Extreme Cold/Wind Chill in North Carolina
Every extreme cold/wind chill event the National Weather Service has filed in North Carolina, year by year, with the most significant episodes. Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.
The most significant on the map
The most significant extreme cold/wind chill episodes in North Carolina.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 117
- Deaths
- 2
- Injuries
- 0
- Damage
- None recorded
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Winter Storm and Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 6 to 9, 2017A developing Nor'easter began to strengthen across the Gulf Coast of the United States late in the day on January 6th before moving northeast along the Atlantic coastline on January 7th.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 4, 2002A woman died, apparently from expsosure to the cold weather. Her body was found at the steps of her home in the morning.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, December 1 to 31, 2000December, 2000 will long be remembered for the brutal hold that cold weather had on the region. Temperatures ran 6 to 8 degrees below normal for the entire month. At Charlotte, it was the coldest month in 83 years.
- Extreme Cold and High Wind in North Carolina, December 23 to 24, 2022In advance of the arrival of a strong, cold Arctic high pressure system, northwest winds were strong to damaging across the region with gusts within the 58 to 62 mph range during the morning of the 23rd.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 6 to 7, 2014An arctic cold front blasted through the mountains during the morning hours of the 6th, bringing strong gusty winds and the coldest air mass to have affected the region since 1994.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, February 1, 2026Life-threatening cold that began during the afternoon of the 31st continued through the morning of the 1st across the North Carolina mountains.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, December 23 to 24, 2022An arctic cold front swept across the North Carolina mountains during the morning of the 23rd and introduced the coldest air mass in more than 5 years.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, February 18 to 20, 2015A strong arctic cold front blasted through Western North Carolina during the afternoon and evening of the 18th, bringing strong winds and bitterly cold air to the region.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 7 to 8, 2015An arctic cold front moved through Western North Carolina during the morning and afternoon of the 7th, bringing strong winds and bitterly cold air to the region.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, February 19, 2015The second major Arctic blast to affect the region within the same 7-day period surged through the region on the 18th sending temperatures to their lowest levels in over a year and by the morning of the 20th setting record low temperatures.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, February 15, 2015A massive Arctic air mass spread across much of the eastern U.S. behind a strong cold front on February 14th.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, February 1, 2026An upper low and subsequent coastal low pressure brought strong winds and cold temperatures to the region in early February.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 26 to 27, 2026Arctic high pressure arrived by January 27 in the wake of a departing winter storm. However, the pressure gradient between the high arriving and the low departing provided gusty winds that combined with the cold air to provide dangerously low wind chills.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, April 17 to 19, 2001Unseasonably cold temperatures caused significant crop damage to the winter wheat in Pender County. Monetary damage assessment unknown. Damage was also sustained to the blueberry crop. No precautionary measures were taken to protect the blueberries, which led to the damage.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 5 to 6, 2018A strong area of low pressure off the Atlantic coast rapidly strengthened, ushering in strong winds and an extremely frigid arctic air mass. Record cold temperatures combined with these winds created dangerous wind chills.
- Extreme Cold in North Carolina, January 22, 2025Another arctic cold front brought strong northwest winds and reinforced very cold air over the North Carolina mountains during the early morning hours of the 22nd.
More
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill everywhereEvery kind of event in North Carolina
Sources
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.