Hail history in Asheville, NC
On average, NOAA recorded hail within 15 miles of the center of Asheville on 2.6 days a year from 2016 to 2025, 1.0 of them with hail 1 inch or larger. NOAA recorded hail within 15 miles of the center of Asheville on 61 days since 2010. The largest hail reported was 2.5 in, in 2012. 35 of those days had hail of 1 inch or larger. May has the most hail days, 23 since 2010. The most recent was June 29, 2026. NOAA also recorded high wind on 95 days, with gusts up to 69 mph.
Ranks #110 of 200 US cities for days with hail 1 inch or larger, 2016 to 2025.
- Hail days since 2010
- 61
- Largest hail
- 2.5 in
- Highest gust
- 69 mph
Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center
Data through November 1, 2026
61 hail days within 15 miles since 2010, largest 2.5 in
Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center
Data through November 1, 2026
Hail days by year
Bar chart of hail days per year, 2010 to 2026. 61 hail days in total; the most was 10 in 2011.
Hail days by month
Hail days by month since 2010: Jan 0, Feb 1, Mar 1, Apr 6, May 23, Jun 18, Jul 7, Aug 4, Sep 1, Oct 0, Nov 0, Dec 0.
Most recent hail days
| Date | Largest hail | Nearest report |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 2026 | 2.0 in | 14.9 mi |
| Sep 4, 2025 | 1.0 in | 13.0 mi |
| Jun 24, 2025 | 0.75 in | 4.5 mi |
| May 8, 2025 | 1.75 in | 5.5 mi |
| Feb 6, 2025 | 1.5 in | 13.4 mi |
| Aug 30, 2024 | 0.88 in | 14.6 mi |
| May 26, 2024 | 0.88 in | 8.0 mi |
| May 8, 2024 | 1.25 in | 9.4 mi |
| Aug 12, 2023 | 1.75 in | 13.2 mi |
| Jul 18, 2023 | 0.75 in | 6.3 mi |
About this data
- Distances are from the center of Asheville, not from any one property. Look up a street address below for a single building.
- Reports come from trained spotters and the public, so they cluster near towns and roads.
- No report does not mean no hail. Hail can fall where no one is there to report it.
- This is not a damage or insurance assessment.
95 high-wind days within 15 miles since 2010, strongest gust 69 mph
Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center
Data through November 1, 2026
Most recent high-wind days
| Date | Highest gust | Nearest report |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 5, 2026 | Not recorded | 5.1 mi |
| Aug 17, 2026 | Not recorded | 11.7 mi |
| Jul 28, 2026 | Not recorded | 2.0 mi |
| Jul 19, 2026 | Not recorded | 1.9 mi |
| Jun 30, 2026 | Not recorded | 2.1 mi |
| Mar 15, 2026 | Not recorded | 4.3 mi |
| Jul 11, 2025 | 58 mph | 7.6 mi |
| Jul 9, 2025 | 58 mph | 14.5 mi |
| Jun 28, 2025 | 58 mph | 4.8 mi |
| Jun 27, 2025 | 58 mph | 13.1 mi |
About this data
- Distances are from the center of Asheville, not from any one property. Look up a street address below for a single building.
- Reports come from trained spotters and the public, so they cluster near towns and roads.
- No report does not mean no hail. Hail can fall where no one is there to report it.
- Wind speed is the highest reported gust; some reports have no speed.
- This is not a damage or insurance assessment.
Gusts, tornadoes and hurricanes in Asheville
Estimated peak gusts
No day since October 1, 2021 had an estimated peak gust of 58 mph or more at Asheville.
| Day | Estimated peak gust |
|---|---|
| Mar 4, 2025 | 50 mph or more |
| Jan 6, 2025 | 50 mph or more |
| Sep 27, 2024 | 50 mph or more |
Estimates: the highest gust of each storm day in NOAA’s hourly 2.5 km wind analysis (URMA), which fills in between weather stations. Analyses like this smooth out short thunderstorm gusts, so they are best for widespread wind (hurricanes, winter storms, high wind days); for thunderstorm wind, NOAA’s wind reports are the better record. Not a measurement at any building.
Tornadoes within 10 miles
NOAA recorded 4 tornadoes whose path came within 10 miles of Asheville since 1950; the strongest was rated EF1.
| Day | Rating | Path length | Closest |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 1999 | EF1 | 2 miles | 2.2 miles |
| May 19, 1993 | EF0 | 0.2 miles | 1 miles |
| Jun 6, 1977 | EF1 | 2.7 miles | 7.8 miles |
| Feb 18, 1976 | EF1 | 0.5 miles | 6.8 miles |
Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center. Ratings before 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hurricanes and tropical storms
2 storms in NOAA's records brought modeled tropical-storm-force winds (39 mph or more) to Asheville.
| Storm | Modeled peak gust | Sustained | Closest pass |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helene (2024) | 49 mph | 40 mph | 72 miles |
| Bonnie (1998) | 49 mph | 40 mph | 286 miles |
Modeled from NOAA’s best tracks for open, flat ground; not measurements. How we model hurricane winds
53 radar hail days within 15 miles since 2020, largest 2.0 in or more
Source: NOAA MRMS radar (MESH), from October 14, 2020. Estimates of the largest hail in each 1 km cell, not measurements.
19 days with radar hail 1 inch or larger, 1 at 2 inches or larger, within 15 miles of Asheville’s center.
Biggest radar hail days
- 0.75 in+
- 1.0 in+
- 1.5 in+
- 2.0 in+
- 2.5 in+
- 3.0 in+
Most recent radar hail days
| Date | Largest radar estimate |
|---|---|
| Sep 20, 2026 | 0.75 in or more |
| Aug 28, 2026 | 0.75 in or more |
| Aug 20, 2026 | 1.0 in or more |
| Aug 17, 2026 | 0.75 in or more |
| Aug 2, 2026 | 1.0 in or more |
| Jul 10, 2026 | 0.75 in or more |
Storms in Asheville
A 2010 NWS Greenville-Spartanburg study found large hail reports in the North Carolina mountains are least common along the Tennessee border and increase to the southeast, and June is the most active hail month across most of the office's area.1 From 1995 to 2008, the study counted 396 damaging wind days and 327 large hail days over the mountains.1
Notable storms
- May 8, 2025On May 8, 2025, supercell storms dropped nickel to golf ball size hail from Woodfin across north, downtown and east Asheville, and golf ball size hail also fell near Swannanoa.2,3
- September 27, 2024On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene's strong wind gusts, together with debris flows, knocked down tens of thousands of trees across Buncombe County, with hundreds falling on homes.4
- May 1, 2012On May 1, 2012, hail up to 2.5 inches, about tennis ball size, fell near Highway 25 and Interstate 26 by Fletcher, and golf ball size hail damaged vehicles near Fletcher.5,6
- April 26, 2012On April 26, 2012, multiple reports came in of quarter to golf ball size hail on the west and south sides of Asheville and across the Fairview area.7
- May 3, 2009On May 3, 2009, winds estimated at 86 mph hit Asheville's east side, blowing down numerous trees and causing roof damage to some buildings around Glendale Avenue and Swannanoa River Road.8
Warnings and alerts
The National Weather Service office in Greenville-Spartanburg, based in Greer, South Carolina, issues Asheville's warnings.1,8 Buncombe County's BC Alerts sends notices on severe weather, floods and other emergencies by text, email and phone.9
Sources
- 1. NWS Greenville-Spartanburg: A Severe Weather Climatology for the WFO Greenville-Spartanburg, South Carolina County Warning Area
- 2. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Hail, Buncombe County, May 8, 2025
- 3. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Hail, Buncombe County, May 8, 2025
- 4. NOAA National Hurricane Center: Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Helene
- 5. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Hail, Henderson County, May 1, 2012
- 6. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Hail, Henderson County, May 1, 2012
- 7. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Hail, Buncombe County, April 26, 2012
- 8. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: Thunderstorm Wind, Buncombe County, May 3, 2009
- 9. Buncombe County: BC Alerts
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Questions about hail in Asheville
Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center
Data through November 1, 2026
- How often does it hail in Asheville?
- NOAA recorded hail within 15 miles of the center of Asheville on 2.6 days a year on average from 2016 to 2025, 1.0 of them with hail 1 inch or larger. Since 2010 it recorded 61 hail days.
- When is hail season in Asheville?
- May has the most hail days within 15 miles of the center of Asheville, 23 since 2010, then June (18) and July (7).
- What is the largest hail recorded in Asheville?
- 2.5 in, in 2012: the largest hail NOAA recorded within 15 miles of the center of Asheville since 2010.
- When did it last hail in Asheville?
- NOAA's most recent hail report within 15 miles of the center of Asheville is from June 29, 2026, with hail up to 2.0 in reported 14.9 miles from the center. Data through November 1, 2026.