Robeson County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Robeson County: 6.
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.

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. Sep 5, 1996High Wind, Robeson$24.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Winds sustained 50 mph and gusted near 70 mph, with nearly 6 inches of rain as the outskirts of Hurricane Fran crossed Robeson County Thursday evening. There were 45 injuries associated with the storm and during cleanup efforts over the following few days, and one man died while clearing a tree on Friday. Ten homes and 20 businesses suffered major damage, and schools had $500,000 damage.

2. Apr 16, 2011Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service Storm Survey Team concluded an EF1 tornado touched down near Barker Ten Mile, North Carolina. The maximum wind speed was estimated to 105 mph. The path length was near one and a half miles. The maximum path width was 352 yards. Several headstones were turned over in a cemetery on Highway 301. Several ornamental trees, up to eight inches in diameter, were snapped. A half dozen power poles were leaning over and a flag pole was completely bent over. Numerous trees were snapped along Interstate-95. Several dozen large hardwood and pine trees, up to two feet in diameter, were snapped or uprooted. Fallen trees caused substantial damage to over 100 homes along…

3. Jan 26, 2004Ice Storm, Robeson$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Another round of frozen precipitation moved into the area on the heels of the storm of Jan 25th, bringing more freezing rain and sleet to areas that already had over a quarter inch of ice still in the trees. The total ice accumulations ranged from a trace near the coast to as much as three quarters of an inch over interior sections. The weight of the ice caused major power outages from falling limbs, as well as significant structural damage to many homes. There was some ice accumulations on the roads, especially on bridges and overpasses, with numerous traffic accidents reported. Many residences were without power for over a week. Monetary damages totaled over a million dollars…

4. Oct 8, 2016Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Interstate 95 from mile marker 33 to mile marker 25 was closed in both directions due to flooding. Adjacent roadways and numerous structures were impacted by the flood waters.

5. Oct 8, 2016Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding was reported throughout Pembroke. Flood waters were reportedly entering structures to include homes. Several roads were under water and impassable.

6. Jan 25, 2004Ice Storm, Robeson$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Freezing rain began falling over the area the morning of Jan 25th, with ice accumulations reaching a quarter of an inch by the afternoon. Tree limbs snapped from the weight of the ice, causing widespread power outages. Much of the monetary damages were due to debris removal and utility company expenses. Many homes were also damaged when the tree limbs fell on them.

7. Apr 16, 2011Tornado$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service Storm Survey Team concluded an EF1 tornado touched down near Rowland, North Carolina. The maximum wind speed was estimated to 105 mph. The path length was just over two-thirds of a mile. The maximum path width was 50 yards. Significant damage occurred to about 50 homes as a result of snapped pine trees, up to two feet in diameter. Shingles were observed to be missing from many roofs. A detached garage was pushed several feet off its foundation and a few outbuildings were destroyed. Significant damage was reported to an elementary school. Straight-line wind damage to trees was apparent for another mile beyond the point where the tornado lifted.

8. May 11, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$813,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A super-cell thunderstorm with damaging winds accelerated as it moved across Robeson County. Numerous trees and power lines were down and there was considerable structural damage. A National Weather Service Storm Survey concluded that a wet microburst produced a swath of damaging straight-line winds up to 125 mph. The microburst damage began near the intersection of Wilton Drive and Gem Road. Several trees were uprooted or snapped off and minor to moderate damage was observed to roof shingles and to siding. Significant damage was observed to the east of NC Highway 72. Numerous large trees were snapped off or uprooted along NC Highway 72 and significant structural damage occurred…

9. Mar 16, 2002Thunderstorm Wind$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A NWS Storm survey determined that straight line thunderstorm winds produce extensive damage to a trailer park in the northern part of Robeson county. 18 structures in all were damaged. 8 mobile homes were completely destroyed with one double wide trailer moved 10 feet off its foundation. A large metal electrical tower in the area was also blown down. A woman was injured in her mobile home during the event, dislocating her elbow. Large hail was also produced from the strong thunderstorm, with 2.5" hail reported in the area.

10. Oct 8, 2016Flash Flood$500,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Smith Mill Road was washed out due to flooding. Adjacent roadways and structures were impacted by the flood waters.

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°F2 times, most recently Jun 27, 1954

All-time low

−1°FFeb 2, 2026

Warmest night

80°FAug 9, 2007

Coldest day

27°F2 times, most recently Jan 29, 2014

Wettest day

12.53 inOct 8, 2016

Hottest year

2015mean 65.4°F

Coldest year

2000mean 61.6°F

Wettest year

202064.77 in

Driest year

200722.75 in

Station Lumberton Regional Airport (USW00013776), 121 ft elevation, 5.1 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 91.7% 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 USW00013776.
• 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.