Hurricane Center

While southwest Virginia doesn’t get the brunt of landfalling hurricanes, it’s common to get flooding rain and even gusty wind and tornadoes as tropical systems move inland. This section includes some helpful links to track the latest tropical systems, get vacation travel information and learn about Virginia’s hurricane history.

INTERACTIVE HURRICANE TRACKER

BEACH RESOURCES

Will your beach vacation be impacted by an upcoming system? Tropical storms and hurricanes come in all shapes, sizes and intensities. While WDBJ7 meteorologists track the impacts on our area, getting specific, critical information for an area you are visiting is equally important. Click the area you’ll be visiting for more information on preparedness.

VIRGINIA (Virginia Beach, Sandbridge Beach) National Weather Service | Emergency Management

NORTH CAROLINA (Outer Banks, Wilmington, Ocean Isle, Holden Beach, Sunset Beach) National Weather Service | Emergency Management | Dare County Emergency Management

SOUTH CAROLINA (Myrtle Beach, Cherry Grove, Murrells Inlet, Surfside, Charleston) | Hurricane Guide, South Carolina Department of Public Safety | National Weather Service

HURRICANE RATING SCALE

The National Hurricane Center ranks tropical systems based on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale which is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane’s sustained wind speed. This scale estimates potential property damage.

RATING	WIND SPEED	NOTES & HISTORIC LANDFALL
Tropical Depression	0 - 38 MPH	Does not get a name but forecasts issued by NHC.
Tropical Storm	39 73 MPH	Receives a name
Category One	74 - 95 MPH	Hurricane Hermine (2016)
Category Two	96 - 110 MPH	Hurricane Ike (2008), Hurricane Isabel (2003)
Category Three	111 - 130 MPH	Hurricane Katrina (2005)
Category Four	131 - 155 MPH	Hurricane Charley (2004), Hurricane Hugo (1989)
Category Five	>156	Hurricane Andrew (1992), Hurricane Michael (2018)

2021 HURRICANE NAMES

NAME	PRONOUNCER	PEAK INTENSITY	ACTIVE DATES
Ana	AH-nah	Tropical Storm	May 22-24
Bill	bill
Danny	DAN-ee
Elsa	EL-suh
Fred	frehd
Grace	grayss
Henri	ahn-REE
Julian	JOO-lee-uhn
Kate	kayt
Larry	LAIR-ree
Mindy	MIN-dee
Nicholas	NIH-kuh-luss
Odette	oh-DEHT
Peter	PEE-tur
Rose	rohz
Sam	sam
Teresa	tuh-REE-suh
Victor	VIK-tur
Wanda	WAHN-duh