North Carolina, 1994Tornadoes and Hail in North Carolina, August 16, 1994
August 16, 1994 · 9 events in 9 counties and zones
4 tornado, 4 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 9 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
Open the live radar over this ground
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 2
- Property damage
- $1.1 million
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 9
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
Event by event
4 tornado, 4 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Tornado, Cleveland
- When
- August 16, 5:30 PM EST
- Where
- Cleveland County, Earl
- Rating
- F1
- Path length
- 2 mi
- Path width
- 200 yd
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Coordinates
- 35.334, -81.556 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
At approximately 630 PM EDT, a tornado touched down in southern Cleveland County near the town of Earl, which is south of Shelby. The tornado affected areas off of route 18. One mobile home was completely destroyed on John Crawford Road. Extensive damage was done to a home off Mt. Sinai road. Several trees and power lines were also downed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin
- When
- August 16, 5:35 PM EST
- Where
- Franklin County
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Coordinates
- 36.083, -78.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A woman was injured by flying glass when a window was blown in. Minor damage was reported at a packhouse.
Thunderstorm Wind, Iredell
- When
- August 16, 6:08 PM EST
- Where
- Iredell County, Statesville
- Coordinates
- 35.807, -80.873 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Strong thunderstorms winds downed several trees.
Thunderstorm Wind, Rutherford
- When
- August 16, 6:25 PM EST
- Where
- Rutherford County, Rutherfordton
- Coordinates
- 35.402, -81.920 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Trees and power lines were blown down. One mobile home was blown onto its side.
Hail, Forsyth
- When
- August 16, 6:29 PM EST
- Where
- Forsyth County, Clemmons
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 36.131, -80.256 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Tornado, Caldwell
- When
- August 16, 6:42 PM EST
- Where
- Caldwell County, Dudley Shoals
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Coordinates
- 35.953, -81.546 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A weak tornado produced sporadic damage in several adjacent communities. A couple of garages and one barn were damaged. A few homes received roof damage and several mobile homes were moved off their foundations. Tree and power line damage were widespread.
Tornado, Catawba
- When
- August 16, 6:45 PM EST
- Where
- Catawba County, Ne Hickory
- Rating
- F2
- Path length
- 1.5 mi
- Path width
- 200 yd
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Coordinates
- 35.663, -81.214 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
At approximately 745 PM EDT, a tornado touched down in northern Catawba county, just northeast of the town of Hickory. Extensive damage was reported in the residential communities of Sandy Ridge and Kool Park. Two mobile homes and one home were completely destroyed. Flying debris caused extensive damage to cars and trucks. Several roofs and chimneys were damaged. Several trailers were overturned.
Tornado, Wilkes
- When
- August 16, 7:15 PM EST
- Where
- Wilkes County, Lomax
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Coordinates
- 36.206, -81.163 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Sheppards Crossroads,A weak tornado produced sporadic damage in several adjacent communities. An old store was destroyed, several chicken houses were flattened, windows were broken and a few farm buildings were damaged.
Thunderstorm Wind, Alleghany
- When
- August 16, 7:50 PM EST
- Where
- Alleghany County, Roaring Gap
- Coordinates
- 36.491, -81.127 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Strong thunderstorm winds downed several trees.
- Tornado
- A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- Tornadoes and Hail in South Carolina, August 16, 199446 injured · $53 million · F3 · 29 events
- Tornadoes and Hail in Georgia, August 16, 19941 injured · $5.5 million · F2 · 5 events
- Damaging Winds in South Dakota, August 16, 1994$401,000 · 5 events
- Damaging Wind in Montana, August 16, 1994$50,000 · 1 event
- Tornado and Damaging Winds in Florida, August 16, 1994F0 · 3 events
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Texas, August 16, 19941 in hail · 2 events
- Hail in North Dakota, August 16, 19941.75 in hail · 1 event
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10339071, 10338238, 10338314, 10337864, 10338232, 10338841, 10338985, 10337745, 10338117.