Henderson County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot North Carolina Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Henderson County is higher than North Carolina average and is lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Henderson County is lower than North Carolina average and is lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #1
| Henderson County | 1.29 |
| North Carolina | 0.18 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Henderson County | 0.0000 |
| North Carolina | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #76
| Henderson County | 78.06 |
| North Carolina | 115.21 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 15,673 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Henderson County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 40 | Dense Fog: | 10 | Drought: | 103 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 1,256 | Hail: | 4,505 | Heat: | 22 | Heavy Snow: | 117 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 18 | Ice Storm: | 53 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 131 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 8,307 | Tropical Storm: | 22 | Wildfire: | 7 | Winter Storm: | 121 | Winter Weather: | 100 |
| Other: | 861 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Henderson County.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 2 historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Henderson County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 39.4 | 1979-08-26 | 3.7 | 2 | 34.93 | -82.97 |
| 2.8 | 1981-05-05 | 3.5 | 13 | 35.33 | -82.43 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 29 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Henderson County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 22.0 | 1975-01-10 | 2 | 35°09'N / 82°50'W | 35°12'N / 82°48'W | 4.30 Miles | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Transylvania |
| 28.4 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 34°53'N / 82°47'W | 34°59'N / 82°23'W | 23.60 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Pickens |
| 32.6 | 1973-05-27 | 3 | 34°55'N / 82°13'W | 35°00'N / 82°03'W | 11.10 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 16 | 2.5M | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 33.9 | 1979-03-23 | 2 | 34°51'N / 82°24'W | 0.10 Mile | 77 Yards | 0 | 2 | 2.5M | 0 | Greenville | |
| 34.0 | 1998-05-07 | 2 | 35°37'N / 81°59'W | 35°37'N / 81°59'W | 3.70 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 482K | 0 | Mcdowell |
| Brief Description: Another supercell which tracked across the mountains spawned a tornado that travelled through a portion of Glenwood. Several homes and mobiles sustained damage or were destroyed. Supercell thunderstorms developed in a highly sheared atmosphere in eastern Tennessee then moved east across the mountains, foothills and western piedmont of North Carolina. These long-lived, cyclic supercells produced a considerable amount of large hail and some damaging winds in the mountains. The first tornado of the day in western North Carolina occurred in Madison county. Numerous reports of hail as large as golf balls were reported from the mountains. In Madison and Yancey counties, hail covered roads. More supercell thunderstorms developed behind the previous ones and followed similar tracks. In northern Buncombe county, the town of Barnardsville had three separate severe storms cross overhead and drop hail on the ground to a depth of 3 inches. Yancey county also had 3 separate storms move across the county that accumulated hail to 6 inches in depth. The hail was still on the ground the next morning. As the supercells moved into the foothills, they began to curve a little to the right, indicative of strong mesocyclonic circulations present. One supercell produced several tornadoes from Alexander county to Davie county. Another storm produced a tornado that tracked from western Caldwell county into south-central Alexander county. A third supercell that emerged out of the mountains in McDowell county produced several tornadoes from the southern part of that county to northern Mecklenburg county. Damage was fairly significant across western North Carolina with numerous homes either damaged or destroyed. Fortunately, no one was killed. However, 2 people were injured as a result of the violent F4 tornado in eastern Caldwell county. One person received minor injuries from a lightning strike in Yancey county later in the evening. The storms continued to reform in eastern Tennessee until very late in the evening and still produced large hail as they crossed the border into the mountain counties of North Carolina, before weakening shortly after midnight.. | |||||||||||
| 34.9 | 1967-05-02 | 2 | 34°50'N / 82°25'W | 1.00 Mile | 67 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Greenville | |
| 35.3 | 1973-05-27 | 3 | 34°46'N / 82°26'W | 34°55'N / 82°13'W | 16.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 17 | 2.5M | 0 | Greenville |
| 36.0 | 1973-03-31 | 2 | 34°46'N / 82°37'W | 34°52'N / 82°26'W | 12.40 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Pickens |
| 36.1 | 1985-08-17 | 2 | 34°58'N / 82°00'W | 35°06'N / 81°55'W | 9.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 39 | 2.5M | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 36.5 | 1998-01-07 | 2 | 34°48'N / 82°36'W | 34°50'N / 82°36'W | 1.50 Miles | 35 Yards | 0 | 4 | 3.0M | 0 | Pickens |
| Brief Description: A tornado developed from a fast moving severe thunderstorm that raced north out of eastern Georgia. The F2 tornado destroyed several houses and mobile homes and severely damaged many other homes and businesses. Damage was sustained to the south of the track of the tornado due to strong inflow into the storm. Damage from severe thunderstorm winds in the rear flank downdraft occurred north into Easley. A powerful winter storm brought flooding rain, high winds, and a tornado to the Upstate from the evening of the 7th into the early morning of the 8th. Rainfall between 4 and 7 inches during a 2-day period across the mountains and foothills resulted in significant flooding. Many roads and bridges were covered or washed out. A wash out in Pickens county resulted in one fatality. Thunderstorms raced north through the area adding to the deluge as well as creating or enhancing strong to damaging winds. An F2 tornado touched down near Easley. Meso-scale high winds behind the complex of thunderstorms moved across the northern half of Greenville county and blew down trees and power lines. Severe thunderstorm winds combined with strong gradient winds to down trees and power lines in York county as well. | |||||||||||
| 36.5 | 1975-05-18 | 2 | 35°23'N / 81°50'W | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Rutherford | |||
| 36.7 | 1973-05-27 | 3 | 35°00'N / 82°03'W | 35°10'N / 81°46'W | 19.80 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 4 | 2.5M | 0 | Cherokee |
| 36.7 | 1989-05-05 | 4 | 35°05'N / 81°56'W | 35°10'N / 81°50'W | 6.00 Miles | 700 Yards | 2 | 35 | 2.5M | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 37.6 | 1989-04-04 | 2 | 34°46'N / 82°30'W | 34°49'N / 82°27'W | 3.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Greenville |
| 38.7 | 1989-04-04 | 2 | 34°54'N / 82°03'W | 2.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Spartanburg | |
| 38.7 | 1976-06-28 | 2 | 35°19'N / 83°10'W | 0.20 Mile | 10 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Jackson | |
| 38.7 | 1989-05-05 | 4 | 35°11'N / 81°48'W | 35°15'N / 81°49'W | 6.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Rutherford |
| 39.0 | 1989-05-05 | 4 | 35°10'N / 81°50'W | 35°11'N / 81°48'W | 3.00 Miles | 700 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Cherokee |
| 40.0 | 1989-04-04 | 2 | 34°45'N / 82°32'W | 34°46'N / 82°30'W | 2.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Anderson |
| 40.5 | 1952-05-10 | 3 | 34°48'N / 82°15'W | 34°48'N / 82°08'W | 6.60 Miles | 83 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Greenville |
| 41.0 | 1997-02-21 | 2 | 34°55'N / 81°58'W | 34°55'N / 81°58'W | 1.00 Mile | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 330K | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 41.0 | 1994-06-26 | 2 | 34°51'N / 83°02'W | 34°58'N / 82°56'W | 12.00 Miles | 900 Yards | 0 | 1 | 500K | 0 | Oconee |
| 43.1 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 34°52'N / 82°59'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Oconee | |
| 45.4 | 1973-05-27 | 3 | 35°10'N / 81°46'W | 35°18'N / 81°36'W | 13.20 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Cleveland |
| 46.2 | 1952-05-10 | 3 | 34°48'N / 82°08'W | 34°48'N / 81°51'W | 16.10 Miles | 83 Yards | 2 | 4 | 0K | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 47.7 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 34°48'N / 83°17'W | 34°57'N / 82°56'W | 22.50 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Oconee |
| 47.9 | 1994-03-27 | 2 | 35°03'N / 82°03'W | 35°24'N / 81°14'W | 25.00 Miles | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Spartanburg |
| 48.2 | 1980-04-13 | 2 | 34°34'N / 82°25'W | 34°43'N / 82°22'W | 10.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Greenville |
| 49.2 | 1969-04-18 | 2 | 35°01'N / 81°42'W | 0.50 Mile | 83 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Cherokee | |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.