States › North Carolina › 2020
North Carolina, 2020
The year's recorded storm events, federal disaster declarations and flood insurance claims.
NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders.
Events by hazard
Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 2020 was 1,685 against 1,432 in 2019.
Counties with the most recorded events
Notable events
| Date | County | Event type | Magnitude | Property damage | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Nov 2020 | Alexander | Flash Flood | — | $350,000 | 5 | — |
| 4 Aug 2020 | Bertie | Tornado | EF3 | $1,000,000 | 2 | 14 |
| 31 Aug 2020 | Johnston | Flash Flood | — | $15,000 | 2 | — |
| 5 Aug 2020 | New Hanover | Lightning | — | $2,000 | 2 | — |
| 22 May 2020 | Mecklenburg | Thunderstorm Wind | 63 mph | $500,000 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 Apr 2020 | Davidson | Thunderstorm Wind | 58 mph | $50,000 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 Nov 2020 | Iredell | Flash Flood | — | $100,000 | 1 | — |
| 12 Nov 2020 | Alexander | Flood | — | $100,000 | 1 | — |
| 28 Jun 2020 | Orange | Thunderstorm Wind | 58 mph | $50,000 | 1 | — |
| 21 May 2020 | Surry | Strong Wind | 35 mph | $30,000 | 1 | — |
| 30 Apr 2020 | Cabarrus | Flood | — | $10,000 | 1 | — |
| 9 Apr 2020 | Iredell | Strong Wind | 40 mph | $10,000 | 1 | — |
| 1 Sep 2020 | Warren | Flash Flood | — | $10,000 | 1 | — |
| 5 Jul 2020 | Gaston | Thunderstorm Wind | 46 mph | — | 1 | — |
| 12 Nov 2020 | Wake | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 13 Jan 2020 | Sampson | Thunderstorm Wind | 85 mph | $250,000 | — | 3 |
| 13 Apr 2020 | Lee | Thunderstorm Wind | 58 mph | $100,000 | — | 1 |
| 6 Mar 2020 | Surry | Strong Wind | 35 mph | $50,000 | — | 1 |
| 13 Apr 2020 | Mecklenburg | Thunderstorm Wind | 59 mph | $50,000 | — | 1 |
| 7 Feb 2020 | Wake | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $15,000 | — | 1 |
| 13 Apr 2020 | Wilkes | Thunderstorm Wind | 58 mph | $8,000 | — | 1 |
| 7 Feb 2020 | Randolph | Strong Wind | 40 mph | — | — | 1 |
| 28 May 2020 | Sampson | Flash Flood | — | $5,000,000 | — | — |
| 13 Apr 2020 | Anson | Tornado | EF1 | $3,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Wake | Strong Wind | 56 mph | $1,500,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Cumberland | Strong Wind | 52 mph | $1,500,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Forsyth | Tropical Storm | — | $1,500,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Guilford | Tropical Storm | — | $1,500,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Davidson | Tropical Storm | — | $1,500,000 | — | — |
| 6 Feb 2020 | Stokes | Flash Flood | — | $1,070,000 | — | — |
| 6 Feb 2020 | Cleveland | Flood | — | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 12 Nov 2020 | Mecklenburg | Flash Flood | — | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 3 Aug 2020 | Brunswick | Tornado | EF2 | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Montgomery | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Harnett | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Moore | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Richmond | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Hoke | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Sampson | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
| 29 Oct 2020 | Halifax | Strong Wind | 46 mph | $1,000,000 | — | — |
Up to 40 events with deaths, injuries, damage of $50,000 or more, or a tornado rating, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage.
Federal disaster declarations in 2020
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Oct 2020 | DR-4568 | Major disaster | Hurricane | Hurricane Isaias | 16 |
| 2 Aug 2020 | EM-3534 | Emergency | Hurricane | Hurricane Isaias | 100 |
| 8 May 2020 | DR-4543 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | 19 |
| 25 Mar 2020 | DR-4487 | Major disaster | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic | 100 |
| 13 Mar 2020 | EM-3471 | Emergency | Biological | Covid-19 | 100 |
Flood insurance claims with a 2020 date of loss
1,821 NFIP claims, 1,389 of them paid, for $29,668,672.
Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (1 Oct 2026); OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 (8 Sep 2026). Built 1 Oct 2026.