284
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$2.0M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Bladen County, North Carolina: 284 recorded events between 1964 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 78. That places the county #511 nationally and #20 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Bladen County, North Carolina: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Bladen County is the 2010s, when 110 of the county's 284 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Bladen County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 51.1% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #511 for this hazard and #20 within North Carolina, putting it in the 83.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Bladen County with 66 recorded events, while Oct is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 12, 2003 | ELIZABETHTOWN | 60 | 0 | 3 | $4K |
| Mar 3, 1991 | 0 | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Jun 15, 2009 | BLADENBORO ARPT | 78 | 0 | 1 | $48K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 12, 2026 | EAST ARCADIA | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2025 | ELKTON | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2025 | CLARKTON | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2025 | ELIZABETHTOWN ARPT | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2025 | ELIZABETHTOWN | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2025 | ELIZABETHTOWN | 50 | $0 |
| Apr 23, 2025 | EAST ARCADIA | 50 | $0 |
| Feb 16, 2025 | WHITE LAKE | 55 | $0 |
| Jul 18, 2024 | TOBEMORY | 50 | $0 |
| Jul 15, 2024 | WHITE LAKE | 50 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Bladen County
- Hail 166
- Flash Flood 48
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
As the tornado lifted and dissipated, a strong rear flank downdraft likely wrapped around the funnel and caused significant tree damage for an additional mile. Many large oak trees were uprooted from just north of Highway 53 to the Oak Tree Trail area. A few snapped pine trees were noted just to the northeast of Willard Tatum Road. This represented the last of the damage observed. A National Weather Service Storm Survey Team estimated straight-line winds to 80 mph.
The Bladen Emergency Manager reported that strong thunderstorm winds knocked down numerous trees in the eastern part of the county along Hwy 210 and Hwy 53. One tree fell on a house on Lightwood Knot Road. Lightning also struck a home on Overline Road, seriously damaging it. A number of storage buildings were also damaged in the area.
A National Weather Service Storm Survey concluded a microburst, with winds up to 90 mph, first impacted the ground just to the west of Oak Grove Church Road and to the north of Highway 242. The microburst moved south across Highway 242 and into a heavily wooded area south of Highway 242. Forty trees were either uprooted or snapped. One tree fell onto a mobile home, injuring one person. The mobile home sustained moderate damage. Another tree crushed a van as it fell. A poorly built mobile home, located on the north side of Highway 242, was destroyed. Minor to moderate damage was also observed to a metal car shop along Highway 242. The path length was 0.7 miles and the path width was 370 yards.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Bladen County, North Carolina?
284 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Bladen County between 1964 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Bladen County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Bladen County measured 78.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Bladen County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Bladen County, North Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-carolina/bladen-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.