Wheeler County, Georgia Hurricane History

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

Since 1851, 55 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Wheeler County, Georgia — about one every 3.2 years. Of those, 8 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Helene (2024), which passed 31 miles away on 27 September 2024.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

3.2

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 1 · 7TS / TD · 48

The 55 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 7 of them reached Cat 1.

Key facts

Most recentHelene (2024) — 31 mi away, 27 September 2024
Strongest stormUnnamed Storm (1898) — 77 kt (89 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordUnnamed Storm (1904) — 2.0 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)None on record
Passes within 25 miles28 of 55
Peak monthAugust and October — 13 storms (24% of all)
Most active year1871 — 2 storms
Most active decade1910s — 6 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi0
Record span1851–2024

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Wheeler County, Georgia, August and October are tied as the most active months, with 13 of the 55 recorded storms (24%). The primary season runs August to October, accounting for 67% of all activity. The 1910s was the most active decade on record, with 6 storms. 0 of the 55 storms were major hurricanes (Category 3 or stronger) while within 50 miles.

J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
0	0	0	0	1	10	5	13	11	13	2	0

Activity by decade

19002000

Tropical cyclones passing within 50 miles, by decade, 1850s to 2020s. Decades with no storms are shown as empty columns. Comparing two equal 38-year windows inside the aircraft-reconnaissance era: 11 storms in 1950–1987 against 9 in 1988–2025.

1850s	1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s	1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
3	1	4	5	3	5	6	1	2	5	3	4	1	3	2	2	2	3

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Helene (2024)	27 Sep 2024	31.1 mi	Cat 1	67 kt
Idalia (2023)	30 Aug 2023	40.6 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Elsa (2021)	8 Jul 2021	22.9 mi	TS / TD	43 kt
Hermine (2016)	2 Sep 2016	37.6 mi	TS / TD	50 kt
Beryl (2012)	29 May 2012	26.8 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Alberto (2006)	14 Jun 2006	22.8 mi	TS / TD	32 kt
Unnamed Storm (2003)	26 Jul 2003	39.8 mi	TS / TD	18 kt
Earl (1998)	3 Sep 1998	8.6 mi	TS / TD	41 kt
Allison (1995)	6 Jun 1995	13.9 mi	TS / TD	31 kt
Unnamed Storm (1987)	17 Aug 1987	32.3 mi	TS / TD	10 kt
Charley (1986)	14 Aug 1986	10.6 mi	TS / TD	10 kt
Kate (1985)	22 Nov 1985	15.5 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Agnes (1972)	20 Jun 1972	45.1 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Abby (1968)	7 Jun 1968	41.5 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Unnamed Storm (1966)	2 Jul 1966	28.8 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Alma (1966)	10 Jun 1966	48.0 mi	TS / TD	42 kt
Dora (1964)	12 Sep 1964	12.5 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Unnamed Storm (1957)	9 Jun 1957	43.2 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1953)	1 Sep 1953	24.8 mi	TS / TD	26 kt
Love (1950)	22 Oct 1950	49.5 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1949)	28 Aug 1949	9.2 mi	TS / TD	63 kt
Unnamed Storm (1947)	15 Oct 1947	32.7 mi	TS / TD	61 kt
Unnamed Storm (1947)	8 Oct 1947	31.3 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1941)	8 Oct 1941	13.1 mi	TS / TD	44 kt
Unnamed Storm (1940)	12 Aug 1940	24.3 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Unnamed Storm (1935)	5 Sep 1935	15.5 mi	TS / TD	55 kt
Unnamed Storm (1933)	6 Sep 1933	13.7 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1923)	27 Jun 1923	10.3 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1919)	1 Oct 1919	46.3 mi	TS / TD	32 kt
Unnamed Storm (1917)	30 Sep 1917	7.3 mi	TS / TD	32 kt
Unnamed Storm (1916)	4 Oct 1916	49.0 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Unnamed Storm (1915)	3 Aug 1915	28.6 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1912)	6 Sep 1912	44.0 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1911)	29 Aug 1911	6.6 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1909)	2 Jul 1909	7.6 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1907)	29 Sep 1907	40.5 mi	TS / TD	36 kt
Unnamed Storm (1904)	4 Nov 1904	2.0 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1902)	15 Jun 1902	15.5 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1901)	18 Sep 1901	37.4 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1898)	2 Oct 1898	25.0 mi	Cat 1	69 kt
Unnamed Storm (1898)	31 Aug 1898	34.4 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1894)	9 Oct 1894	16.9 mi	Cat 1	68 kt
Unnamed Storm (1887)	20 Oct 1887	46.8 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	1 Jul 1886	17.2 mi	TS / TD	54 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	22 Jun 1886	30.4 mi	TS / TD	45 kt
Unnamed Storm (1885)	12 Oct 1885	39.0 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1881)	28 Aug 1881	9.7 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Unnamed Storm (1877)	3 Oct 1877	10.1 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Unnamed Storm (1873)	2 Jun 1873	50.0 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Unnamed Storm (1871)	6 Oct 1871	42.0 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1871)	28 Aug 1871	6.6 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1860)	13 Aug 1860	22.3 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1856)	31 Aug 1856	22.8 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Unnamed Storm (1852)	10 Oct 1852	14.7 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Unnamed Storm (1851)	24 Aug 1851	31.2 mi	TS / TD	62 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

A further 6 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
Nestor (2019)	Post-tropical	20 Oct 2019	13.0 mi	38 kt
Marco (1990)	Post-tropical	12 Oct 1990	13.4 mi	19 kt
Flossy (1956)	Post-tropical	25 Sep 1956	1.9 mi	37 kt
Florence (1953)	Post-tropical	27 Sep 1953	27.1 mi	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1929)	Post-tropical	1 Oct 1929	7.5 mi	50 kt
Unnamed Storm (1924)	Post-tropical	30 Sep 1924	42.2 mi	55 kt

About this data. Computed from NOAA's HURDAT2 Atlantic and Northeast Pacific hurricane databases (hurdat2-1851-2025-02272026.txt), covering 1851–2025. 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.

How Wheeler County, Georgia compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Wheeler County, Georgia ranks #153 — more exposed than 93.1% of them. Within Georgia it ranks #39 of 159, against a state average of 39.8 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1898) passed 25 miles away on 2 October 1898 as a hurricane, reaching 77 kt (89 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Helene (2024) passed 31 miles away on 27 September 2024 as a hurricane, reaching 73 kt (84 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1947) passed 33 miles away on 15 October 1947 as a hurricane, reaching 72 kt (83 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1894) passed 17 miles away on 9 October 1894 as a hurricane, reaching 70 kt (81 mph) while within 50 miles.

52 of the 55 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 3.2 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 55 storms spread over the 175 years from 1851 to 2025. 5 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 13 years, between 1972 and 1985. It has been 1 year since the last one; 37 of the 49 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Wheeler County, Georgia?

8 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Wheeler County, Georgia at hurricane strength since 1851. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 55.

When was the last hurricane in Wheeler County, Georgia?

Helene (2024), on 27 September 2024, passing 31 miles away — 2 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Helene (2024) in 2024.

What was the strongest storm to affect Wheeler County, Georgia?

Unnamed Storm (1898), which reached 77 kt (89 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 25 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Wheeler County, Georgia?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 3.2 years — 55 storms over the 175 years from 1851 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Wheeler County, Georgia borders or sits close to 6 other counties with a published storm record. Jeff Davis County, Georgia has 63 on record.

Jeff Davis County, Georgia63 storms within 50 mi Telfair County, Georgia57 storms within 50 mi Montgomery County, Georgia54 storms within 50 mi Treutlen County, Georgia48 storms within 50 mi Dodge County, Georgia46 storms within 50 mi Laurens County, Georgia46 storms within 50 mi