Tornadoes · United States · North Carolina

Tornadoes in Brunswick County, North Carolina

44 tornadoes have crossed Brunswick County since 1950, 5th of the 99 counties in North Carolina with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 3 people and injured 11. None was rated F4 or above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Now

Tornadoes
44
Deaths
3
Injuries
11
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF3, February 15, 2021

The deadliest in Brunswick County

  1. EF3 Sunset Beach tornado, North CarolinaFebruary 15, 20213 killed, 10 injured

The strongest

  1. EF3 Sunset Beach tornado, North CarolinaFebruary 15, 2021EF3, 21.9 mi (35 km)
  2. EF2, Brunswick County, North CarolinaSeptember 5, 2019EF2, 9.3 mi (15 km)
  3. EF2, Brunswick County, North CarolinaAugust 3, 2020EF2, 8.3 mi (13 km)
  4. F2, Brunswick County, North CarolinaJune 13, 1962F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 26 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Brunswick County. Each year links to every tornado in North Carolina that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20242EF0
20233EF1
20221EF0
20211310EF3
20207EF2
201931EF2
20181EF0
20172EF1
20151EF0
20132EF0
20091EF1
20042F0
20021F0
20011F0
19981F0
19972F0
19962F0
19951F0
19941F1
19901F1
19801F0
19762F1
19752F1
19641F0
19621F2
19511F1

Every tornado that crossed Brunswick County

44 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
September 15, 202411:52 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.520
August 6, 20244:09 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.340$5,000
August 30, 20237:25 PM EDTEF1Brunswick0.340
August 30, 20236:45 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.320$50,000
August 30, 20236:14 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.420
September 30, 202212:25 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.720
February 15, 202111:34 PM ESTEF3Sunset Beach tornado21.9275310
August 3, 20209:59 PM EDTEF1Brunswick1.540$200,000
August 3, 20208:43 PM EDTEF1Brunswick2.630$5,000
August 3, 20208:15 PM EDTEF1Brunswick0.325$2,000
August 3, 20208:15 PM EDTEF0Brunswick1.620$1,000
August 3, 20207:55 PM EDTEF2Brunswick8.380$1.0 million
April 13, 20209:36 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.415$15,000
April 13, 20209:32 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.115$8,000
September 5, 20196:58 AM EDTEF2Brunswick9.32001$2.0 million
September 5, 20195:23 AM EDTEF1Brunswick2.650$10,000
September 5, 20195:19 AM EDTEF0Brunswick4.135$5,000
September 16, 20187:24 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.140
October 23, 201711:45 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.450$7,000
February 15, 201711:53 AM ESTEF1Brunswick3.260$80,000
June 27, 20155:30 PM EDTEF0Brunswick0.025$3,000
September 22, 20134:39 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.220$10,000
June 6, 20131:22 AM EDTEF0Brunswick0.120$10,000
April 6, 200911:45 AM EDTEF1Brunswick2.3100$20,000
September 10, 20043:45 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.225
September 10, 20043:28 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.030
July 24, 20025:55 PM EDTF0Brunswick2.050
September 11, 20012:48 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.320
June 13, 19985:02 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.130
July 19, 19973:40 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.110$2,000
July 19, 19973:31 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.110
October 8, 19965:45 AM EDTF0Brunswick0.415$100,000
August 4, 19969:20 AM EDTF0Brunswick0.120
July 1, 19953:55 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.110
September 18, 19945:45 PM EDTF1Brunswick0.240$50,000 to $500,000
May 5, 19902:45 PM EDTF1Brunswick1.0300$500 to $5,000
April 27, 19801:15 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.110
August 16, 19763:30 PM EDTF1Brunswick0.110$500 to $5,000
May 18, 19764:55 PM EDTF1Brunswick0.113$5,000 to $50,000
October 17, 19752:00 PM EDTF1Brunswick2.027$5,000 to $50,000
September 7, 19754:45 PM EDTF0Brunswick0.110$5,000 to $50,000
September 12, 196410:00 PM GMT-4F0Brunswick2.010$5,000 to $50,000
June 13, 19623:37 AM GMT-4F2Brunswick0.130$5,000 to $50,000
July 6, 19511:00 PM GMT-4F1Brunswick0.110$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Brunswick CountyThe forecast for Brunswick CountyThe live radar over Brunswick CountyEvery county in North Carolina

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.