Northampton County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

High tide flooding

1. High tide flooding days are days on which a NOAA tide gauge recorded water at or above NOAA's minor flood threshold, set from the gauge's tide range, counted by meteorological year (May to April). These are the counts in NOAA's annual high tide flooding reports; they are not National Weather Service flood stages. Years with less than 80 percent of data are left out.

NOAA CO-OPS high tide flooding counts, through April 2026, 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.

Tsunamis

1. Places where NOAA's Global Historical Tsunami Database records a tsunami's water arriving, with the greatest height it reached above sea level at the time. Only tsunamis NOAA rates probable or definite are counted. Heights from eyewitness accounts and tide gauges are mixed, and older events are less completely recorded.

NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 1, 2006High Wind, Northampton$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The remnants of Ernesto along the Mid Atlantic coast combined with strong high pressure over New England produced very strong winds across eastern and southeast Virginia. Sustained winds in mph ranged from the lower 40s to near 60 with maximum gusts ranging from the mid 50s to as high as the mid 70s. Some higher sustained winds included 60 mph (52 knots) at York River Range Light and York River United States Coast Guard, and 56 mph (49 knots) at Wallops Island (WAL). Some higher maximum gusts included 76 mph (66 knots) at York River Range Light, and 75 mph (65 knots) at York River USCG. The high winds caused numerous downed trees and power outages, along with significant…

2. Nov 12, 2009Coastal Flood, Northampton$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The peak tide height at Kiptopeke was 7.04 feet above MLLW, which was 3.90 feet above the astronomical tide. This tide height was higher than Isabel's peak tide height. The peak tide height at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel was 7.61 feet above MLLW, which was 5.16 feet above the astronomical tide. Numerous streets, homes and businesses were flooded in low lying areas of the county close or directly exposed to the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay. There was also severe beach erosion. Many trailers and cabins were flooded at the Cherrystone Campground. Fishing piers were damaged or destroyed, and some campground buildings were flooded.

3. Jul 24, 2014Thunderstorm Wind$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   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.

4. Oct 28, 2012Coastal Flood, Northampton$530,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Water levels reached 3.0 feet to 4.0 feet above normal adjacent to the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean resulting in moderate to severe coastal flooding. Kiptopeke reached a tide height of 6.82 feet MLLW.

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

   Heavy rain caused an extended period of significant flooding across portions of the county. Several roads were impassable or closed for a couple of days, and some homes and businesses were impacted.

6. Aug 4, 2020Tropical Storm, Northampton$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tropical storm winds downed and uprooted several trees and power lines, produced significant structural damage, and caused power outages across the county. Wind gusts averaged between 40 and 50 knots.

7. Jul 24, 2014Tornado$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   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.

8. Aug 27, 2011Tropical Storm, Northampton$125,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tropical storm force winds knocked down several trees and power lines, as well as caused some significant property damage. In addition, heavy rains contributed to significant crop damage. The highest sustained wind of 43 knots (49 mph) with a peak gust of 55 knots (63 mph) was recorded at Kiptopeke. Coastal storm tides of 3 to 4 feet above astronomical tide levels were common. The tide level at Kiptopeke reached 6.48 feet MLLW. Storm total rainfall generally ranged from five to eight inches.

9. Jul 24, 2014Hail$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   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.

10. Oct 8, 2016High Wind, Northampton$75,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The very strong winds downed numerous trees, some onto homes, and caused some power outages.

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

101°F2 times, most recently Jul 26, 2010

All-time low

−5°FJan 17, 1965

Warmest night

83°F2 times, most recently Jul 8, 2012

Coldest day

17°FJan 9, 1970

Wettest day

9.67 inSep 1, 2006

Snowiest day

11.0 inMar 2, 1980

Hottest year

2012mean 61.1°F

Coldest year

1965mean 55.9°F

Wettest year

199661.68 in

Driest year

197632.08 in

Snowiest season

23.5 in1979-80

Station Painter 2 W (USC00446475), 30 ft elevation, 14.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1955 to October 4, 2026; 98.9% 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 USC00446475.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Tide gauges NOAA CO-OPS high tide flooding counts, 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.
• Tsunamis NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database.
• 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.