Hurricane history · North Carolina
Hurricanes near Chapel Hill, NC
Hurricanes
2
None major
Tropical storms
7
within 60 miles since 1950
Close calls
1
hurricanes within 30 miles
Since 1950, 2 hurricanes and 7 tropical storms have passed within 60 miles of Chapel Hill. That's a hurricane about once every 38 years. The most recent hurricane was Fran in 1996. The strongest was Hazel in 1954, with winds near 104 mph as it went by. Most came in July.
Check your address for the next storm
Every storm since 1950
| Year | Storm | Strength nearby | Winds, mph | Closest, mi |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Elsa Jul | Tropical storm | 52 | 22 |
| 2021 | Claudette Jun | Tropical storm | 46 | 56 |
| 2018 | Michael Oct | Tropical storm | 58 | 11 |
| 2008 | Hanna Sep | Tropical storm | 52 | 55 |
| 1996 | Fran Sep | Category 1 | 75 | 11 |
| 1970 | Alma May | Tropical storm | 46 | 25 |
| 1959 | Cindy Jul | Tropical storm | 40 | 40 |
| 1955 | Diane Aug | Tropical storm | 63 | 26 |
| 1954 | Hazel Oct | Category 2 | 104 | 42 |
By decade
| Decade | Hurricanes | Tropical storms |
|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1 | 2 |
| 1960s | 0 | 0 |
| 1970s | 0 | 1 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 |
| 1990s | 1 | 0 |
| 2000s | 0 | 1 |
| 2010s | 0 | 1 |
| 2020s | 0 | 2 |
From the National Hurricane Center's best-track archive (HURDAT2), Atlantic and eastern Pacific, through 2025. A storm counts when its center came within 60 miles of the middle of Chapel Hill at tropical-storm strength or more. "Winds" is the strongest it was while that close, over open water; inland it is usually less.
Nearby
- Carrboro, NC 2 hurricanes
- Briar Chapel, NC 2 hurricanes
- Fearrington Village, NC 2 hurricanes
- Durham, NC 2 hurricanes
- Hillsborough, NC 1 hurricanes
- Morrisville, NC 2 hurricanes
- Pittsboro, NC 2 hurricanes
- Apex, NC 2 hurricanes