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Warren County, North Carolina severe weather history spans 216 recorded events between 1966 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 66.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,343 nationally and #77 in North Carolina.
216
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$1.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Warren County, North Carolina severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Warren County, North Carolina severe weather history averages 3.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 69 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 33 events fall before 1990 and 183 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Warren County, North Carolina record is flash flood, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $560K in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Warren County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 144 | 0 | $388K | 52 | 1981–2025 |
| Hail | 35 | 0 | $50K | 2 | 1974–2020 |
| Flash Flood | 25 | 3 | $280K | 0 | 1996–2021 |
| Tornado | 6 | 0 | $560K | F2 | 1966–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2012–2012 |
Decade by decade
Warren 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
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 5 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-10-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-11-02 | EF2 | 0 | 9 | 64.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-05-27 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-05-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-05-19 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-10-27 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Warren County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16, 1999 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 1, 2020 | Flash Flood | DREWRY | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Sep 8, 2014 | Flash Flood | WARRENTON WRRN CO AR | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| Jun 30, 2012 | Lightning | ENTERPRISE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Heavy rainfall of 5 to 7 inches caused widespread flash flooding across the county, causing numerous creeks to overflow their banks. Numerous roads were closed due to flooding, with multiple water rescues from people trapped in vehicles.
A tornado associated with the outer rain bands of Tropical Storm Bertha briefly touched down in northwest Warren County. The damage consisted of a destroyed outbuilding and numerous uprooted and snapped trees. In addition to a Tornado Debris Signature on |the doppler radar, a convergent inflow pattern was noted in the tall grass that way laid downed in the tornado path.
Golfballl to hen egg sized hail was reported by the Warren county Emergency Manager in Arcola. Damage was limited to several sections of town but included banged up siding on homes, broken windows, car damage, and roof damage. Several cabbage fields were reported to be so badly beaten that they looked like "cole slaw". In addition, a loud roaring noise was heard with some funnel clouds reported in the region.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
18,795
Population (ACS)
$154K
Median home value
24
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 |
| Aug 2, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ISAIAS | EM |
| Mar 25, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Warren County, North Carolina?
216 events are on record between 1966 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $1.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Warren County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 144 recorded events — 66.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Warren County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 5 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Warren County?
24 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Warren County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Warren County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Warren County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 51 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Warren 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
- Wake County 1,516
- Washington County 133
- Vance County 209
- Watauga County 345
- Union County 502
- Wayne County 518
Cite this page
“Warren County, North Carolina.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-carolina/warren-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.