Hurricane History Map

Hurricanes that hit Craven County, North Carolina: hurricane history

82 storms have passed within 50 km of Craven County from 1851 to 2023, coloured by intensity on the map.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Craven County

The record holds 82 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Craven County, North Carolina between 1851 and 2023. The busiest month is September, with 31 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 3 strength. 2 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 82storms within 50 km
  • 1major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 29at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Craven County?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression79%
Tropical storm4454%
Category 11822%
Category 21012%
Category 311%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity22%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Craven County storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 8 in 1960s.1850s1870s1890s1910s1930s1950s1970s1990s2010s

The 2020s only run to 2023, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1851, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1850s5
1860s3
1870s6
1880s7
1890s5
1900s4
1910s5
1920s1
1930s1
1940s2
1950s4
1960s8
1970s5
1980s5
1990s5
2000s8
2010s5
2020s3

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 31 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May2Jun9Jul8Aug20Sep31Oct10Nov2Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May2
Jun9
Jul8
Aug20
Sep31
Oct10
Nov2
Dec0

Strongest storms near Craven County

  • Unnamed storm of August 1879 (North Atlantic)12 August 1879 to 20 August 1879, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 971 hPa
  • Ione (1955)10 September 1955 to 27 September 1955, Category 2 (95 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 938 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of October 1878 (North Atlantic)13 October 1878 to 25 October 1878, peak Category 2 (90 kt), 963 hPa
  • Donna (1960)29 August 1960 to 14 September 1960, Category 2 (90 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 930 hPa
  • Bertha (1996)5 July 1996 to 17 July 1996, Category 2 (90 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 960 hPa

Most recent storms near Craven County

  • Ophelia (2023)21 September 2023 to 24 September 2023, peak Tropical storm (60 kt), 981 hPa
  • Claudette (2021)17 June 2021 to 23 June 2021, peak Tropical storm (40 kt), 1,003 hPa
  • Isaias (2020)28 July 2020 to 5 August 2020, Tropical storm (60 kt) near here, peak Category 1 (80 kt), 986 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

A storm that came near several counties counts in each one, so county counts add up to more than the state's.

Notable storms near Craven County

  • Dorian (2019)24 August 2019 to 9 September 2019, peak Category 5 (160 kt), 910 hPa
  • Isabel (2003)6 September 2003 to 20 September 2003, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 915 hPa
  • Floyd (1999)7 September 1999 to 19 September 1999, peak Category 4 (135 kt), 921 hPa
  • Donna (1960)29 August 1960 to 14 September 1960, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 930 hPa
  • Connie (1955)3 August 1955 to 15 August 1955, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 944 hPa
  • Ione (1955)10 September 1955 to 27 September 1955, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 938 hPa
  • Diana (1984)8 September 1984 to 16 September 1984, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 949 hPa
  • Irene (2011)21 August 2011 to 30 August 2011, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 942 hPa
  • Bertha (1996)5 July 1996 to 17 July 1996, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 960 hPa
  • Bonnie (1998)19 August 1998 to 31 August 1998, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 954 hPa
  • Ginger (1971)6 September 1971 to 6 October 1971, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 959 hPa
  • Isbell (1964)9 October 1964 to 16 October 1964, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 964 hPa

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