Gaston County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Gaston County: 1.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 to 2025.

Every large fire

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Dec 4, 2002Ice Storm, Gaston$18.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Freezing rain began over the extreme southern mountains of North Carolina during the early afternoon on the 4th, and had spread into the southwest piedmont by mid afternoon. Resultant damage due to ice accumulation began during the mid-to-late afternoon. The intensity of the freezing rain increased after midnight, and by sunrise on the 5th, devastating ice accumulations of 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches were observed. The hardest hit area was Charlotte metro. Hundreds of thousands lost power, and the outages lasted for as long as 2 weeks in some areas.

2. May 9, 2008Tornado$7.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado track began just southeast of Gastonia and continued well into Mecklenburg County on the northwest side of Charlotte. Where the tornado first touched down, part of the roof was blown off the roof of an office building near the intersection of Union Rd and Garrison Bvd. The tornado continued east-northeast to the Garrison Blvd, S New Hope Rd area, where numerous homes and businesses received minor to moderate roof damage and numerous large trees were uprooted. The tornado produced sporadic, mainly minor damage as it moved through McAdenville, where it crossed I-85, blowing several cars off the interstate. The most significant damage was observed in the Catawba Heights/…

3. Jun 9, 2019Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A dam pool stage gauge reported and emergency manager confirmed flooding of the Catawba River upstream of the Mountain Island Lake dam occurred after widespread rainfall amounts of 4 to 7 inches fell within the basin across the northern foothills, with much of that falling over the course of several hours. Numerous homes were inundated with flood water along such roads as Riverside Dr, Fox Ridge Ln, and several roads in the Nivens Cove area. Several homes were judged to be a total loss. Several people also had to be rescued from their homes during peak flow. The pool elevation behind the dam peaked at just under 107 ft during the early morning hours of the 10th, which was its…

4. Mar 20, 2003Flood, Gaston$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An extended period of moderate to heavy rain combined with heavy upstream rainfall to cause slow rises on numerous creeks and streams, which culminated in an extended period of flooding across the county. The South Fork of the Catawba River overflowed its banks in the Lowell/McAdenville area, resulting in some of the worst flooding observed in the area in 35 years. The river crested at 16.6 feet at McAdenville. Several adjacent buildings were flooded, and some vehicles received extensive damage. Twenty five people required rescuing from a flooded mobile home park along Crowders Creek.

5. Jul 12, 2003Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   This weak tornado, or perhaps a series of weak tornadoes, caused widespread tree and power line damage as it tracked across northern Gaston County. The most significant damage occurred in the Mount Holly area, as well as far northern portions of Belmont. Many trees and power lines were blown onto homes and vehicles. Several buildings had significant roof damage, while numerous others incurred minor roof damage

6. Sep 27, 2024Tropical Storm, Gaston$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thousands of trees were blown down, with dozens of trees down on homes, vehicles, and power lines. Frequent gusts up to 60 mph occurred, with occasional gusts of 70 mph.

7. Mar 28, 2010Tornado$1.1 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A very short tornado path was surveyed near Belmont. The tornado touched down in the Parkdale Dr/Landing Rd area, where a mill was damaged. Part of the metal sheet roofing was peeled back and thrown in multiple directions, allowing some interior walls to collapse. A tractor trailer was also overturned on the south side of the mill. Several homes were damaged at a mobile home park adjacent to the mill, where a number of trees were also blown down. The tornado traveled roughly 200 yards before lifting.

8. Apr 16, 2007High Wind, Gaston$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   After an intense, but relatively brief high wind event affected the mountains and foothills on the evening of the 15th, another widespread damaging high wind event developed during the day of the 16th. However, this particular event included much of the piedmont. Thousands of trees fell across the area, resulting in widespread power outages. Numerous trees fell on roads, homes, and vehicles. The Blue Ridge mountains and the foothills received the brunt of the strongest winds. In Highlands, NC, two homes were heavily damaged by fallen trees, while approximately 100 homes received minor to moderate damage. A tree fell on and severely damaged a home in Otto, NC. Two businesses…

9. Feb 7, 2020Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Although heavy rain tapered off across the Catawba River basin throughout the afternoon of the 6th, floodwaters continued to rise along the South Fork Catawba, as runoff from 4 to 6 inches of rain continued to work its way through the watershed. Major flood stage was reached by late evening of the 6th, and the worst flooding since 2013 was observed in the Cramerton and McAdenville areas. Flooding of multiple structures occurred, particularly along Riverside Dr and 8th Ave in Cramerton. Otherwise, numerous roads were inundated, including some due to backwater effects along tributaries of the South Fork Catawba.

10. Jan 13, 2006Tornado$350,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    This small, weak tornado touched down just west of the highway 274/275 intersection in Bessemer City, just north of highway 274 near the Barkers Ridge subdivision. The tornado skirted a mobile home park, where it moved a trailer about 3 feet before moving across Barkers Ridge. The roof was blown off of one unoccupied, newly constructed home. 5 additional homes in the small subdivision received significant exterior damage, and were condemned. Several other homes received minor damage. After leaving the subdivision the tornado appeared to lift briefly as it moved into a wooded area. However, additional damage occurred near the intersection of Jim Clark and JK Road, where most of the…

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

107°FJun 27, 1954

All-time low

−5°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

85°FJul 3, 1997

Coldest day

21°F2 times, most recently Jan 30, 1966

Wettest day

6.10 inAug 27, 2008

Snowiest day

15.0 inFeb 16, 1969

Hottest year

1939mean 63.6°F

Coldest year

1969mean 58.8°F

Wettest year

193668.17 in

Driest year

200124.66 in

Snowiest season

30.7 in1935-36

Station Gastonia (USC00313356), 700 ft elevation, 0.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1890 to October 23, 2026; 96.7% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00313356.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.