Virginia Beach, VA Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
The chance of earthquake damage in Virginia Beach is lower than Virginia average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Virginia Beach is about the same as Virginia average and is lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #1046
| Virginia Beach, VA | 0.00 |
| Virginia | 0.20 |
| 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
| Virginia Beach, VA | 0.0000 |
| Virginia | 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, #475
| Virginia Beach, VA | 84.54 |
| Virginia | 88.66 |
| 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 952 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Virginia Beach, VA 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: | 9 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 5 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 87 | Hail: | 187 | Heat: | 4 | Heavy Snow: | 4 |
| High Surf: | 2 | Hurricane: | 14 | Ice Storm: | 3 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 39 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 403 | Tropical Storm: | 8 | Wildfire: | 0 | Winter Storm: | 56 | Winter Weather: | 29 |
| Other: | 102 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Virginia Beach, VA.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Virginia Beach, VA.
No historical earthquake events found in or near Virginia Beach, VA.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 19 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Virginia Beach, VA.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 3.0 | 1959-10-09 | 2 | 36°45'N / 75°59'W | 1.00 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Suffolk (c) | |
| 5.4 | 1988-08-03 | 2 | 36°51'N / 75°59'W | 0.20 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Virginia Beach (c) | |
| 24.3 | 1979-09-05 | 2 | 37°01'N / 76°21'W | 0.50 Mile | 30 Yards | 0 | 9 | 250K | 0 | Hampton (c) | |
| 24.3 | 1999-09-04 | 2 | 37°01'N / 76°21'W | 37°01'N / 76°21'W | 1.00 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 6 | 7.7M | 0 | Hampton (c) |
| Brief Description: Tornado touchdown in the city of Hampton. Extensive structural damage in a 3 block area. Numerous minor injuries, with 6 people transported to the hospital. Three apartment complexes and an assisted living facility condemned. Two additional apartment complexes partially condemned. There were 300 persons from apartment complexes forced to evacuate while 160 persons from the assisted living facility were forced to evacuate. Many roofs were lifted off buildings and as much as 800 vehicles were reported damaged. One 18 wheel tractor trailer was overturned. There was not a continuous damage swath, but areas where the tornado did not completely touch the ground. In some areas the tops of trees were sheared off. This tornado formed in the area ahead of the landfalling tropical storm/hurricane Dennis. There were 6600 persons without power. | |||||||||||
| 25.9 | 1979-09-05 | 3 | 36°59'N / 76°25'W | 2.50 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 2.5M | 0 | Newport News (c) | |
| 28.6 | 2008-04-28 | 3 | 36°42'N / 76°41'W | 36°53'N / 76°24'W | 16.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 200 | 30.0M | 0K | Suffolk (c) |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A tornado touched down with damage first noted about 2 miles northeast of Lummis. The tornado crossed Route 58, downing trees as it moved northeast. The tornado strengthened just south of the intersection of Route 10 AND Route 58, where it damaged several homes and an elementary school as well as downing numerous trees. The intense tornado crossed Route 58 again and then Route 10 before hitting the Freedom Plaza shopping center where it destroyed a strip mall and tossed around numerous cars. One car was impaled into a building adjacent to the strip mall. Thereafter, the tornado moved into 2 subdivisions east and northeast of Obici Hospital. Many homes were damaged with at least a dozen completely destroyed. The tornado then continued into Driver where it damaged a number of homes and businesses and downed numeroud trees. The tornado then appeared to lift just north of Driver, although amateur video and pictures suggested that the tornado maintained close contact with the ground as it tracked northeast across northern portions of Portsmouth to the Norfolk Naval Air Station. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Severe thunderstorms in advance of a cold front produced numerous tornadoes across central and eastern Virginia. | |||||||||||
| 29.1 | 1973-05-20 | 2 | 36°22'N / 76°12'W | 36°23'N / 76°09'W | 2.70 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Pasquotank |
| 30.3 | 1983-05-16 | 2 | 36°25'N / 76°20'W | 0.50 Mile | 17 Yards | 0 | 3 | 25K | 0 | Pasquotank | |
| 32.3 | 1963-07-14 | 2 | 36°20'N / 76°12'W | 1.00 Mile | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Pasquotank | |
| 34.5 | 1967-07-16 | 2 | 36°18'N / 76°12'W | 0.30 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Perquimans | |
| 34.8 | 1988-11-05 | 2 | 36°18'N / 76°13'W | 2.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Pasquotank | |
| 34.8 | 1967-07-04 | 3 | 36°33'N / 76°35'W | 2.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 5 | 25K | 0 | Accomack | |
| 35.2 | 1969-06-21 | 2 | 37°17'N / 75°56'W | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Northampton | |||
| 35.2 | 1992-11-23 | 3 | 36°18'N / 76°21'W | 36°20'N / 76°14'W | 12.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 21 | 2.5M | 0 | Pasquotank |
| 39.6 | 1999-10-17 | 2 | 36°13'N / 76°10'W | 36°13'N / 76°10'W | 0.20 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 150K | 0 | Pasquotank |
| Brief Description: A tornado associated with Hurricane Irene touched down one mile north of Weeksville. This tornado touched down near the intersection of Toxey Road and N.C. Route 34. The tornado moved due north for about two tenths (0.2) mile with a path width of 50 yards. Two trailers were totally destroyed. One trailer was flipped over and another sustained some damage. A modular home sustained significant damage with several vehicles in the front yard turned 90 degrees. An automobile was thrown up into a tree and wrapped partially around a tree. A cinderblock building sustained a wall failure and a partial collapse of the roof. Clay roofing tiles from this building were thrown 100 yards from the building. Several other structures sustained minor damage. Two trees, a pine and willow tree were completely stripped of all branches. In addition, a refrigerator was carried the entire path length of the tornado and deposited in the front yard of the modular home. | |||||||||||
| 40.6 | 1984-03-28 | 3 | 36°22'N / 76°42'W | 36°28'N / 76°30'W | 14.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 2 | 10 | 2.5M | 0 | Gates |
| 43.6 | 1992-11-23 | 3 | 36°13'N / 76°35'W | 36°18'N / 76°21'W | 13.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Chowan |
| 44.3 | 1988-11-28 | 2 | 36°44'N / 76°55'W | 36°48'N / 76°44'W | 10.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Isle Of Wight |
| 46.0 | 1981-03-30 | 2 | 36°32'N / 76°56'W | 36°35'N / 76°41'W | 14.20 Miles | 83 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Suffolk (c) |
* 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.