Tornadoes · United States · North Carolina

Tornadoes in Pender County, North Carolina

48 tornadoes have crossed Pender County since 1950, 4th of the 99 counties in North Carolina with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.6 years. They have killed 3 people and injured 31. 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
48
Deaths
3
Injuries
31
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F2, August 13, 2004

The deadliest in Pender County

  1. F2, Pender County, North CarolinaAugust 13, 20043 killed, 29 injured

The strongest

  1. F2, Columbus, Bladen and Pender counties, North CarolinaOctober 4, 1964F2, 54.6 mi (88 km)
  2. F2, Pender County, North CarolinaAugust 13, 2004F2, 5.0 mi (8 km)
  3. EF2, Pender and Sampson counties, North CarolinaAugust 7, 2024EF2, 4.7 mi (8 km)
  4. F2, Pender County, North CarolinaSeptember 26, 1982F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  5. F2, Pender County, North CarolinaAugust 5, 1969F2, 0.3 mi (0 km)
  6. F2, Pender County, North CarolinaNovember 2, 1954F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 29 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Pender County. Each year links to every tornado in North Carolina that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20251EF1
20242EF2
20205EF1
20196EF1
20182EF1
20171EF0
20114EF1
20082EF1
20061F1
20041329F2
20031F0
20011F0
20003F0
19991F0
19981F0
199711F1
19962F0
19911F0
19821F2
19771F0
19751F1
19732F1
19691F2
19641F2
19611F1
195511F1
19541F2
19531F1
19511F1

Every tornado that crossed Pender County

48 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 16, 20257:25 PM EDTEF1Pender3.1200$30,000
August 7, 20242:43 PM EDTEF0Pender1.835
August 7, 20242:09 PM EDTEF2Pender4.740$500,000
September 17, 20208:17 PM EDTEF0Pender0.120$30,000
April 13, 20209:24 AM EDTEF0Pender1.530$2,000
April 13, 20209:19 AM EDTEF1Pender2.830$25,000
April 13, 20209:13 AM EDTEF1Pender2.850$100,000
April 13, 20209:09 AM EDTEF1Pender7.850$150,000
September 5, 20191:10 PM EDTEF0Pender4.420$5,000
September 5, 201912:19 PM EDTEF1Pender5.460$10,000
September 5, 20197:56 AM EDTEF0Pender0.530$100,000
September 5, 20197:45 AM EDTEF0Pender7.140$5,000
August 7, 20193:45 PM EDTEF0Pender0.120
August 5, 201910:13 AM EDTEF0Pender0.120$2,000
September 15, 201810:41 PM EDTEF1Pender0.450$150,000
September 15, 20183:07 PM EDTEF0Pender0.540$200,000
July 19, 201711:23 AM EDTEF0Pender0.125$10,000
April 28, 20114:38 PM EDTEF0Pender0.230$12,000
April 28, 20114:29 PM EDTEF1Pender3.160$105,000
April 28, 20114:10 PM EDTEF0Pender6.350$33,000
April 28, 20114:07 PM EDTEF1Pender0.360$66,000
August 27, 20081:05 PM EDTEF0Pender0.010
March 15, 20087:56 PM EDTEF1Pender2.0100$2.0 million
November 16, 20066:41 AM ESTF1Pender5.1100$70,000
August 13, 20043:55 AM EDTF2Pender5.0500329$1.3 million
May 27, 20032:37 PM EDTF0Pender7.530$40,000
April 1, 20013:15 PM EDTF0Pender0.3100$100,000
April 28, 20001:45 PM EDTF0Pender1.050$50,000
April 25, 20003:30 PM EDTF0Pender0.540$10,000
March 16, 200010:10 PM ESTF0Pender2.040$10,000
September 15, 19997:24 AM EDTF0Pender0.310
June 13, 19984:21 PM EDTF0Pender0.130
October 26, 19974:45 PM ESTF1Bladen0.2501$350,000
April 15, 199611:50 AM EDTF0Pender0.110
April 15, 199611:20 AM EDTF0Pender0.220
August 18, 19918:30 AM EDTF0Pender0.210
September 26, 19828:30 AM EDTF2Pender1.017$5,000 to $50,000
April 20, 19775:00 PM ESTF0Pender0.520$5,000 to $50,000
July 11, 19756:30 PM EDTF1Pender0.133$5,000 to $50,000
June 13, 19735:00 PM EDTF0Pender0.110$500 to $5,000
April 26, 197312:18 AM ESTF1Pender1.5100$5,000 to $50,000
August 5, 19696:00 AM GMT-4F2Pender0.350$5,000 to $50,000
October 4, 19647:15 PM GMT-4F2Columbus54.650$50,000 to $500,000
February 25, 196112:06 PM GMT-5F1Pender0.110$500 to $5,000
August 10, 19557:30 PM GMT-4F1Pender1.0501$5,000 to $50,000
November 2, 19542:30 PM GMT-5F2Pender0.127$5,000 to $50,000
April 30, 19538:00 PM GMT-4F1Jones0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 13, 19515:30 PM GMT-4F1Pender1.020$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Pender CountyThe forecast for Pender CountyThe live radar over Pender 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.