Storm Monitor
North Carolina hurricane tracker: live storms and coastal alerts
Use this page to monitor tropical systems and severe weather threatening North Carolina, watch where storm activity is clustering, and explore individual event details.
Live surface
Live storm map — North Carolina watch
Track tropical systems and severe weather relevant to North Carolina as they arrive in the US feed.
Severe weather alerts — North Carolina watch
The live US severe-weather feed, sorted by latest updates. Storms affecting North Carolina appear here as they are detected.
| Event | Severity |
|---|---|
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued October 2 at 10:56AM CDT until October 8 at 7:00PM CDT by NWS St Louis MO | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flash Flood Warning issued October 3 at 10:30PM EDT until October 4 at 1:30AM EDT by NWS Columbia SC | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flash Flood Warning issued October 3 at 9:44PM CDT until October 4 at 12:45AM CDT by NWS Corpus Christi TX | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued September 30 at 11:59AM CDT until October 5 at 12:00AM CDT by NWS Des Moines IA | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued September 30 at 11:01AM CDT by NWS Quad Cities IA IL | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued September 30 at 10:55AM CDT by NWS Quad Cities IA IL | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued September 27 at 10:17AM CDT until October 1 at 12:00PM CDT by NWS Quad Cities IA IL | HIGH |
🌪️ Hurricane/Tropical Storm Alert Tropical Storm Warning issued October 2 at 8:21AM ChST by NWS Tiyan GU | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued October 3 at 9:10AM CDT until October 8 at 7:00AM CDT by NWS Mobile AL | HIGH |
🌪️ Flood Alert Flood Warning issued September 29 at 8:50PM CDT until October 4 at 6:00AM CDT by NWS Kansas City/Pleasant Hill MO | HIGH |
Storm hotspots
Regions with the most concentrated storm activity
United States
100
This region is generating a dense cluster of severe-weather updates in the live event system.
About this tracker
North Carolina Hurricane Season
North Carolina's coast juts farther into the Atlantic than any state north of Florida, and Cape Hatteras and the Outer Banks sit squarely in the recurvature path of Atlantic hurricanes — the surrounding waters earned the name "Graveyard of the Atlantic" long before satellite forecasting. Peak threat runs August through October, from both direct coastal strikes and storms riding up from landfalls farther south.
The state's benchmark storms tell two different stories. Hazel (1954) remains the only Category 4 landfall in state history, striking near the South Carolina line. But North Carolina's costliest disasters are water events: Floyd (1999) drowned the coastal plain with record river flooding, Matthew (2016) repeated it, and Florence (2018) — a slow-moving Category 1 at landfall near Wrightsville Beach — dropped over 30 inches of rain, kept rivers above flood stage for weeks, and caused roughly $24 billion in damage.
Track active systems on the live hurricane tracker and watch developing long-track storms early on the Atlantic basin tracker — Outer Banks threats are often visible a week out.
Coastal Strikes vs Inland Flooding
North Carolina's two hazard modes demand different preparation. On the coast, the Outer Banks' low, narrow barrier islands are routinely overwashed — highway NC-12 severs in almost every significant storm, and sound-side surge from the Pamlico and Albemarle sounds can flood communities from the "protected" side, as Dorian (2019) did to Ocracoke. Evacuations for the barrier islands are ordered early because there are few routes out.
Inland, the danger is rain. Eastern North Carolina's flat coastal plain drains slowly through the Tar, Neuse, and Cape Fear river basins, so a stalled or slow-moving storm turns into weeks of river flooding well after skies clear — the Floyd/Matthew/Florence pattern. Even the mountains are not exempt: the remnants of Helene (2024) produced catastrophic flash flooding in western North Carolina around Asheville, the deadliest US inland flood event in decades. Follow the state's live severe-weather feed below and the global disaster tracker for the full hazard picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is hurricane season in North Carolina?
The Atlantic season runs June 1 through November 30, with North Carolina's peak threat from August through October. The Outer Banks face both direct strikes and recurving long-track Atlantic storms, while inland NC's worst events are flooding rains from slow-moving systems.
What was the worst hurricane in North Carolina history?
Hazel (1954) was the strongest — the state's only Category 4 landfall. By damage, Florence (2018) was the costliest at roughly $24 billion, flooding the coastal plain with over 30 inches of rain. The remnants of Helene (2024) caused the deadliest modern event, with catastrophic flash flooding in the western mountains around Asheville.
Why does the Outer Banks get hit by so many hurricanes?
Cape Hatteras protrudes farther east into the Atlantic than any point on the US coast south of New England, placing it directly in the path of storms recurving north along the Gulf Stream. The barrier islands are also low and narrow, so even non-landfalling storms passing offshore produce overwash, sound-side flooding, and highway closures.
Explore next
Related intelligence surfaces
Last updated 10/4/2026, 3:19:26 AM