Cold Wave Risk in North Carolina

All North Carolina counties ranked by FEMA National Risk Index cold wave score

Cold Wave risk — prolonged spells of dangerously low temperatures — is rated for 100 of 100 North Carolina counties in FEMA's National Risk Index. Buncombe County carries the state's highest cold wave score at 97.2, with $17M in expected annual cold wave losses.

9 North Carolina counties are rated High or Very High for cold wave, and expected annual losses from cold wave total roughly $191M statewide. The full ranking below links to each county's complete 18-hazard risk profile.

County Rankings — Cold Wave

#CountyCold Wave ScoreRatingAnn. Freq.Ann. Loss
1 Buncombe County
97.2
High 3.79 / yr $17M
2 Jackson County
96.1
High 3.47 / yr $9M
3 Henderson County
95.5
High 2.42 / yr $10M
4 Rowan County
94.6
High 0.53 / yr $11M
5 Macon County
93.4
High 3.44 / yr $7M
6 Haywood County
92.0
High 3.85 / yr $7M
7 Surry County
92.0
High 0.74 / yr $7M
8 Transylvania County
91.2
High 2.99 / yr $6M
9 Forsyth County
90.3
High 0.68 / yr $7M
10 Guilford County
88.5
Medium 0.68 / yr $6M
11 Davidson County
84.9
Medium 0.68 / yr $5M
12 Ashe County
82.7
Medium 4.89 / yr $3M
13 Wake County
82.3
Medium 0.68 / yr $7M
14 Mecklenburg County
82.2
Medium 0.32 / yr $5M
15 Watauga County
81.9
Medium 4.89 / yr $4M
16 Alleghany County
77.7
Medium 4.58 / yr $2M
17 Cumberland County
77.3
Medium 0.47 / yr $3M
18 Swain County
76.1
Medium 3.80 / yr $2M
19 Iredell County
75.8
Medium 0.53 / yr $3M
20 Randolph County
75.1
Medium 0.68 / yr $2M
21 Union County
75.0
Medium 0.32 / yr $4M
22 Robeson County
73.6
Medium 0.47 / yr $1M
23 Wilkes County
73.4
Medium 0.74 / yr $2M
24 Johnston County
72.5
Medium 0.53 / yr $3M
25 Yancey County
71.6
Medium 4.79 / yr $2M
26 Sampson County
69.1
Medium 0.47 / yr $1M
27 Brunswick County
67.6
Medium 0.47 / yr $1M
28 New Hanover County
67.2
Medium 0.47 / yr $2M
29 Wayne County
66.5
Medium 0.47 / yr $1M
30 Cabarrus County
66.2
Medium 0.32 / yr $2M
31 Catawba County
65.1
Low 0.54 / yr $2M
32 Columbus County
63.9
Low 0.47 / yr $1M
33 Pitt County
62.2
Low 0.42 / yr $2M
34 Avery County
62.2
Low 4.97 / yr $1M
35 Duplin County
61.7
Low 0.42 / yr $1M
36 Nash County
60.8
Low 0.58 / yr $1M
37 Gaston County
60.7
Low 0.32 / yr $2M
38 Graham County
60.5
Low 3.58 / yr $1M
39 Onslow County
60.4
Low 0.42 / yr $2M
40 Cherokee County
59.8
Low 1.21 / yr $1M
41 Harnett County
59.3
Low 0.47 / yr $1M
42 McDowell County
59.0
Low 1.80 / yr $1M
43 Rutherford County
58.5
Low 0.68 / yr $1M
44 Franklin County
56.3
Low 0.68 / yr $1M
45 Burke County
55.9
Low 1.07 / yr $937K
46 Mitchell County
55.6
Low 4.80 / yr $985K
47 Durham County
55.2
Low 0.68 / yr $1M
48 Clay County
55.0
Low 1.21 / yr $652K
49 Wilson County
54.4
Low 0.53 / yr $945K
50 Madison County
53.1
Low 3.84 / yr $1M
51 Davie County
52.5
Low 0.53 / yr $1M
52 Craven County
52.2
Low 0.43 / yr $865K
53 Halifax County
52.1
Low 0.58 / yr $640K
54 Chatham County
51.2
Low 0.68 / yr $944K
55 Cleveland County
51.0
Low 0.44 / yr $950K
56 Caldwell County
50.7
Low 1.32 / yr $922K
57 Alamance County
50.5
Low 0.68 / yr $1M
58 Bladen County
49.9
Low 0.47 / yr $688K
59 Moore County
48.9
Low 0.47 / yr $897K
60 Edgecombe County
48.5
Low 0.53 / yr $604K
61 Vance County
48.5
Low 0.68 / yr $620K
62 Lenoir County
48.4
Low 0.42 / yr $596K
63 Yadkin County
48.2
Low 0.63 / yr $709K
64 Alexander County
47.2
Low 0.69 / yr $620K
65 Stanly County
46.0
Low 0.47 / yr $871K
66 Polk County
45.7
Low 0.78 / yr $552K
67 Scotland County
45.5
Low 0.47 / yr $477K
68 Anson County
45.2
Low 0.47 / yr $498K
69 Hoke County
45.1
Low 0.47 / yr $633K
70 Lincoln County
44.0
Low 0.42 / yr $756K
71 Richmond County
41.9
Low 0.47 / yr $510K
72 Rockingham County
40.9
Low 0.58 / yr $561K
73 Pender County
40.2
Low 0.47 / yr $688K
74 Lee County
39.6
Low 0.47 / yr $494K
75 Carteret County
37.1
Low 0.38 / yr $540K
76 Beaufort County
36.2
Low 0.42 / yr $418K
77 Orange County
36.1
Low 0.68 / yr $691K
78 Stokes County
36.0
Low 0.63 / yr $487K
79 Pasquotank County
34.3
Low 0.53 / yr $451K
80 Bertie County
32.9
Low 0.53 / yr $324K
81 Hertford County
32.5
Low 0.53 / yr $299K
82 Warren County
32.2
Low 0.68 / yr $288K
83 Montgomery County
31.2
Low 0.47 / yr $333K
84 Greene County
31.1
Low 0.42 / yr $280K
85 Northampton County
29.7
Low 0.53 / yr $243K
86 Jones County
23.1
Very Low 0.42 / yr $167K
87 Martin County
22.6
Very Low 0.42 / yr $225K
88 Dare County
21.8
Very Low 0.39 / yr $256K
89 Granville County
20.2
Very Low 0.68 / yr $219K
90 Perquimans County
19.6
Very Low 0.53 / yr $173K
91 Chowan County
18.6
Very Low 0.53 / yr $168K
92 Currituck County
18.0
Very Low 0.51 / yr $298K
93 Person County
17.7
Very Low 0.68 / yr $140K
94 Washington County
16.6
Very Low 0.42 / yr $112K
95 Hyde County
15.7
Very Low 0.42 / yr $97K
96 Pamlico County
15.1
Very Low 0.42 / yr $112K
97 Gates County
15.1
Very Low 0.53 / yr $147K
98 Caswell County
15.0
Very Low 0.58 / yr $123K
99 Tyrrell County
11.9
Very Low 0.42 / yr $68K
100 Camden County
10.8
Very Low 0.53 / yr $128K

100 North Carolina counties with measurable cold wave risk. See the national cold wave ranking or all North Carolina counties by overall risk.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which North Carolina county has the highest cold wave risk?

Buncombe County has the highest FEMA cold wave risk score in North Carolina at 97.2 (High), with $17M in expected annual losses and about 3.79 events per year.

How many North Carolina counties face significant cold wave risk?

100 North Carolina counties record measurable cold wave risk in FEMA's National Risk Index; 9 of them are rated High or Very High.

Other Hazards in North Carolina

Coastal Flood Drought Earthquake Hail Heat Wave Hurricane Ice Storm Riverine Flood Landslide Lightning Strong Wind Tornado Wildfire Winter Weather