USA.com / Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area / Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Metro Area Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
The chance of earthquake damage in Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area is lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area is higher than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #159
| Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area | 0.51 |
| 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, #129
| Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area | 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, #464
| Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area | 147.78 |
| 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 16,269 other weather extremes events from 1950 to 2010 were recorded in Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 2 | Cold: | 33 | Dense Fog: | 8 | Drought: | 107 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 1,257 | Hail: | 4,898 | Heat: | 14 | Heavy Snow: | 202 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 15 | Ice Storm: | 60 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 158 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 8,327 | Tropical Storm: | 17 | Wildfire: | 3 | Winter Storm: | 119 | Winter Weather: | 193 |
| Other: | 856 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area.
No historical earthquake events found in or near Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 34 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Charlotte, Gastonia, Rock Hill Area.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 3.8 | 1968-06-07 | 2 | 35°00'N / 80°35'W | 35°12'N / 80°45'W | 16.70 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Mecklenburg |
| 6.9 | 1989-05-05 | 4 | 34°59'N / 80°44'W | 35°06'N / 80°33'W | 13.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 1 | 6 | 25.0M | 0 | Union |
| 8.0 | 1950-05-14 | 2 | 35°00'N / 80°41'W | 2.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 5 | 0K | 0 | Union | |
| 12.0 | 1990-10-18 | 3 | 34°59'N / 80°41'W | 35°01'N / 80°27'W | 12.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Union |
| 13.5 | 1983-03-06 | 2 | 34°59'N / 80°33'W | 2.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 9 | 2.5M | 0 | Union | |
| 13.7 | 1965-09-12 | 2 | 35°18'N / 80°48'W | 0.30 Mile | 70 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Mecklenburg | |
| 13.8 | 1992-03-10 | 2 | 35°07'N / 81°00'W | 35°09'N / 80°57'W | 3.40 Miles | 180 Yards | 0 | 18 | 2.5M | 0 | Mecklenburg |
| 14.6 | 1973-05-28 | 2 | 35°12'N / 80°59'W | 35°18'N / 80°52'W | 9.60 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mecklenburg |
| 16.6 | 2004-09-07 | 2 | 35°05'N / 81°02'W | 35°06'N / 81°01'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 150K | 0 | Mecklenburg |
| Brief Description: This tornado moved north from South Carolina, and produced widespread damage to trees and power lines along its 2-mile path across the southwest corner of Mecklenburg County. The roof of a well-constructed home was blown off, and several other homes incurred shingle damage. A sheet of wallboard was torn off a garage wall and blown away. There was additional damage to automobiles and homes due to fallen trees. | |||||||||||
| 18.3 | 1980-05-18 | 2 | 35°06'N / 80°26'W | 35°07'N / 80°23'W | 3.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Union |
| 20.1 | 1999-09-29 | 2 | 35°16'N / 80°26'W | 35°16'N / 80°26'W | 0.10 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Stanly |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down briefly and took the entire roof off a brick ranch. No other damage was noted in the area. A spotter was tracking the funnel. | |||||||||||
| 20.8 | 1973-05-28 | 2 | 35°06'N / 81°06'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | York | |
| 22.3 | 2008-05-09 | 2 | 35°15'N / 81°10'W | 35°16'N / 81°00'W | 9.00 Miles | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 7.0M | 0K | Gaston |
| Brief Description: EVENT 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/ Belmont area, near I-85, where much of the metal roof was peeled from a large wharehouse, causing 7 million dollars in damage. Another industrial business in this area lost most of its roof. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A mini-supercell thunderstorms produced a tornado with a nearly 20 mile path through the Gastonia and Charlotte metro areas during the early morning hours of May 9th. | |||||||||||
| 23.8 | 1969-04-18 | 2 | 35°06'N / 80°32'W | 35°18'N / 80°07'W | 27.30 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Union |
| 30.2 | 1975-03-24 | 2 | 34°59'N / 80°22'W | 35°20'N / 80°02'W | 30.60 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Union |
| 31.8 | 1973-05-24 | 2 | 34°58'N / 81°16'W | 2.00 Miles | 67 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | York | |
| 32.8 | 1963-05-17 | 2 | 35°18'N / 80°12'W | 1.00 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Stanly | |
| 33.4 | 2006-11-15 | 2 | 35°31'N / 81°04'W | 35°30'N / 81°04'W | 1.00 Mile | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Lincoln |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: NWS survey found tornado damage path on the western shores of Lake Norman near Denver. Most of the damage was concentrated in the Lake Shore Rd and Blade Trail areas. Hundreds of trees were downed, many blocking roads, with some down on homes. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A narrow line of showers and thunderstorms developed ahead of a strong cold front during the evening hours of November 15th. As the line moved into North Carolina a series of tornadoes formed along a break in the line. In all, four tornadoes touched down from the east side of Gastonia to a few miles east of Statesville. The strongest tornado produced a small area of F2 damage. One person later died from injuries suffered in the last tornado in Iredell County. Areas of damaging straight line winds also occurred in other parts of the line. | |||||||||||
| 34.1 | 1999-09-29 | 2 | 35°22'N / 80°13'W | 35°22'N / 80°13'W | 6.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3.0M | 0 | Stanly |
| Brief Description: A second tornado, spawned by another thunderstorm, dropped a tornado 6 miles west of Albemarle. It destroyed a modular home, then did serious damage to the roof of a church. Several large trees were also taken down in the area. This was near the community of Lambert. The tornado then produced sporadic tree and roof damage on its way to the southern part of Albemarle. Several businesses were then heavily damaged and a lock and store facility was destroyed. The tornado then apparently dissipated. | |||||||||||
| 34.3 | 1957-04-08 | 4 | 34°38'N / 80°35'W | 34°39'N / 80°28'W | 6.80 Miles | 133 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lancaster |
| 35.5 | 1982-04-27 | 2 | 35°13'N / 80°07'W | 0.10 Mile | 27 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Stanly | |
| 37.2 | 2005-01-14 | 2 | 35°34'N / 80°23'W | 35°34'N / 80°23'W | 0.30 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Rowan |
| Brief Description: Two metal industrial buildings sustained major damage and a barn was flattened. A home next to the barn also received minor roof damage. Several trees were snapped or uprooted. | |||||||||||
| 37.6 | 1984-03-28 | 4 | 34°33'N / 80°37'W | 34°36'N / 80°35'W | 2.00 Miles | 530 Yards | 0 | 5 | 25.0M | 0 | Lancaster |
| 38.4 | 1994-04-16 | 2 | 34°45'N / 81°17'W | 34°47'N / 81°15'W | 3.00 Miles | 75 Yards | 1 | 4 | 5.0M | 0 | Chester |
| Brief Description: A short-lived, but intense, mesocyclone developed along a squall line ahead of a cold front at about 0045 EST and moved into western Chester County. The mesocyclone intensified within a matter of 10 to 20 minutes into a F2 tornado that touched down four miles southwest of Lowrys and moved four miles to near Lowrys before dissipating. Three mobile homes completely disintegrated, three barns crushed, a new pickup truck was completely destoyed, four mobile homes were damaged, four people were injured (one seriously) and another killed. More than 2000 residents lost electrical power due to the tornado. F64M. | |||||||||||
| 39.6 | 1984-03-28 | 4 | 34°32'N / 80°38'W | 34°33'N / 80°37'W | 2.00 Miles | 530 Yards | 0 | 31 | 25.0M | 0 | Kershaw |
| 43.1 | 1957-04-08 | 4 | 34°39'N / 80°28'W | 34°44'N / 79°52'W | 34.50 Miles | 133 Yards | 0 | 16 | 250K | 0 | Chesterfield |
| 43.5 | 1976-05-15 | 2 | 34°50'N / 80°03'W | 35°00'N / 79°57'W | 12.80 Miles | 67 Yards | 0 | 4 | 25K | 0 | Anson |
| 44.5 | 1969-04-18 | 2 | 34°28'N / 80°48'W | 0.80 Mile | 67 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Kershaw | |
| 46.6 | 1990-02-10 | 2 | 35°12'N / 81°33'W | 0.40 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Cleveland | |
| 47.1 | 2010-10-26 | 2 | 35°42'N / 81°09'W | 35°43'N / 81°07'W | 3.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 6.6M | 0K | Catawba |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The tornado touched down initially in an industrial park near Penny Rd, where two large buildings sustained significant roof damage. Part of the exterior wall of one of the buildings collapsed. The tornado moved northeast, causing damage to shingles and siding at several homes on St Vincent Dr. Two outbuildings were thrown 30 to 40 feet and numerous trees were snapped off or uprooted in this area as well. The tornado continued to cause severe damage to trees and generally minor structural damage to homes and a church as it moved northeast toward Catawba St. The damage path continued in a east northeast direction from there, roughly paralleling highway 70. Major roof damage occurred to a food processing plant on highway 70 and several outbuildings were destroyed. Numerous headstones were blown down in a cemetery adjacent to the plant. Numerous trailers were then overturned and part of a building destroyed at a truck depot near Liberty Hill Church Rd. The tornado continued east northeast for about another half mile before lifting. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Scattered supercell thunderstorms developed over the western Carolinas and northeast Georgia as strong wind shear and moderate instability overspread the region ahead of a strong cold front. A number of tornadoes were spawned by the storms. Two strong tornadoes affected the western piedmont and foothills of North Carolina. | |||||||||||
| 47.4 | 2010-03-28 | 2 | 35°43'N / 80°22'W | 35°44'N / 80°21'W | 1.00 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 5 | 1.3M | 0K | Davidson |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF1 tornado exited Rowan County, crossing the Yadkin River and entered into Davidson County. Numerous hardwood trees were either sheared off or uprooted in a wooded area south of Seven Oaks Drive. A carport was ripped from a brick home on Seven Oaks Drive. Two out buildings were also destroyed. The tornado tracked northeast across an open field before it damaged a vacant steel framed flea market building. The tornado glanced the southeastern corner of the main flea market building, tearing it away from the remainder of the building. Debris from the metal building was found approximately one mile downstream from the site. Sections of sheet metal from the building were found twisted around several tree and high tension power lines. In the adjacent Chestnut Grove Mobile Home Park, located at the intersection of Clark Road and Wind Hill Drive, three mobile homes were completely destroyed with three other mobile homes sustaining significant damage. The tornado reached EF2 intensity here with wind of 110 to 120 mph. The tornado dissipated in a wooded area northeast of Clark Road. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Convection developed ahead of an amplified upper trough across the Tennessee Valley while a strong southerly mid and upper level jet provided strong shear across the region. Tornadoes formed and track ahead of a developing surface low across Georgia and along a wedge front located across the western Piedmont of NC. | |||||||||||
| 47.8 | 1954-08-18 | 2 | 35°40'N / 81°12'W | 35°44'N / 81°09'W | 5.40 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Catawba |
| 48.8 | 1998-05-07 | 2 | 35°33'N / 81°25'W | 35°33'N / 81°24'W | 2.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 212K | 0 | Lincoln |
| Brief Description: The same supercell that produced the tornado in McDowell county spawned a strong tornado in the Vale and Cat Square area. Four homes were destroyed, 50 homes were damaged, a church roof was partially blown off and numerous trees were downed. Supercell thunderstorms developed in a highly sheared atmosphere in eastern Tennessee then moved east across the mountains, foothills and western piedmont of North Carolina. These long-lived, cyclic supercells produced a considerable amount of large hail and some damaging winds in the mountains. The first tornado of the day in western North Carolina occurred in Madison county. Numerous reports of hail as large as golf balls were reported from the mountains. In Madison and Yancey counties, hail covered roads. More supercell thunderstorms developed behind the previous ones and followed similar tracks. In northern Buncombe county, the town of Barnardsville had three separate severe storms cross overhead and drop hail on the ground to a depth of 3 inches. Yancey county also had 3 separate storms move across the county that accumulated hail to 6 inches in depth. The hail was still on the ground the next morning. As the supercells moved into the foothills, they began to curve a little to the right, indicative of strong mesocyclonic circulations present. One supercell produced several tornadoes from Alexander county to Davie county. Another storm produced a tornado that tracked from western Caldwell county into south-central Alexander county. A third supercell that emerged out of the mountains in McDowell county produced several tornadoes from the southern part of that county to northern Mecklenburg county. Damage was fairly significant across western North Carolina with numerous homes either damaged or destroyed. Fortunately, no one was killed. However, 2 people were injured as a result of the violent F4 tornado in eastern Caldwell county. One person received minor injuries from a lightning strike in Yancey county later in the evening. The storms continued to reform in eastern Tennessee until very late in the evening and still produced large hail as they crossed the border into the mountain counties of North Carolina, before weakening shortly after midnight.. | |||||||||||
| 49.3 | 1984-03-28 | 2 | 34°34'N / 80°10'W | 2.00 Miles | 530 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Chesterfield | |
* 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.