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North Carolina Flood Stories

2,548 first-hand accounts of flood events in North Carolina, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.

Flash Flood1 death$10K damage

Alexander, NC · Jul 15, 2023

Widespread showers and thunderstorms developed in the vicinity of a trough over the North Carolina foothills throughout the 15th. While rainfall was primarily in the 2 to 3 inch range, isolated areas of 4 to 6 inches fell in just a few hours across the northern foothills.

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Tropical Storm1 death$91.0M damage

Columbus, NC · Oct 8, 2016

Major Hurricane Matthew moved up the southeast coast and slowly weakened to a category 1 storm as it moved up along the South Carolina coast and then eastward near the North Carolina coast.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$10.0M damage

Beaufort, NC · Aug 26, 2011

Hurricane Irene made landfall during the morning of the 27th, near Cape Lookout, as a large category 1 hurricane on the Saffir/Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

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Flash Flood1 death$5.0M damage

Pender, NC · Sep 15, 2018

Hurricane Florence began its long Atlantic trek from the Cape Verde Islands in early September. It made landfall near Wrightsville Beach during the morning of September 14th.

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Flash Flood1 death$20K damage

Chatham, NC · Jul 6, 2025

Tropical Storm Chantal made landfall over northeastern South Carolina during the morning hours of July 6. The remnants of Chantal then tracked west-northwest into portions of central North Carolina, stalling out over the area before tracking east-northeast into Virginia by the…

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Flash Flood1 death$20K damage

Orange, NC · Jul 6, 2025

Tropical Storm Chantal made landfall over northeastern South Carolina during the morning hours of July 6. The remnants of Chantal then tracked west-northwest into portions of central North Carolina, stalling out over the area before tracking east-northeast into Virginia by the…

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Tropical Storm1 death$750K damage

Moore, NC · Sep 30, 2022

Hurricane Ian made landfall along the South Carolina coast near Georgetown during the early afternoon hours of September 30, 2022. Widespread wind gusts over tropical storm force and heavy rainfall occurred across much of central North Carolina through the afternoon and evening…

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Flood1 death$9.1M damage

Harnett, NC · Oct 9, 2016

Hurricane Matthew skirted by the North Carolina coast on October 8, 2016, dropping torrential rainfall of 8 to 15 inches and producing wind gusts of 50 to 70 mph across Central and Eastern North Carolina.

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Tropical Storm1 death$1.0M damage

Wayne, NC · Sep 13, 2018

A ridge of high pressure over eastern North America stalled Florence's forward motion a few miles off the southeast North Carolina coast on September 13th.

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Flash Flood1 death$100K damage

Iredell, NC · Nov 12, 2020

Tropical Cyclone Eta moved from the eastern Gulf of Mexico, across the northern Florida peninsula, to off the South Carolina coast throughout the 11th and 12th.

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Flood1 death$100K damage

Alexander, NC · Nov 12, 2020

Tropical Cyclone Eta moved from the eastern Gulf of Mexico, across the northern Florida peninsula, to off the South Carolina coast throughout the 11th and 12th.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$500K damage

Pitt, NC · Sep 4, 1996

Hurricane Fran moved onshore near Cape Fear Thursday evening (9/6) and raced north toward Raleigh cutting a swath of destruction. The Category 3 hurricane destroyed or damaged 90% of the homes in North Topsail Beach. The town hall and police station were destroyed.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$150.0M damage

Lenoir, NC · Sep 14, 1999

Hurricane Floyd caused the largest peace time evacuation in the nations history. He also caused massive record flooding across inland sections of eastern North Carolina.

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Flash Flood1 death$50K damage

Union, NC · Sep 16, 2018

Tropical Cyclone Florence made landfall on the 15th and moved slowly west while weakening through the 16th. Widespread rainfall of 4 to 10 inches, with locally higher amounts fell across western North Carolina over a 36-48 hour period, with the highest totals reported along the…

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Flood1 death$10K damage

Gaston, NC · Jun 9, 2019

A moist upslope flow developing north of a stationary front resulted in widespread showers and thunderstorms developing across western North Carolina during the evening of the 8th into the overnight and early morning hours of the ninth.

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Flash Flood1 death$20K damage

Robeson, NC · Sep 15, 2018

Hurricane Florence began its long Atlantic trek from the Cape Verde Islands in early September. It made landfall near Wrightsville Beach during the morning of September 14th.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$7.6M damage

Chowan, NC · Sep 18, 2003

Hurricane Isabel was a Category 1 hurricane as it crossed the Wakefield WFO county warning area. Sustained tropical storm force winds with frequent gusts to hurricane force occurred over coastal northeast North Carolina.

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Flood1 death$10K damage

Cabarrus, NC · Apr 30, 2020

An area of widespread rainfall developed across the western Carolinas in advance of a cold front late on the 29th into the early morning hours of the 30th.

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Flash Flood1 death$10K damage

Robeson, NC · Sep 15, 2018

Hurricane Florence began its long Atlantic trek from the Cape Verde Islands in early September. It made landfall near Wrightsville Beach during the morning of September 14th.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$2.0M damage

Western Currituck, NC · Aug 26, 1998

Hurricane Bonnie moved along the coast of northeast North Carolina on August 27th. Very strong winds and heavy rains associated with Bonnie's spiral bands hammered northeast North Carolina Thursday afternoon into early Friday morning.

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Flood1 death

Union, NC · Sep 16, 2018

Tropical Cyclone Florence made landfall on the 15th and moved slowly west while weakening through the 16th. Widespread rainfall of 4 to 10 inches, with locally higher amounts fell across western North Carolina over a 36-48 hour period, with the highest totals reported along the…

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Flash Flood1 death$10K damage

Warren, NC · Sep 1, 2020

Flash flooding that originated on August 31st continued across portions of the northeast Piedmont and central Coastal Plain of central North Carolina during the early morning hours of September 1st.

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Hurricane (Typhoon)1 death$209K damage

Franklin, NC · Sep 18, 2003

Hurricane Isabel made landfall along the Outer Banks just north of Cape Lookout around 1 pm on September 18, 2003. The eye of the storm tracked northeast passing over eastern Halifax County. Winds gusts to near Hurricane force were recorded over Halifax county.

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Flood1 death

Brunswick, NC · Sep 16, 2024

Potential Tropical Cyclone #8 located off the SC coast was classified by the National Hurricane Center on September 15 and a Tropical Storm Warning was issued for the entire coast of southeast NC and northeast SC at that time.

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