Hampton city, Virginia severe weather history spans 190 recorded events between 1979 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 40.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,499 nationally and #84 in Virginia.
190
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
15
Direct injuries
$13.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Hampton city, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hampton city, Virginia severe weather history averages 4.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 68 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 7 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 costliest is tornado, with $9.1M 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 Hampton city
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 77 | 0 | $111K | 63 | 1981–2026 |
| Heavy Rain | 36 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 31 | 0 | $1.4M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Hail | 26 | 0 | $1.0M | 3 | 1980–2021 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $2.0M | 0 | 2006–2025 |
| Tornado | 7 | 0 | $9.1M | F2 | 1979–2014 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $6K | 0 | 2003–2008 |
| Waterspout | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2000 |
Decade by decade
Hampton city, Virginia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
8 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 6 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-09-04 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-09-05 | EF2 | 0 | 9 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-06-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1993-08-06 | EF1 | 0 | 10 | 12.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2014-01-11 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-08-11 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-08-30 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-09-04 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hampton city
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 5, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 9 | $250K | |
| Sep 4, 1999 | Tornado | HAMPTON | 0 | 6 | $7.7M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tornado touchdown in the city of Hampton. Extensive structural damage in a 3 block area. Numerous minor injuries, with 6 people transported to the hospital. Three apartment complexes and an assisted living facility condemned. Two additional apartment complexes partially condemned. There were 300 persons from apartment complexes forced to evacuate while 160 persons from the assisted living facility were forced to evacuate. Many roofs were lifted off buildings and as much as 800 vehicles were reported damaged. One 18 wheel tractor trailer was overturned. There was not a continuous damage swath, but areas where the tornado did not completely touch the ground. In some areas the tops of trees were sheared off. This tornado formed in the area ahead of the landfalling tropical storm/hurricane Dennis. There were 6600 persons without power.
The tornado began on the James River just east of the Monitor Merrimac Bridge Tunnel. Its track went over Chesapeake Avenue, through downtown Hampton to the Hampton Yacht Club before moving across Mercury Boulevard, then dissipating over the Chesapeake Bay. Numerous tents and vendor areas at the Blackbeard Festival were blown over. Hundreds of homes were damaged at both the Merrimac Shores and Withe Neighborhoods. At the Hampton Yacht Club, windows were blown out and the roof was partially damaged. Many trees were downed, some onto homes. A number of large oak trees 3 feet in diameter were felled by the tornado. The Hampton Roads Seafood building on Sunset Road and Armory's Seafood Restaurant also experienced roof damage. Several boats were damaged at the Crown Plaza Hotel Marina on King Street.
The tornado touched down near Routten Road and Cabell Lane where around 50 trees were snapped and homes had 10 to 20 percent of their roof shingles blown off. The tornado traveled east northeast damaging the roof of the Fox Hill Central Methodist Church and completely ripping the roof off of the city of Hampton school maintenance compound on Windmill Point Road. The tornado moved to Canal Road snapping trees, damaging residential rooftops and blowing out the windows of an automobile. The tornado continued on to completely destroy the Fox Hill Athletic Association Building at the Nike site on Grundland Drive, before ending at the marshes of the Grandview Nature Preserve.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
137,557
Population (ACS)
$246K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 2, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 15, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE FLORENCE | DR |
| Sep 11, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE FLORENCE | EM |
| Nov 2, 2016 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MATTHEW | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Hampton 240
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hampton city, Virginia?
190 events are on record between 1979 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $13.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hampton city?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 77 recorded events — 40.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hampton city?
8 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 6 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hampton city?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hampton city, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hampton city compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hampton city as relatively low risk, placing it in the 62 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hampton city, Virginia 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
- Galax city 73
- Harrisonburg city 61
- Fredericksburg city 96
- Hopewell city 72
- Lexington city 30
- Franklin city 75
Cite this page
“Hampton city, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/hampton-city/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.