Stanly County, North Carolina severe weather history spans 393 recorded events between 1961 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 53.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,280 nationally and #46 in North Carolina.
393
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
8
Direct injuries
$16.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Stanly County, North Carolina severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Stanly County, North Carolina severe weather history averages 6.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 111 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 56 events fall before 1990 and 337 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Stanly County, North Carolina record is flash flood, responsible for 5 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $9.1M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Stanly County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 210 | 0 | $3.1M | 70 | 1966–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 93 | 5 | $300K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Hail | 65 | 0 | $201K | 2.75 | 1961–2026 |
| Tornado | 15 | 0 | $9.1M | F2 | 1963–2022 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $105K | 0 | 1997–2010 |
| Flood | 3 | 0 | $3.6M | 0 | 2010–2018 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2006 |
Decade by decade
Stanly 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
18 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1999-09-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-09-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1982-04-27 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-03-24 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 30.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1969-04-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 27.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1963-05-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-02-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-05-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-03-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Stanly County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 16, 2003 | Flash Flood | SOUTH PORTION | 5 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 13, 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | ALBEMARLE | 0 | 3 | $2.5M |
| Jun 23, 2006 | Lightning | NORWOOD | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Nov 22, 2006 | Heavy Rain | OAKBORO | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 27, 1982 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
4 people were killed when driving across a flooded bridge across Hardy Creek in Cottonville. Another man was killed when driving across a flooded bridge across Ugly Creek in Norwood. Cars were stranded in Norwood and Locust, and people had to be rescued. 3 businesses in Oakboro were flooded.
Heavy rainfall of 6 to 8 inches caused widespread flooding across the county. Combined with additional rainfall upstream, the rainfall caused all-time record major flooding along the Rocky River near Norwood. Flooding damaged approximately 142 structures throughout the county, destroying 3 and resulting in over $3.63 million in property damage and at least $20 million in crop damage. Numerous roads were flooded all throughout the county. The Rocky River overflowed the Highway 52 bridge and reached the base of the Plank Road bridge.
A second tornado, spawned by another thunderstorm, dropped a tornado 6 miles west of Albemarle. It destroyed a modular home, then did serious damage to the roof of a church. Several large trees were also taken down in the area. This was near the community of Lambert. The tornado then produced sporadic tree and roof damage on its way to the southern part of Albemarle. Several businesses were then heavily damaged and a lock and store facility was destroyed. The tornado then apparently dissipated.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
64,651
Population (ACS)
$242K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 28, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | DR |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Aug 6, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | EM |
| Oct 1, 2022 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IAN | EM |
| Aug 2, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ISAIAS | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Albemarle 114
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Stanly County, North Carolina?
393 events are on record between 1961 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $16.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Stanly County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 210 recorded events — 53.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Stanly County?
18 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 14 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Stanly County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Stanly County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Stanly County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Stanly County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 59 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Stanly 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
- Scotland County 237
- Stokes County 488
- Sampson County 544
- Surry County 758
- Rutherford County 453
- Swain County 134
Cite this page
“Stanly County, North Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-carolina/stanly-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.