Union County, Florida Hurricane History

No active tropical cyclones are within 500 miles of Union County, Florida as of Thursday, 10 September 2026. Official forecasts at nhc.noaa.gov.

Since 1867, 64 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Union County, Florida — about one every 2.5 years. Of those, 8 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Debby (2024), which passed 41 miles away on 5 August 2024.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

2.5

Avg. years between

Years since the last

Storm tracks within 50 miles

TS / TDCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5

Each line is one storm track, coloured by the strongest category it reached while within 50 miles. The dashed ring marks that 50-mile radius; hairlines are one-degree graticule. Source: NOAA NHC HURDAT2.

How strong they get

Cat 3 · 1Cat 2 · 2Cat 1 · 5TS / TD · 56

The 64 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 1 of them reached Cat 3.

Key facts

Most recentDebby (2024) — 41 mi away, 5 August 2024
Strongest stormUnnamed Storm (1896) — 100 kt (115 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordUnnamed Storm (1871) — 2.0 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)Unnamed Storm (1896) — 15.0 miles
Passes within 25 miles18 of 64
Peak monthSeptember — 18 storms (28% of all)
Most active year1885 — 3 storms
Most active decade1880s — 10 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi1
Record span1867–2024

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Union County, Florida, September is the most active month, with 18 of the 64 recorded storms (28%). Activity concentrates in June, September and October, together 66% of all storms. The 1880s was the most active decade on record, with 10 storms. 1 of the 64 storms was major hurricane (Category 3 or stronger) while within 50 miles.

J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
0	0	0	0	5	9	6	8	18	15	3	0

Activity by decade

19002000

Tropical cyclones passing within 50 miles, by decade, 1860s to 2020s. Decades with no storms are shown as empty columns. Comparing two equal 38-year windows inside the aircraft-reconnaissance era: 15 storms in 1950–1987 against 16 in 1988–2025.

1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s	1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
1	4	10	2	1	3	2	5	5	3	4	4	5	3	4	6	2

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Debby (2024)	5 Aug 2024	40.8 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Eta (2020)	12 Nov 2020	11.4 mi	TS / TD	39 kt
Irma (2017)	11 Sep 2017	32.4 mi	TS / TD	49 kt
Julia (2016)	14 Sep 2016	46.2 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Colin (2016)	7 Jun 2016	29.8 mi	TS / TD	45 kt
Andrea (2013)	7 Jun 2013	22.1 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Debby (2012)	27 Jun 2012	43.1 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Beryl (2012)	28 May 2012	20.9 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Fay (2008)	22 Aug 2008	30.2 mi	TS / TD	44 kt
Barry (2007)	2 Jun 2007	23.5 mi	TS / TD	31 kt
Jeanne (2004)	27 Sep 2004	45.1 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Gordon (2000)	18 Sep 2000	25.9 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Georges (1998)	1 Oct 1998	30.9 mi	TS / TD	22 kt
Gordon (1994)	21 Nov 1994	44.9 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Marco (1990)	12 Oct 1990	40.6 mi	TS / TD	23 kt
Unnamed Storm (1988)	14 Aug 1988	37.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Isidore (1984)	28 Sep 1984	26.2 mi	TS / TD	45 kt
Unnamed Storm (1984)	14 Jun 1984	35.3 mi	TD	—
Unnamed Storm (1982)	18 Jun 1982	39.5 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1980)	18 Jul 1980	40.6 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1976)	23 May 1976	41.7 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1973)	26 Sep 1973	34.9 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Alpha (1972)	28 May 1972	44.0 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Alma (1970)	25 May 1970	12.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1966)	2 Jul 1966	40.6 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Dora (1964)	10 Sep 1964	3.8 mi	TS / TD	62 kt
Unnamed Storm (1964)	6 Jun 1964	28.9 mi	TS / TD	26 kt
Brenda (1960)	29 Jul 1960	37.9 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Love (1950)	21 Oct 1950	43.0 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
King (1950)	19 Oct 1950	4.2 mi	Cat 1	65 kt
Easy (1950)	7 Sep 1950	27.4 mi	TS / TD	34 kt
Unnamed Storm (1949)	27 Aug 1949	31.0 mi	Cat 1	65 kt
Unnamed Storm (1946)	3 Nov 1946	41.9 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1946)	8 Oct 1946	8.0 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Unnamed Storm (1944)	19 Oct 1944	42.9 mi	TS / TD	59 kt
Unnamed Storm (1941)	21 Oct 1941	49.9 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1937)	21 Sep 1937	3.7 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1937)	30 Aug 1937	39.1 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1936)	22 Aug 1936	31.2 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Unnamed Storm (1934)	23 Jul 1934	45.7 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1932)	15 Sep 1932	38.2 mi	TS / TD	43 kt
Unnamed Storm (1928)	18 Sep 1928	36.3 mi	Cat 1	67 kt
Unnamed Storm (1926)	28 Jul 1926	12.0 mi	TS / TD	52 kt
Unnamed Storm (1916)	15 May 1916	29.9 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1915)	2 Aug 1915	35.3 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1910)	19 Oct 1910	28.1 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Unnamed Storm (1900)	12 Oct 1900	4.2 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1896)	29 Sep 1896	15.0 mi	Cat 3	98 kt
Unnamed Storm (1893)	16 Jun 1893	46.6 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Unnamed Storm (1889)	17 Jun 1889	29.6 mi	TS / TD	39 kt
Unnamed Storm (1888)	11 Oct 1888	21.4 mi	Cat 1	80 kt
Unnamed Storm (1888)	9 Sep 1888	30.3 mi	TS / TD	44 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	19 Jul 1886	39.7 mi	TS / TD	54 kt
Unnamed Storm (1885)	12 Oct 1885	34.2 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Unnamed Storm (1885)	30 Sep 1885	10.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1885)	21 Sep 1885	45.7 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1882)	11 Oct 1882	28.0 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Unnamed Storm (1880)	8 Oct 1880	49.2 mi	Cat 1	64 kt
Unnamed Storm (1880)	8 Sep 1880	27.4 mi	TS / TD	43 kt
Unnamed Storm (1877)	26 Oct 1877	38.4 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1874)	28 Sep 1874	17.0 mi	TS / TD	62 kt
Unnamed Storm (1871)	6 Sep 1871	16.8 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Unnamed Storm (1871)	18 Aug 1871	2.0 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Unnamed Storm (1867)	7 Oct 1867	12.2 mi	TS / TD	47 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

A further 2 systems passed within 50 miles after losing tropical characteristics. These are excluded from the counts above because they were no longer tropical cyclones at their closest approach — but several were highly damaging, so they are listed here.

Storm	Status	Closest approach	Distance	Wind
Ana (1991)	Remnant low	1 Jul 1991	41.9 mi	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1947)	Post-tropical	24 Sep 1947	1.1 mi	48 kt

About this data. Computed from NOAA's HURDAT2 Atlantic and Northeast Pacific hurricane databases (hurdat2-1851-2025-02272026.txt), covering 1867–2025. Tracks are recorded every six hours and are interpolated to one-hour steps before distances are measured, so closest-approach figures are not distorted by the sampling interval. Distances are measured to the county's Census internal point, not to its nearest boundary, so a storm listed at 55 miles may still have crossed the coastline — see Methodology. Records before about 1900 are sparser and less precise than modern ones, and storms that stayed at sea were less likely to be recorded at all.

Storms that came back

2 named storms in this record passed Union County, Florida more than once.

Debby — 2 passes (2012, 2024)
Gordon — 2 passes (1994, 2000)

How Union County, Florida compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Union County, Florida ranks #80 — more exposed than 96.4% of them. Within Florida it ranks #35 of 67, against a state average of 63.4 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 3 Unnamed Storm (1896) passed 15 miles away on 29 September 1896 as a hurricane, reaching 100 kt (115 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 2 Unnamed Storm (1888) passed 21 miles away on 11 October 1888 as a hurricane, reaching 90 kt (104 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 2 Dora (1964) passed 4 miles away on 10 September 1964 as a hurricane, reaching 85 kt (98 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1928) passed 36 miles away on 18 September 1928 as a hurricane, reaching 69 kt (79 mph) while within 50 miles.

53 of the 64 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 2.5 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 64 storms spread over the 159 years from 1867 to 2025. 11 separate years saw more than one storm pass within 50 miles while stretches of a decade or more have passed with none. The longest recorded quiet stretch was 10 years, between 1900 and 1910. It has been 1 year since the last one; 41 of the 50 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Union County, Florida?

8 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Union County, Florida at hurricane strength since 1867. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 64.

When was the last hurricane in Union County, Florida?

Dora (1964), on 10 September 1964, passing 4 miles away — 62 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Debby (2024) in 2024.

What was the strongest storm to affect Union County, Florida?

Unnamed Storm (1896), which reached 100 kt (115 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 15 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Union County, Florida?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 2.5 years — 64 storms over the 159 years from 1867 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Union County, Florida borders or sits close to 4 other counties with a published storm record. Columbia County, Florida has 65 on record.

Columbia County, Florida65 storms within 50 mi Alachua County, Florida63 storms within 50 mi Baker County, Florida61 storms within 50 mi Bradford County, Florida60 storms within 50 mi