McDowell County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within McDowell County: 0.
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.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by NC GS (2,036), NASA (7), USGS Conterminous (1).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 26, 2024Flash Flood$100 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Stream gauges and emergency management reported catastrophic flash flooding developed along the Catawba River basin after 15-22 inches of rain fell across the western half of the county over three days. Dozens of structures were damaged or destroyed in the Old Fort area alone. Hundreds were damaged throughout the entire basin, with some structures being completely swept away. A 33-year-old woman was killed in one of these homes. Hundreds of roads were also damaged, with multiple roads completely washed out. The extreme rainfall triggered hundreds of landslides across the higher terrain in the western third of the county.

2. Dec 4, 2002Ice Storm, Mcdowell$9.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Snow began during the early afternoon across the North Carolina foothills and northwest piedmont, and had accumulated to 3 to 5 inches by late evening. A transition to sleet and then freezing rain occurred during the late evening, and ice accumulated to between 1/4 and 1/2 inch. The result was widespread power outages, which lasted for a week or more in some areas.

3. Sep 7, 2004Flood, Mcdowell$6.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Persistent moderate to heavy rain led to widespread flooding along numerous creeks and streams across the northern foothills and northern mountains during the early evening. By early morning on the 8th, flooding was described as some of the worst in the history of the area. Numerous homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed, particularly in Avery County. One home in Burke County was swept down the Little River. Widespread damage and destruction to roads and bridges also occurred due to flooding or landslides, especially in the southern part of Mitchell County, which experienced severe flooding from Crabtree Creek and the Toe River. Large sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway…

4. Sep 27, 2024Flash Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A stream gauge on the North Fork Catawba River in the North Cove community exceeded its established flood stage and indicated significant flash flooding developed after 10-17 inches fell over the watershed in about three days. Dozens of structures, roads, and campgrounds were inundated and damaged. Dozens of landslides occurred throughout the watershed, mainly in secluded areas of the Pisgah National Forest.

5. Sep 27, 2024Tropical Storm, Eastern Mcdowell$4.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tens of thousands of trees were blown down, with hundreds of trees down on homes, vehicles, and power lines. Frequent gusts up to 70 mph occurred, with occasional gusts of 80 mph.

6. Sep 27, 2024Tropical Storm, Mcdowell Mountains$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tens of thousands of trees were blown down, with dozens of trees down on homes, vehicles, and power lines. Frequent gusts up to 70 mph occurred, with occasional gusts of 90 mph on exposed high elevation ridgetops.

7. Jun 2, 1997Hail$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Severe thunderstorms moved in from Upstate South Carolina during the early morning hours becoming more widespread across portions of western North Carolina. Large and damaging hail occurred in many locations, and a number of places were affected by two or three different storms. The hail caused extensive damage and the dollar total will no doubt end up in the millions for both property and crop damage. The counties which were hit hardest were McDowell and Rutherford. At one car dealership in Marion the damage reached $500 thousand quickly. At least one insurance company set up a disaster center to process claims involving many cars and roofs which were hail damaged. Only one…

8. Sep 17, 2004Flood, Mcdowell$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding began shortly after midnight across much of the northern mountains and northern foothills. The hardest hit locations were northern McDowell, Mitchell and Avery Counties, where flooding was at least as severe as that which accompanied Frances. Most of the streams in Mitchell County flooded. Property damage due to mudslides and flooding was extensive in Avery County, and there were numerous rescues and evacuations, particularly around Newland. Numerous roads were washed out, covered with water, or covered with debris from landslides. All roads into Banner Elk were impassable by sunrise on the 17th. Other roads affected included portions of highways 226, 221, and 19. A…

9. Oct 7, 2021Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Emergency manager reported flash flooding developed along multiple creeks and other small streams, especially across central and southern portions of the county after 3 to 6 inches of rain fell in just a couple of hours from a slow-moving cluster of thunderstorms. Numerous roads and multiple homes were inundated. A number of water rescues occurred, primarily to motorists trapped in flood water. A few roads and multiple culverts and private bridges were washed out while numerous small landslides were also reported throughout the area.

10. May 29, 2018Flash Flood$500,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Media, Em, Stream gauges, and other sources indicated significant flash flooding developed across mainly western McDowell county after 4 to 6 inches of rain fell during the morning and afternoon of the 29th. The Catawba River exceeded its established Flood Stage according to a gauge in pleasant gardens, and most of the issues were due to the river and its tributaries. The Catawba overflowed its banks near its headwaters in Old Fort, with much of the downtown roads flooded and water entering many businesses. Swift water rescues were required at a couple of locations in the Old Fort area, including on Bat Cave Rd and Catawba River Rd. Closer to Marion, a structure collapsed under…

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

106°FJul 28, 1952

All-time low

−11°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

84°FJul 5, 1901

Coldest day

17°FFeb 8, 1895

Wettest day

8.20 inAug 13, 1940

Snowiest day

14.0 in2 times, most recently Feb 16, 1969

Hottest year

1989mean 60.8°F

Coldest year

2005mean 54.9°F

Wettest year

201898.02 in

Driest year

192527.72 in

Snowiest season

30.2 in1965-66

Station Marion (USC00315340), 1,410 ft elevation, 1.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 27, 2026; 91.9% 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 USC00315340.
• 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.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• 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.