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Craven County, North Carolina severe weather history spans 553 recorded events between 1959 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 50.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #714 nationally and #18 in North Carolina.
553
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
53
Direct injuries
$9.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Craven County, North Carolina severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Craven County, North Carolina severe weather history averages 8.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 157 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 64 events fall before 1990 and 489 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Craven County, North Carolina record is lightning, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $8.1M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Craven County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 281 | 0 | $277K | 85 | 1959–2026 |
| Hail | 190 | 0 | $746K | 3.5 | 1963–2025 |
| Tornado | 39 | 0 | $8.1M | F3 | 1965–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 23 | 0 | $500K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 8 | 1 | $51K | 0 | 2007–2015 |
| Lightning | 5 | 2 | $500 | 0 | 1996–2012 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2014 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2020 |
Decade by decade
Craven County, North Carolina severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
41 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 37 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-03-17 | EF3 | 2 | 85 | 41.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-16 | EF2 | 0 | 7 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 20 | 32.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-05-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 44.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-01-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-09-13 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-15 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Craven County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 2003 | Lightning | NORTH HARLOWE | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 13, 2009 | Flood | HAVELOCK | 1 | 0 | $1K |
| Jun 8, 2006 | Lightning | CHERRY PT MCAS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 18, 1965 | Tornado | 0 | 40 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 17, 2011 | Tornado | RIVERDALE | 0 | 7 | $4.0M |
| Apr 15, 2000 | Tornado | BRIDGETON | 0 | 1 | $700K |
| Jun 14, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | BRIDGETON | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 15, 1996 | Lightning | BRIDGETON | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Thunderstorms producing heavy rain persisted over Havelock for several hours. Doppler radar estimated 3 to 5 inches occurred near Havelock. An elderly woman drove into a flooded loading dock and drowned when trying to get out of her vehicle.
The tornado touched down in the Croatan Forest to the west of Highway 70 where it damaged numerous trees. The tornado crossed Highway 70 and did significant damage to the Riverdale area where it was estimated to be EF2 intensity with winds of 125 mph and a damage width of 200 yards. Numerous homes were severely damaged with several having the second story or roof removed. The tornado continued to track northeast across the Neuse River. Total damage is estimated at 4 million dollars.
An F1 tornado touched down in the Neuse River just southwest of Bridgeton and moved northeast across the town. The tornado caused substantial roof damage to several homes and buisnesses near and along Highway 17. Two Buisnesses were destroyed. One woman in a car sustained minor injuries when her car was blown off the road. Seven mobile homes were destroyed as well as a couple of warehouses at ENCEE Chemicals.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
102,612
Population (ACS)
$232K
Median home value
32
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Aug 6, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | EM |
| Oct 1, 2022 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IAN | EM |
| Oct 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ISAIAS | DR |
| Aug 2, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ISAIAS | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Craven County, North Carolina?
553 events are on record between 1959 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $9.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Craven County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 281 recorded events — 50.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Craven County?
41 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 37 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Craven County?
32 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Craven County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Craven County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Craven County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 94 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Craven County, North Carolina severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Columbus County 568
- Cumberland County 589
- Cleveland County 521
- Currituck County 201
- Clay County 123
- Dare County 326
Cite this page
“Craven County, North Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-carolina/craven-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.