Hurricanes that hit Stafford County, Virginia: hurricane history

21 storms have passed within 50 km of Stafford County from 1861 to 2004, coloured by intensity on the map.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

Storms near Stafford County

The record holds 21 tropical cyclones whose tracks passed within 50 km of Stafford County, Virginia between 1861 and 2004. The busiest month is September, with 8 of them. The strongest, measured where each came closest to the place, reached category 2 strength. 2 of the storms have no wind speed in the record.

  • 21storms within 50 km
  • 0major (category 3 to 5) near here
  • 3at category 1 strength or more

A storm counts once, however many times it came close. The category is the storm's strongest point within 50 km, which can be weaker than its peak elsewhere.

How strong were the storms near Stafford County?

Category near hereStormsShare
Tropical depression838%
Tropical storm838%
Category 1210%
Category 215%
Category 300%
Category 400%
Category 500%
Unknown intensity210%

The agency behind most of the intensity figures here is the NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

Stafford County storms over time

Storms by decade
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 3 in 1860s.1860s31870s21880s31890s21910s11930s31940s11950s11970s21980s12000s2

The 2000s only run to 2004, so that bar is for a shorter period. This place's record starts in 1861, and records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are far less complete.

Show the numbers
PeriodCount
1860s3
1870s2
1880s3
1890s2
1910s1
1930s3
1940s1
1950s1
1970s2
1980s1
2000s2

Earlier decades hold fewer storms partly because they were harder to see. Before weather satellites (about the 1960s) many storms that stayed at sea went unrecorded, so compare decades with care.

Storms by month
Bar chart of storms by period. The most is 8 in Sep.Jan0Feb0Mar0Apr0May0Jun1Jul3Aug6Sep8Oct3Nov0Dec0
Show the numbers
PeriodCount
Jan0
Feb0
Mar0
Apr0
May0
Jun1
Jul3
Aug6
Sep8
Oct3
Nov0
Dec0

Strongest storms near Stafford County

  • Unnamed storm of October 1878 (North Atlantic)13 October 1878 to 25 October 1878, peak Category 2 (90 kt), 963 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1876 (North Atlantic)10 September 1876 to 20 September 1876, Category 1 (70 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (100 kt), 980 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of August 1933 (North Atlantic)13 August 1933 to 28 August 1933, Category 1 (65 kt) near here, peak Category 4 (120 kt), 948 hPa
  • Unnamed storm of September 1863 (North Atlantic)11 September 1863 to 20 September 1863, peak Tropical storm (60 kt)
  • Unnamed storm of August 1893 (North Atlantic)15 August 1893 to 2 September 1893, Tropical storm (60 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 954 hPa

Most recent storms near Stafford County

  • Jeanne (2004)13 September 2004 to 29 September 2004, Tropical depression (25 kt) near here, peak Category 3 (105 kt), 951 hPa
  • Ivan (2004)2 September 2004 to 24 September 2004, Tropical depression (15 kt) near here, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 910 hPa
  • Bret (1981)29 June 1981 to 1 July 1981, Tropical depression (30 kt) near here, peak Tropical storm (60 kt), 996 hPa

Many of these storms killed people and destroyed homes. The figures are the official record's, and this page says nothing about their human cost.

A storm that came near several counties counts in each one, so county counts add up to more than the state's.

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