Georgia hurricanes and tropical storms
Every recorded hurricane or tropical storm record since 1996 · 159 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 2,359 hurricane and tropical storm records in Georgia from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 110 a year since 2000. The deadliest was Hurricane Helene (September 27, 2024): 30 deaths, 87 injuries and $1.9 billion in damage in 2025 dollars across 30 records. Georgia ranks 1st of 34 states and territories by count and 4th of 33 per square mile.
Hurricanes and tropical storms in Georgia, 1996 to 2026
Tropical records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 2,3591996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 110average
- Deaths
- 43110 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $5.5Bas filed
- Busiest year
- 2005505 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are hurricane and tropical storm records common in Georgia?
Georgia averages about 110 hurricane and tropical storm records a year since 2000, 1st of 34 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2005 (505). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Georgia records 409 hurricane and tropical storm records since 1996, 4th of 33 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Georgia have the most hurricane and tropical storm records?
Per square mile, Clarke County leads Georgia: 15 days with a hurricane or tropical storm record since 1996, 125.7 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Chatham County has the most tropical records (76 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is hurricane season in Georgia?
60% of its hurricane and tropical storm records since 1996 fell in August and September. The busiest month is September (1,061 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 0 · Feb 0 · Mar 0 · Apr 0 · May 24 · Jun 148 · Jul 316 · Aug 348 · Sep 1,061 · Oct 335 · Nov 127 · Dec 0 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest hurricane and tropical storm records in Georgia?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane Helene · Tropical StormRichmond County · forecast zone Richmond One named storm filed by several offices: 30 records in 6 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Tropical Storm Helene formed in the NW Caribbean Sea on September 24. Helene moved northward into the Gulf of Mexico where it strengthened into a hurricane on September 25. Helene made landfall as a major hurricane in the Big Bend area of Florida the night of September 26 before quickly moving inland into east central ... | 30 | 87 | $1.9B | |
| 2017-09-11 | Hurricane Irma · Tropical StormFulton County · forecast zone North Fulton One named storm filed by several offices: 48 records in 3 episodes; the totals are the storm's. On the morning of August 30th Tropical Storm Irma developed rapidly over the eastern Atlantic Ocean, just west of the Cape Verde Islands. Tropical Irma quickly strengthened as it moved west, reaching hurricane strength by the morning of August 31st. Hurricane Irma continued to move steadily westward across the ... | 3 | 8 | $93M | |
| 2016-10-08 | Hurricane Matthew · Tropical StormBulloch County · forecast zone Bulloch One storm episode: 4 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Matthew first developed into a Tropical Storm about 35 miles southeast of St. Lucia on September 28 before quickly strengthening into a powerful hurricane as it tracked westward across the Caribbean Sea. Matthew then became a hurricane about 190 miles northeast of Curacao on September 29th before reaching Category 5 ... | 3 | 4 | – | |
| 2020-10-28 | Tropical Storm Zeta · Tropical StormGwinnett County · forecast zone Gwinnett One named storm filed by several offices: 3 records in 2 episodes, 2020-10-28 to 2020-10-29; the totals are the storm's. During the late evening of October 28th through the morning of October 29th, Tropical Storm Zeta swept rapidly across north Georgia producing widespread wind damage and isolated flooding across north and portions of central Georgia. Around 1.5 million customers lost electricity for some period of time, some for ... | 3 | 0 | $570K | |
| 2023-08-30 | Hurricane Idalia · Hurricane (Typhoon)Lowndes County · forecast zone Lowndes One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. Hurricane Idalia made landfall on the morning of August 30th along the coast of Taylor County Florida near Keaton Beach at approximately 745 am EDT. The hurricane made landfall with estimated sustained winds of 125 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, the first major ... | 1 | 7 | $31M | |
| 2018-10-10 | Hurricane Michael · Hurricane (Typhoon)Seminole County · forecast zone Seminole One named storm filed by several offices: 23 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Hurricane Michael started as typical weak October Caribbean tropical system. However, after approximately a week of slow development, the system moved into warm Gulf of Mexico waters and rapidly intensified into a major hurricane as it moved north towards the Florida Panhandle. After a 2-day long intensification ... | 1 | 0 | $3.4B | |
| 2024-08-05 | Hurricane Debby · Tropical StormColquitt County · forecast zone Colquitt One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. Hurricane Debby made landfall along the Taylor County coast as a Category 1 Hurricane on the morning of Monday August 5th. In addition to storm surge flooding along the FL Big Bend coast, around 12 inches of rainfall lead to widespread flooding in Madison and Taylor counties. In particular, rainfall in Southeast ... | 1 | 0 | $1.6M | |
| 2008-08-22 | Tropical StormGrady County · forecast zone Grady One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. Tropical Storm Fay, which came ashore along the northeast Florida coast, moved slowly westward toward the Florida Panhandle from the 22nd through the 24th. The rain bands from Fay produced sustained winds of 25 to 40 mph with frequent gusts over 45 mph. These winds downed numerous trees and power lines throughout most ... | 1 | 0 | $17M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest hurricane and tropical storm records in Georgia
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-10-10 | Hurricane Michael · Hurricane (Typhoon)Seminole County · forecast zone Seminole One named storm filed by several offices: 23 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 1 | 0 | $3.4B | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane Helene · Tropical StormRichmond County · forecast zone Richmond One named storm filed by several offices: 30 records in 6 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 30 | 87 | $1.9B | |
| 2017-09-11 | Hurricane Irma · Tropical StormFulton County · forecast zone North Fulton One named storm filed by several offices: 48 records in 3 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 3 | 8 | $93M | |
| 2023-08-30 | Hurricane Idalia · Hurricane (Typhoon)Lowndes County · forecast zone Lowndes One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 7 | $31M | |
| 2008-08-22 | Tropical StormGrady County · forecast zone Grady One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 0 | $17M | |
| 2002-09-14 | Tropical StormMiller County · forecast zone Seminole One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $13M | |
| 2005-07-09 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Worth County · forecast zone Worth One storm episode: 11 records in 11 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $7.7M | |
| 2016-09-02 | Tropical StormLowndes County · forecast zone Lowndes One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 1 | $6.0M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are hurricane and tropical storm records becoming more frequent in Georgia?
Georgia's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Georgia | United States | Georgia's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 41 | 1,123 | 3.7% |
| 2000s | 1,438 | 4,928 | 29.2% |
| 2010s | 481 | 2,761 | 17.4% |
| 2020-26 | 399 | 2,697 | 14.8% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent hurricane and tropical storm records in Georgia
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Washington County · forecast zone Washington | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Laurens County · forecast zone Laurens | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Johnson County · forecast zone Johnson | 0 | 4 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormWalton County · forecast zone Walton | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormHabersham County · forecast zone Habersham | 0 | 0 | $282K | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormHart County · forecast zone Hart | 0 | 0 | $941K | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormElbert County · forecast zone Elbert | 0 | 0 | $1.4M | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormPierce County · forecast zone Pierce | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Jeff Davis County · forecast zone Jeff Davis | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Coffee County · forecast zone Coffee | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Hurricane (Typhoon)Clinch County · forecast zone Clinch | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2024-09-27 | Tropical StormLincoln County · forecast zone Lincoln | 1 | 0 | $8.4M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for hurricane and tropical storm records in Georgia
FEMA has declared 19 disasters in Georgia for hurricane and tropical storm, counting its incident type and declarations that name hurricane or tropical storm or typhoon in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 11 were major disasters, the latest on September 30, 2024.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-30 | DR-4830 | Hurricane Helene | 94 |
| 2024-09-26 | EM-3616 | Hurricane Helene | 159 |
| 2024-09-24 | DR-4821 | Tropical Storm Debby | 35 |
| 2024-08-05 | EM-3607 | Hurricane Debby | 55 |
| 2023-09-07 | DR-4738 | Hurricane Idalia | 32 |
| 2021-01-12 | DR-4579 | Tropical Storm Zeta | 21 |
| 2019-09-01 | EM-3422 | Hurricane Dorian | 12 |
| 2018-10-14 | DR-4400 | Hurricane Michael | 69 |
| 2018-10-10 | EM-3406 | Hurricane Michael | 108 |
| 2017-09-15 | DR-4338 | Hurricane Irma | 159 |
| 2017-09-08 | EM-3387 | Hurricane Irma | 159 |
| 2016-10-08 | DR-4284 | Hurricane Matthew | 20 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Clarke County: the county's whole recordThe Georgia county with the most hurricane and tropical storm records per square mile
- Hurricanes and tropical storms across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in GeorgiaTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Georgia24,657 records
- Hail in Georgia8,810 records
- Drought in Georgia5,192 records