most systems that affect Virginia move from the southwest in a northeasterly direction as a result of complex steering currents driven by the Azores High. Consequently, few tropical cyclones make landfall in Virginia, with the vast majority passing through the state after already being over land. [1]

Contents

Events

Pre-1900

19001949

19501999

Former Hurricane Camille moving through Virginia in August 1969 Camilleaugust201969.png
Former Hurricane Camille moving through Virginia in August 1969

2000present

Flood waters at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton as a result of Isabel Hurricane Isabel flood water.jpg
Flood waters at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton as a result of Isabel

Climatological statistics

Number of recorded storms affecting Virginia, by month of year
MonthNumber of storms
January
0
February
0
March
0
April
0
May
3
June
9
July
12
August
24
September
52
October
22
November
0
December
0
Number of recorded storms affecting Virginia by decade
PeriodNumber of storms
18511859
3
1860s
2
1870s
7
1880s
10
1890s
7
1900s
7
1910s
2
1920s
7
1930s
9
1940s
7
1950s
7
1960s
7
1970s
6
1980s
6
1990s
7
2000s
13
2010s
6
2020s
9

Deadly storms

The following is a list of all known tropical cyclone-related deaths in Virginia.

NameYearNumber of deathsRef
Camille 1969153 [9]
Unnamed 194446 [6]
Isabel 200332 [75]
Unnamed 187819 [5]
Unnamed 193318 [6]
Connie 195515 [9]
Hazel 195412 [76]
Gracie 195912 [9]
Fran 199611 [77]
Gaston 20049 [78]
Unnamed 18967 [5]
Ernesto 20067 [79]
Unnamed 18966 [5]
Hugo 19896 [9]
Michael 20185 [80]
Floyd 19994 [26]
Unnamed 19033 [6]
Unnamed 19353 [6]
Donna 19603 [9]
Florence 20183 [81]
Helene 20243 [74]
Unnamed 18872 [5]
Unnamed 19361 [6]
Doria 19711 [9]
David 19791 [82]
Allison 20011 [83]
Jeanne 20041 [84]
Andrea 20131 [85]
Ida 20211 [86]

See also

References

  1. David Roth; Hugh Cobb. "Virginia Tropical Cyclone Climatology". Virginia Hurricane History. Weather Prediction Center. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 "Historical Hurricane Tracks". coast.noaa.gov. Archived from the original on March 1, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 Chronological List of All Hurricanes: 1851 2023. Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 "Atlantic hurricane best track (HURDAT version 2)" (Database). United States National Hurricane Center. May 11, 2024.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 David Roth; Hugh Cobb. "Late Nineteenth Century Virginia Hurricanes". Virginia Hurricane History. Weather Prediction Center. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 David Roth; Hugh Cobb. "Early Twentieth Century". Virginia Hurricane History. Weather Prediction Center. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
  7. "Hurricane Did Little Damage in This State". The Evening Leader . Vol. 80, no. 109. Staunton, Virginia. Associated Press. October 21, 1944. p. 1. Retrieved June 29, 2019 via Newspapers.com. Lock-green.svg
  8. "Virginia Hurricane History". Wakefield and Blacksburg, Virginia National Weather Service. Archived from the original on 2005-09-04. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 David Roth; Hugh Cobb. "Late Twentieth Century". Virginia Hurricane History. Weather Prediction Center. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  10. "Virginia Impacts from Hurricane Hazel". National Weather Service Office Wilmington, North Carolina. Wilmington, North Carolina: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. October 15, 2014. Archived from the original on September 13, 2015. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  11. Cox, Claire (July 31, 1960). "Brenda Storm Lashes Coast". The Nashville Tennessean. Vol. 55, no. 94. Nashville, Tennessee. Associated Press. p. 2-A. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  12. Robert H. Simpson; Arnold L. Sugg (April 1970). The Atlantic hurricane season of 1969 (PDF). U.S. Weather Bureau (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  13. "Maximum Rainfall caused by North Atlantic & Northeast Pacific Tropical Cyclones and their remnants per state (1900–2023)" (GIF). Weather Prediction Center.
  14. Dale M. Brumfield (September 3, 2017). "Unparalleled destruction of Hurricane Camille in 1969". Staunton, Virginia: The News Leader . Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  15. "Virginia Hurricane History". Wakefield and Blacksburg, Virginia National Weather Service. Archived from the original on 2005-09-04. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  16. Miles B. Lawrence (July 11, 1981). Preliminary Report Tropical Storm Bret 29 June 01 July 1981. National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved January 1, 2014.
  17. Miles Lawrence (October 14, 1983). "Tropical Storm Dean Preliminary Report". National Hurricane Center . Retrieved May 30, 2012.
  18. "Tropical Storm Dean Hits Coast". Ocala Star-Banner. Associated Press. September 30, 1983. p. 48. Retrieved June 21, 2010.
  19. Miles B. Lawrence (August 8, 1995). "Hurricane Bob Preliminary Report Page 1". National Hurricane Center. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  20. "Virginia Hurricane History". Wakefield and Blacksburg, Virginia National Weather Service. Archived from the original on 2005-09-04. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  21. Robert C. Sheets (September 18, 1985). Preliminary Report Hurricane Danny 12 to 20 August 1985. National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. p. 1. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  22. Storm Data and Unusual Weather Phenomena: August 1985 (PDF). National Climatic Data Center (Report). Asheville, North Carolina: National Climatic Data Center. pp. 19, 25, 27, 40. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 12, 2014. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  23. Miles Lawrence (October 12, 1988). "Tropical Storm Chris Preliminary Report". National Hurricane Center. p. 1. Retrieved March 7, 2012.
  24. Lawrence, Miles B. (November 15, 1989). Hurricane Hugo (PDF) (Preliminary Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 11, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2020 via National Weather Service.
  25. Norfolk National Weather Service (1992). "Tropical Storm Danielle Preliminary Report" . Retrieved 2006-08-06.
  26. 1 2 3 Roth, David; Cobb, Hugh. "Virginia Hurricane History". HPC/NOAA. Retrieved October 4, 2008.
  27. Miles B. Lawrence (1996). "Hurricane Bertha Tropical Cyclone Report". National Hurricane Center. Archived from the original on 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  28. Max Mayfield (October 10, 1996). "Hurricane Fran Preliminary Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  29. "Hurricane Fran Situation Report". Commonwealth of Virginia. 1996-09-09. Archived from the original on 2006-10-30. Retrieved 2007-10-03.
  30. Pasch, Richard J (August 21, 1997). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Danny (PDF) (Report). United States National Hurricane Center. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
  31. National Weather Service (1997). "Local Sightings of Tornadoes and Funnel Clouds". Virginian Pilot. Archived from the original on May 16, 2005. Retrieved December 28, 2006.
  32. Jack L. Beven (January 11, 2000). Preliminary Report: Hurricane Dennis (PDF). National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  33. Richard J. Pasch; Todd B. Kimberlain; Stacy R. Stewart (November 18, 1999). "Preliminary Report: Hurricane Floyd" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
  34. Stacy R. Stewart (May 14, 2001). Hurricane Gordon Tropical Cyclone Report (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center . Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  35. Eric S. Blake; Lixion A. Avila (October 17, 2000). "Tropical Storm Helene Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  36. Stacy R. Stewart (November 28, 2011). "Tropical Storm Allison Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  37. Lixion A. Avila (2003). "Tropical Storm Bill Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  38. Jack Beven; Hugh Cobb (2003). "Hurricane Isabel Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center . Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  39. United States Department of Commerce (2004). "Service Assessment of Hurricane Isabel" (PDF). NOAA. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2006. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
  40. Richard J. Pasch; Daniel P. Brown; Eric S. Blake (September 15, 2011) [Original date: October 18, 2004]. "Hurricane Charley Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
  41. James L. Franklin, Daniel P. Brown and Colin McAdie (2004). "Hurricane Gaston Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved April 15, 2008.
  42. David Roth (2004). "Hurricane Gaston rainfall summary". Hydrometeorological Prediction Center. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  43. John L. Beven II (November 6, 2014). Hurricane Frances Tropical Cyclone Report (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  44. Stewart, Stacey (May 22, 2005). "Hurricane Ivan Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center . Retrieved August 20, 2010.
  45. Miles B. Lawrence and Hugh D. Cobb (January 7, 2005). "Hurricane Jeanne Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
  46. Stacy Stewart (February 14, 2006). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Cindy (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center . Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  47. "Arlington County, Virginia Flood Event Report". National Climatic Data Center . Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  48. "Loudoun County, Virginia Flood Event Report". National Climatic Data Center . Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  49. Richard Knabb; Michelle Mainelli (2006-12-15). "Hurricane Ernesto Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
  50. Post storm report on Ernesto 2006 (Report). Wakefield, Virginia National Weather Service. September 2006. Retrieved 2025-01-29.
  51. Virginia Department of Emergency Management (2008). "Virginia Weather and Disaster Statistics: Hurricane Statistics". Archived from the original on 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
  52. Daniel P. Brown and Todd B. Kimberlain (December 17, 2008). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Hanna (PDF). National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  53. John L. Beven II (August 22, 2013). Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Andrea (PDF). National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved September 7, 2013.
  54. Stacy Stewart (September 15, 2015). "Tropical Storm Ana Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  55. Robbie J. Berg (January 26, 2018). Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Cindy (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  56. Stacy Stewart and Robbie Berg (May 30, 2019). Hurricane Florence (AL062018) (PDF) (Report). Tropical Cyclone Report. National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  57. Beven, John; Berg, Robbie; Hagen, Andrew (May 17, 2019). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Michael (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  58. "Hurricane Michael: The strongest storm of 2018's season brought flooding to southwest Virginia". WFXR. June 1, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  59. Andrew B. Hagen; Eric Blake; Robbie Berg (February 28, 2020). Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Nestor (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  60. John Cangialosi (September 23, 2020). "Tropical Storm Bertha Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  61. Andrew Latto; Andrew Hagen; Robbie Berg (March 30, 2021). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Isaias (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  62. Eric Blake; Robbie Berg; Andrew Hagen (May 10, 2021). "Hurricane Zeta" (PDF). Tropical Cyclone Report. Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  63. Cangialosi, John; Delgado, Sandy; Berg, Robbie (February 10, 2022). Tropical Cyclone Report: hurricane Elsa (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  64. Berg, Robbie (November 19, 2021). Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Fred (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 22, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  65. Beven, John L.; Hagen, Andrew; Berg, Robbie (April 4, 2022). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Ida (PDF) (Report). Miami, Florida: National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 5, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
  66. "One person dead in western Virginia amid flooding from Ida". WRIC. September 2, 2021. Archived from the original on September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  67. Brown, Daniel; Hagen, Andrew; Alaka, Laura (23 February 2024). "Tropical Storm Ophelia – Tropical Cyclone Report (AL162023)" (PDF). National Hurricane Center . University Park, Florida, United States: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. pp. 1–38. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  68. Henson, Bob (September 23, 2023). "Heavy rains envelop the U.S. East Coast as Ophelia pushes inland". New Haven, Connecticut: Yale Climate Connections. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  69. National Weather Service in Wakefield, Virginia (August 9, 2024). NWS Damage Survey for 08/08/2024 Tornado Event (Report). National Weather Service. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  70. National Weather Service in Baltimore, Maryland (August 10, 2024). NWS Damage Surveys for 8/8/24 Tornado Event Update 1 (Report). National Weather Service. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  71. One dead, five Va. communities under voluntary evacuation order from Tropical Depression Helene Archived September 27, 2024, at the Wayback Machine , VirginiaMercury, September 27, 2024
  72. Paullin, Charlie (September 30, 2024). "Hurricane Helene deaths in Virginia up to 2, future rain prompts more concern". Virginia Mercury. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
  73. Jackson, Tynisha (September 29, 2024). "One person dead in Tazewell County after Hurricane Helene". WDBJ . Archived from the original on September 29, 2024. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
  74. 1 2 "NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER TROPICAL CYCLONE REPORT HURRICANE HELENE (AL092024)" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. March 19, 2025.
  75. Jack Beven; Hugh Cobb (2003). "Hurricane Isabel Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center . Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  76. "Virginia Impacts from Hurricane Hazel". National Weather Service Office Wilmington, North Carolina. Wilmington, North Carolina: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. October 15, 2014. Archived from the original on September 13, 2015. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  77. Max Mayfield (October 10, 1996). "Hurricane Fran Preliminary Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  78. James L. Franklin, Daniel P. Brown and Colin McAdie (2004). "Hurricane Gaston Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved April 15, 2008.
  79. Virginia Department of Emergency Management (2008). "Virginia Weather and Disaster Statistics: Hurricane Statistics". Archived from the original on 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
  80. Beven, John; Berg, Robbie; Hagen, Andrew (May 17, 2019). Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Michael (PDF) (Report). National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  81. Stacy Stewart and Robbie Berg (May 30, 2019). Hurricane Florence (AL062018) (PDF) (Report). Tropical Cyclone Report. National Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  82. "Virginia Hurricane History". Wakefield and Blacksburg, Virginia National Weather Service. Archived from the original on 2005-09-04. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
  83. Stacy R. Stewart (November 28, 2011). "Tropical Storm Allison Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  84. Miles B. Lawrence and Hugh D. Cobb (January 7, 2005). "Hurricane Jeanne Tropical Cyclone Report" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
  85. John L. Beven II (August 22, 2013). Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Andrea (PDF). National Hurricane Center (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved September 7, 2013.
  86. "One person dead in western Virginia amid flooding from Ida". WRIC. September 2, 2021. Archived from the original on September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021.