Carteret County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
The chance of earthquake damage in Carteret County is about the same as North Carolina average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Carteret County is lower than North Carolina average and is lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #87
| Carteret County | 0.00 |
| North Carolina | 0.18 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Carteret County | 0.0000 |
| North Carolina | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #73
| Carteret County | 83.33 |
| North Carolina | 115.21 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 4,224 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Carteret County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 14 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 15 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 406 | Hail: | 1,493 | Heat: | 2 | Heavy Snow: | 20 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 19 | Ice Storm: | 11 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 31 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 1,902 | Tropical Storm: | 10 | Wildfire: | 1 | Winter Storm: | 59 | Winter Weather: | 17 |
| Other: | 224 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Carteret County.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Carteret County.
No historical earthquake events found in or near Carteret County.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 23 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Carteret County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 11.0 | 1989-03-20 | 2 | 34°42'N / 76°33'W | 0.20 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Carteret | |
| 11.0 | 1990-09-15 | 2 | 34°42'N / 76°33'W | 0.50 Mile | 40 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Carteret | |
| 14.7 | 1974-05-27 | 2 | 34°56'N / 76°17'W | 2.80 Miles | 350 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Carteret | |
| 16.7 | 1967-12-03 | 2 | 34°42'N / 76°45'W | 0.10 Mile | 27 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Carteret | |
| 25.1 | 1963-09-29 | 2 | 35°05'N / 76°54'W | 35°08'N / 76°48'W | 6.60 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Pamlico |
| 25.2 | 1999-09-15 | 2 | 34°41'N / 76°55'W | 34°41'N / 76°55'W | 2.00 Miles | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 300K | 0 | Carteret |
| Brief Description: Tornado touched down at Emerald Isle Point. 5 homes were damaged...2 received major damage while another 2 were destroyed. Between 1108 and 2110 LST on Wednesday, September 15th the Morehead City/Newport office issued 20 tornado warnings. That is an average of two warnings per hour for ten hours. At least ten of the tornadoes were reported by spotters during the event. This tornadic event was the precurser to Hurricane Floyd which made landfall on Thursday, September 16th and caused record flooding across eastern North Carolina. | |||||||||||
| 25.2 | 1965-03-17 | 3 | 35°07'N / 76°57'W | 35°14'N / 76°33'W | 24.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 1 | 40 | 2.5M | 0 | Pamlico |
| 27.1 | 1999-09-15 | 2 | 35°15'N / 76°34'W | 35°15'N / 76°34'W | 10.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 700K | 0 | Pamlico |
| Brief Description: This tornado moved over Hobucken and destroyed a mobile home, a house, tore the roof off of a school and severely damaged two churches. Between 1108 and 2110 LST on Wednesday, September 15th the Morehead City/Newport office issued 20 tornado warnings. That is an average of two warnings per hour for ten hours. At least ten of the tornadoes were reported by spotters during the event. This tornadic event was the precurser to Hurricane Floyd which made landfall on Thursday, September 16th and caused record flooding across eastern North Carolina. | |||||||||||
| 28.5 | 1969-04-19 | 2 | 35°00'N / 77°00'W | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Craven | |||
| 32.5 | 1965-03-17 | 3 | 35°04'N / 77°06'W | 35°07'N / 76°57'W | 9.10 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 40 | 2.5M | 0 | Craven |
| 37.2 | 2008-05-11 | 2 | 34°52'N / 77°13'W | 34°53'N / 77°09'W | 4.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 5K | 0K | Jones |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A tornado touched down near Belgrade in Onslow County and crossed into Jones county about 1 mile to the southeast of Belgrade. The tornado was rated as an EF2 and had a total path length of 5 miles. The tornado was about 100 yards wide. Most of the structural damage occurred in Onslow county...however numerous trees were sheared off in Jones county and a porch was destroyed at one residence. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Numerous thunderstorms developed near the coast of eastern North Carolina during the late afternoon and evening hours ahead of a cold front. Unstable air ahead of the cold front combined with strong wind shear to produce rotating thunderstorms and several tornadoes were reported near the south coast in parts of Onslow...Jones and Carteret counties. | |||||||||||
| 37.7 | 1965-03-17 | 3 | 35°00'N / 77°13'W | 35°04'N / 77°06'W | 8.20 Miles | 100 Yards | 1 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Jones |
| 39.2 | 1971-05-13 | 2 | 35°07'N / 77°12'W | 35°33'N / 76°37'W | 44.40 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Craven |
| 39.6 | 2008-05-11 | 2 | 34°52'N / 77°14'W | 34°52'N / 77°13'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 6 | 150K | 0K | Onslow |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Tornado touched down near Belgrade and moved east into southern Jones county about 1 mile southeast of Belgrade. The tornado had a path length of around 5 miles and was rated as an EF2. Several homes received moderate to severe damage with 6 minor injuries reported. Several outbuildings were destroyed and numerous trees were sheared off. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Numerous thunderstorms developed near the coast of eastern North Carolina during the late afternoon and evening hours ahead of a cold front. Unstable air ahead of the cold front combined with strong wind shear to produce rotating thunderstorms and several tornadoes were reported near the south coast in parts of Onslow...Jones and Carteret counties. | |||||||||||
| 41.2 | 1968-03-12 | 2 | 35°25'N / 76°47'W | 1.00 Mile | 27 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Beaufort | |
| 41.5 | 1968-04-24 | 2 | 35°25'N / 76°48'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Beaufort | |
| 42.8 | 1952-05-20 | 2 | 35°28'N / 76°23'W | 1.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 2 | 0K | 0 | Hyde | |
| 43.1 | 1973-04-27 | 2 | 35°28'N / 76°42'W | 0.50 Mile | 123 Yards | 1 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Beaufort | |
| 44.5 | 1960-05-27 | 2 | 35°24'N / 76°06'W | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Beaufort | |||
| 45.6 | 1986-06-17 | 2 | 35°27'N / 76°10'W | 0.50 Mile | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Hyde | |
| 45.9 | 1978-04-19 | 2 | 35°08'N / 77°16'W | 0.70 Mile | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Jones | |
| 47.2 | 1996-10-08 | 2 | 35°29'N / 76°52'W | 35°29'N / 76°52'W | 1.00 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 30K | 0 | Beaufort |
| Brief Description: Trailer totally demolished and several homes damaged on Highway 92. | |||||||||||
| 49.1 | 1972-10-24 | 2 | 34°45'N / 77°23'W | 0.70 Mile | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Onslow | |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.