According to Jay Barnes, Southport native and author of NC's Hurricane History, it depends on how you define "worst".
Hurricane Floyd is the latest candidate. When it made landfall in September 1999, it was in a downward transition to a category-two storm. However, with streams and rivers of the eastern counties already filled from the summer rains, Floyd was a monstrous flood producer that is now recognized as the greatest disaster in North Carolina history.
Before Floyd, Hurricane Fran, which made landfall near Cape Fear in September 1996, was the most destructive storm in North Carolina history. It left behind a trail of wreckage from the coast to the Capitol and beyond, with a total cost estimated to exceed $4 billion.
Hurricane Hugo, which struck the South Carolina beaches and moved through western North Carolina in September 1989, caused $1 billion in damages in the Tar Heel state and $7 billion overall.
Hurricane Hazel, which struck Brunswick County in October 1954, didn't match the dollar damages of Fran, but was a more powerful storm. Hazel was a category four hurricane with winds of 140 mph and a 17 foot storm surge.
Hurricane Fran was a category three.
No category five hurricane is known to have made landfall on the North Carolina coast. Extending far out into the Atlantic, the coast of North Carolina has been battered by countless hurricanes through the centuries. Many have overwashed the state's barrier islands and wrecked coastal communities. Great hurricanes like Hazel in 1954, Hugo in 1989, and Fran in 1996 have left legacies of destruction
The Cape Fear Red Cross will host a Volunteer Recruitment Event on Saturday, June 25, 2011 from 11am-3pm at 1102 South 16th Street. Join us for refreshments, door prizes and the opportunity to speak with current Red Cross staff and volunteers.The event is free and open to the public.
