• SEVENTEENTH AND EIGHTEENTH CENTURIES
  • August 24, 1635: First historical reference to a major hurricane that could have affected the Virginia coast.
  • September 6, 1667: It appears likely this hurricane caused the widening of the Lynnhaven River. The Bay rose 12 feet above normal and many people had to flee.
  • 29 October 1693: From the Royal Society of London: "There happened a most violent storm in Virginia which stopped the course of ancient channels and made some where there never were any ."
  • 19 October 1749: Tremendous hurricane. A sand spit to 800 acres was washed up and with the help of a hurricane in 186 it became Willoughby Spit. The Bay rose 15 feet above normal.
  • Historical records list the following tropical storms as causing significant damage in Virginia:
    September 1761; October 1761; September 1769; September 1775; October 1783; September 1785; and July 1788.
  
  
• NINETEENTH CENTURY
  • 23 August 1806: Called the Great Coastal Hurricane of 1806.
  • 3 September 1821: One of the most violent hurricanes on record.
  • 8 September 1846: Hatteras and Oregon Inlets were formed.
  • 17 September 1846: Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry was 78 mph; 8.32 " of rain.
  • 23 October 1878: Cobb and Smith Islands, on the Eastern Shore, were completely submerged.
  • 18 August 1879: Tide in Norfolk 7.77 feet above Mean Lower Low Water. Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 76 mph with 100 mph estimated gusts.
  • 31 October 1887: Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 78 mph. The storm caused a record number of marine disasters.
  • 23 August 1893: Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 88 mph.
  • 29 September 1894: 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 88 mph.
  • 25 October 1897: Lasted 60 hours. Norfolk tides 8.1 feet above Mean Lower Low Water.
  • 31 October 1899 : Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 72 mph. Tide in Norfolk reached 8.9 feet above Mean Lower Low Water.
  • Noteworthy storms also occurred in June 1825, August 1837, August 1850 and September 1856
  
  
• TWENTIETH CENTURY
  • 10 October 1903: Average 5-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 74 mph, the tide in Norfolk reached 9 feet above Mean Lower Low Water.
  • 26 August 1924: Average 1-minute wind speed 72 mph at Cape Henry.
  • 30 September 1924: Fastest 1-minute wind speed in Norfolk 76 mph.
  • 22 August 1926: Fastest 1-minute wind speed in Cape Henry 74 mph.
  • 19 September 1928: Fastest 1-minute wind speed at Cape Henry 72 mph. The tide reached 7.16 feet above Mean Lower Low Water in Norfolk.
  • 23 August 1933: This hurricane established record high tide of 9.8 feet above Mean Lower Low Water. 18 people died. Highest 1-minute wind speed in Norfolk was 78 mph, 82 mph at Cape Henry, and 88 mph at NAS, Norfolk.
  • 16 September 1933: Fastest 1-minute wind speed was 88 mph at NAS, Norfolk, 75 mph at the NWS City Office. The tide reached 8.3 feet above Mean Lower Low Water.
  • 18 September 1936: The fastest 1-minute wind speed was 84 mph at Cape Henry and 68 mph as the NWS City Office. The tide reached 9.3 feet above Mean Lower Low Water and is the second highest tide of record.
  • 14 September 1944: Fastest 1-minute wind speed was 134 mph at Cape Henry, which is the highest speed of record in this area. Gusts were estimated to 150 mph. The NES City Office recorded 72 mph with gusts to 90 mph.
  • 14 August 1953: BARBARA. The fastest 1-minute wind speed was 72 mph at Cape Henry, 63 mph with gusts to 76 mph at Norfolk Airport.
  • 15 October 1954: HAZEL. Fastest 1-minute wind speed was 78 mph at Norfolk Airport with gusts to 100 mph which is the highest wind speed of record for the Norfolk Airport location. A reliable instrument in Hampton recorded 130 mph.
  • 30 September 1959: GRACIE. Passed through western Virginia, 6.79 inches of rain at Norfolk Airport in 24 hours. Storm spawned a tornado eight miles west of Charlottesville, killing 11 people.
  • 12 September 1960: DONNA. Fastest 1-minute wind speed was 73 mph at Norfolk Airport, 80 mph at Cape Henry and estimated 138 mph at Chesapeake Light Ship. Lowest pressure of 28.65 inches holds the area record for a tropical storm. 3 deaths.
  • 1 September 1964: LEO. A storm noted for its rain. 11.40 inches in 24 hours is the heaviest in the coastal area since records began in 1871.
  • 19 August 1969: CAMILLE. Made landfall in Mississippi on August 17. The storm tracked northward and dumped a record 27 inches of rain in the Virginia mountains, primarily in Nelson County. Flash flooding took the lives of 153 people.
  • 27 August 1971: DORIA. The fastest 1-minute wind speed 52 mph at Norfolk Airport and 71 mph at NAS, Norfolk.
  • 1 June 1972: AGNES. Made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida. As the storm crossed Virginia, it dumped 13.6 inches of rain on the east slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The James River crested at a record high in Richmond. Virginia sustained $222 million in damage, and 13 people died form flash flooding.
  • 5 September 1979: DAVID. Passed through central Virginia. Spawned 2 severe tornadoes - one in Newport News with over $2 million in damage and one in Hampton with a half million dollars in damage.
  • 27 September 1985: GLORIA. Passed 45 miles east of Cape Henry. Fastest 1 minute wind speed WNW 46 mph, peak gust 67 mph a the Airport, NE 94 mph gust to 104 mph at the south Island CBBT. Highest tide 5.3 above Mean Lower Low Water, storm rainfall 5.65 inches and total Virginia damage $5.5 million.
  • 7 August 1986: CHARLEY. The weak center passed over southeast Virginia Beach. Fastest 1-minute wind speed NNE 40 mph gust E 63 mph at Norfolk International Airport; NE 94 mph gust to 104 mph at South Island CBBT; and NE 54 mph gust to 82 mph at Cape Henry. Highest tide 5.5 feet above Mean Lower Low Water. Less than $1 million in damage in Virginia.
  • 12-13 July 1996: BERTHA. Passed over portions of Suffolk and Newport News. Fastest 1-minute wind speed SE 35 mph gust to 48 mph at Norfolk International Airport. Bertha spawned 4 tornadoes across east-central Virginia. The strongest, an F1 tornado moved over Northumberland county injuring 9 persons and causing damages of several million dollars. Other tornadoes moved over Smithfield, Gloucester and Hampton.
  • 5 September 1996: FRAN. Passed will west of the area over Danville. Fastest 1-minute wind speed SE 41 mph gust to 47 mph at Norfolk International Airport. Rainfall amounted to only 0.20 of an inch in Norfolk.
  • 27 August 1998: BONNIE. Tracked over the northern Outer Banks. Fastest 1-minute wind speed NE 46 mph with gust to 64 mph at Norfolk Airport. NE 90 mph with gust to 104 mph at CBBT. 4-7 inches of rain combined with near hurricane force winds knocked out power to 320,000 customers. Highest tide 6.0 feet above MLLW. Most significant storm since 1960.
  • 30 August to 5 September 1999: DENNIS. Meandered off the North Caroling/Virginia coast for 3 days before coming ashore near Morehead City, NC. Produced substantial rain and some flooding in southern, central and southeast Virginia, and eastern NC. Spawned and F2 tornado in Hampton. Heavy rains set the stage for Hurricane Floyd 2 weeks later.
  • 15-16 September 1999: FLOYD. Moved across extreme NE NC/SE VA on a track similar to Donna in 1960. Highest sustained wind at Norfolk Airport NE 31 mph with gust to 46 mph. Lowest Pressure 28.85" - 977 MB - 4 th lowest of record. 10-20" of rain on saturated ground resulted in 500 year flood of record for Franklin, VA. WFO Wakefield was inaccessible for 36 hours.

Hurricanes come close enough to produce hurricane force winds approximately three times every 20 years. Two or three times a century, winds and ties produce considerable damage and significantly threaten life. Three known storms have been powerful enough to alter coastal features.

Source - National Weather Service, Wakefield Office