Northampton County, Virginia severe weather history spans 132 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 44.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,772 nationally and #101 in Virginia.
132
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
38
Direct injuries
$1.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Northampton County, Virginia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Northampton County, Virginia severe weather history averages 2.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 45 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 10 events fall before 1990 and 122 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Northampton County, Virginia record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $873K 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 Northampton County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 59 | 3 | $873K | 65 | 1958–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 26 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Hail | 22 | 0 | $100K | 1.75 | 1995–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 10 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Tornado | 8 | 0 | $331K | F2 | 1969–2014 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $500K | 0 | 2011–2020 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 1997–1997 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2017–2017 |
Decade by decade
Northampton County, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-06-21 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-07-24 | EF1 | 0 | 5 | 7.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1993-08-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-08-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-06-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-09-27 | EF0 | 0 | 1 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-09-14 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 6.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-07-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Northampton County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 24, 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | CAPE CHARLES | 3 | 31 | $750K |
| Jul 24, 2014 | Tornado | CAPE CHARLES | 0 | 5 | $200K |
| Aug 3, 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | CAPE CHARLES | 0 | 1 | $1K |
| Sep 27, 2010 | Tornado | KENDALL GROVE | 0 | 1 | $20K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Downburst straight line wind damage occurred from the southern portions of Cherrystone Campground southward into Cape Charles, then eastward through Cheriton to Oyster. The most significant damage occurred from Cherrystone Campground eastward to just east of Route 13 in Cheriton and southward to just north of the intersection of Route 13 and Route 184 east of Cape Charles. Numerous trees were downed, snapped off or large limbs were blown out. A couple of trees were downed on homes. Several large camping trailers were overturned in Cherrystone Campground. 3 people died when a tree fell on the tents in which they were taking shelter.
The tornado began in the Chesapeake Bay, a few miles west of Cherrystone Campground. The tornado then tracked eastward affecting the northern portions of Cherrystone Campground. The tornado then continued eastward across Old Cherrystone Road and Route 13 before lifting near Seaside Road close to the Northampton Landfill. Many trees were downed or snapped off. Numerous camping trailers were damaged, and several were destroyed. Several trees were downed on cabins.
Golf ball size hail, with a few reports of baseball size hail near Cherrystone Campground, fell in a one half to three quarter mile wide swath from Cherrystone Campground eastward to Oyster. Considerable leaf debris from trees was associated with the hail. In addition, hail combined with strong winds damaged the siding on a number of homes. Significant crop damage also occurred, with a total of 2,284 acres damaged.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
12,059
Population (ACS)
$316K
Median home value
22
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 |
| Dec 18, 2018 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORM MICHAEL | DR |
| Sep 11, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE FLORENCE | EM |
| Nov 26, 2012 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SANDY | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Northampton County, Virginia?
132 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $1.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Northampton County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 59 recorded events — 44.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Northampton County?
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 Northampton County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Northampton County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Northampton County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Northampton County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 44 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Northampton County, 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
- Northumberland County 173
- New Kent County 183
- Nottoway County 249
- Nelson County 404
- Orange County 486
- Page County 287
Cite this page
“Northampton County, Virginia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/virginia/northampton-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.