221
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$1.0M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Burke County, Georgia: 221 recorded events between 1969 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 85. That places the county #872 nationally and #31 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Burke County, Georgia: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Burke County is the 2010s, when 73 of the county's 221 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 Burke County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 63.3% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #872 for this hazard and #31 within Georgia, putting it in the 72.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Burke County with 73 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 7, 2000 | GIRARD | 60 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 20, 1999 | WAYNESBORO | 50 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 9, 1990 | 52 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 16, 2026 | SHELL BLUFF | 52 | $0 |
| Mar 16, 2026 | KEYSVILLE | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 26, 2025 | GOUGH | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 26, 2025 | ALEXANDER | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 11, 2025 | WAYNESBORO BURKE ARP | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 11, 2025 | WAYNESBORO | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 7, 2025 | ALEXANDER | 52 | $0 |
| Apr 23, 2025 | WAYNESBORO BURKE ARP | 52 | $0 |
| Apr 23, 2025 | ROSIER | 52 | $0 |
| Mar 31, 2025 | MUNNERLYN | 52 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Burke County
- Hail 71
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
EM reported some trees down along Hwy 24 a couple miles west of Waynesboro and also in Waynesboro. A car port at a gas station/convenience store was badly damaged, a couple trees fell on homes and one fell on a vehicle.
A National Weather Service survey team confirmed an expansive downburst in|northern Burke County, GA, with winds up to 90 mph. The downburst began in the|vicinity of Winter Road and Campbell Circle just west of Highway 25, south of|Hephzibah in Burke County. The downburst snapped and uprooted numerous trees and|lifted a portion of a roof on a home in this area. The downburst continued to produce|damage northeast of this area, where the roof of a mobile home was partially lifted on|Highway 25, and multiple trees were snapped or uprooted on McManus Road. The|most significant damage then occurred along Old Waynesboro Road, where a swath of|trees were snapped and uprooted. One large oak tree snapped and fell onto a house,|causing significant damage, and another house had several trees on it. The downburst|then continued to produce damage to the River Road area near the Richmond County|line, where many trees were snapped and uprooted. The damage swath was|approximately 7.5 miles long and over 100 yards wide in some locations.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Burke County, Georgia?
221 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Burke County between 1969 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Burke County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Burke County measured 85.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Burke 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 Burke County, Georgia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/georgia/burke-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.