Storm risk in Gaston County, North Carolina

FEMA's overall hazard score for Gaston County is 84.86 (Relatively Moderate), 477th of 3,144 counties. Hail scores 68.42 (Relatively Low), strong wind 95.23 (Relatively High) and tornado 91.09 (Relatively High). Expected hail loss is $8.92 per $1 million of buildings a year; NOAA logged 32 hail reports in Gaston County from 2014 to June 2026.

FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. NOAA hail reports 2014 to June 2026.

Gaston County: expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings for hail, strong wind and tornado, on a log scale, against all U.S. counties and the counties of NC$0.1$1$10$100$1,000Hail: $8.92 per $1 million, 2,161st of 3,126 rated counties$8.92Hail2,161st of 3,126 countiesStrong wind: $3.57 per $1 million, 2,763rd of 3,121 rated counties$3.57Strong wind2,763rd of 3,121 countiesTornado: $189 per $1 million, 1,621st of 3,144 rated counties$189Tornado1,621st of 3,144 counties
  • Gaston County, coloured by its FEMA rating
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  • each county in the state
  • U.S. median
  • state median

Expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings, log scale. Dot colour is FEMA’s rating band. The tornado lane counts everything exposed, not only buildings.

How FEMA rates Gaston County

HazardRatingScore (0 to 100)Rank in U.S.Rank in NC
OverallRelatively Moderate 84.86477 of 3,14426 of 100
HailRelatively Low 68.42994 of 3,12625 of 100
Strong windRelatively High 95.23151 of 3,1267 of 100
TornadoRelatively High 91.09281 of 3,1269 of 100

Expected yearly loss, in dollars

HazardThis county, total a yearPer $1M of buildingsState median countyU.S. median countyRank per $1M, U.S.Rank per $1M, state
Hail$395,266$8.92 $9.65$22 2,161 of 3,12657 of 100
Strong wind$158,058$3.57 $8.61$20 2,763 of 3,12186 of 100
Tornado$8,393,119$189 $156$199 1,621 of 3,14434 of 100

Rank 1 is the highest. Overall, hail and wind losses count buildings; the tornado row counts everything FEMA exposes, so it overstates building damage. Expected annual loss is an average over many years for the whole county, not a forecast for one roof.

What stands out in Gaston County

  • FEMA expects hail in Gaston County to cost $8.92 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.40 times the U.S. median and 0.93 times the NC county median, ranked 2,161st of 3,126 counties nationally and 57th of 100 in North Carolina.
  • FEMA expects strong wind in Gaston County to cost $3.57 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.18 times the U.S. median and 0.41 times the NC county median, ranked 2,763rd of 3,121 counties nationally and 86th of 100 in North Carolina.
  • FEMA expects tornado in Gaston County to cost $189 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.95 times the U.S. median and 1.21 times the NC county median, ranked 1,621st of 3,144 counties nationally and 34th of 100 in North Carolina.
  • Applying FEMA's estimate to a $235,000 home, the average yearly loss in Gaston County is about $2.10 for hail and $0.84 for wind before any deductible; at the U.S. median county rates it would be $5.25 and $4.79.
  • If the next years look like 2014 to 2025, a roof kept 20 years in Gaston County meets about 26.7 hail days of 1 inch or more; the median county in NOAA's file (1,275 counties) would give 35.0.
  • Built in 1982, the median home in Gaston County is 44 years old, so an original roof has outlived a 3-tab shingle (15 to 20 years) and an architectural one (25 to 30 years); 73.4% of its 100,109 homes are at least 26 years old.
  • March to June holds 28 of the 32 hail reports in Gaston County (88 percent); the quietest month is January, with 0 reports.

What hail and wind cost a home here in an average year

Enter a home value. The calculator applies Gaston County’s own loss rate: the county’s expected yearly loss divided by the value of its buildings. It starts at the Census median home value for the county.

$2.10hail, a year; $5.25 at the U.S. median county rate
$0.84strong wind, a year; $4.79 at the U.S. median county rate
$59hail and wind together over 20 years, at today’s rate

Formula: home value × Gaston County yearly loss ÷ building value. Hail: $395,266 ÷ $44,292,194,578 = 0.0000089. Wind: $158,058 ÷ $44,292,194,578 = 0.0000036. This is FEMA’s estimate of average damage to buildings and does not account for your deductible. Tornado is left out because FEMA’s tornado loss counts people and other exposure, not only buildings.

Read this as a yardstick. The rate is an average over every building in the county, from sheds to office towers, and over many years. Real losses come in rare, large storms; a roof with no damage in 19 years can need full replacement in the 20th. The figure is not a quote and not a prediction for one address.

Gaston County in plain numbers

  • Gaston County scores 84.86 in FEMA's overall hazard index (Relatively Moderate): 477th of 3,144 rated counties and 26th of 100 in North Carolina.
  • Hail scores 68.42 (Relatively Low). FEMA expects $395,266 of hail damage to buildings in Gaston County a year, which is $8.92 per $1 million of buildings, 0.40 times the U.S. median.
  • Strong wind scores 95.23 (Relatively High) with $158,058 of expected yearly building loss in Gaston County: $3.57 per $1 million of buildings, 0.18 times the U.S. median.
  • Tornado scores 91.09 (Relatively High) and FEMA's expected yearly tornado loss is $8,393,119, counting everything exposed, or $189 per $1 million of buildings in Gaston County.
  • FEMA's own event record for Gaston County averages 5.08 hail events and 2.74 strong-wind events a year.
  • NOAA logged 32 hail reports in Gaston County between 2014 and June 2026, on 16 days with stones of 1 inch or more; the largest was 2 inches.
  • In Gaston County, FEMA counts buildings worth 44.29 billion dollars and 227,866 residents.
  • Social vulnerability is Relatively Low in Gaston County.
  • Community resilience there is Relatively Moderate, for 227,866 residents.
  • 1 city in Gaston County is covered on this site: Gastonia. 13 Census ZIP areas have more than half of their land in the county.
  • Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Gastonia is $6,370 to $14,105.
  • Gaston County ranks 139 of the 194 counties with a page here for hail loss per $1 million of buildings, 167 for wind and 113 for tornado.
  • In Gaston County, May is the busiest month with 11 of the 32 reports (34 percent), against 0 reports in November.
  • Gaston County's worst year was 2014, with 4 hail days at 1 inch or more and 8 reports. At the 2014 to 2025 pace that is 1.33 such days a year, one about every 9.0 months.
  • The median home in Gaston County was built in 1982; 47.6% of its 100,109 housing units date from before 1980, 73.4% from before 2000 and 12.0% from 2010 on.
  • Census puts the median home value in Gaston County at $235,000, and 65.8% of homes are lived in by their owners.
  • 16,610 single-family building permits were issued in Gaston County from 2014 to 2025, about 165.9 per 1,000 homes, peaking in 2025.
  • NOAA lists 6 tornado tracks in Gaston County since 2014; the strongest was an EF1 on May 8, 2024 near Gastonia, 8.22 miles long.
  • The fastest gust in NOAA's records for Gaston County is 86 mph on May 16, 2023 at Dellview.
  • The nearest county with a page here is Cabarrus County, 37 miles from the centre of Gaston County; its hail score is 57.03.
  • Across counties the median is one roofing firm for every 5,189 homes; Census counted 11 roofing contractor establishments in Gaston County in 2023, one for every 9,101 homes.

The hail record of Gaston County, year by year

NOAA logged 32 reports in Gaston County; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 16 days. That is 1.3 such days a year; the median county in NOAA’s file has 1.8.

Gaston County: NOAA hail reports per year, 2014 to June 2026, with the number of days that had hail of 1 inch or more024682014: 8 reports, 4 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.5 inch142015: 3 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch152016: 3 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch162017: 1 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.5 inch172018: 1 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2 inch182019: 2 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0.75 inch192020: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch202021: 1 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0.75 inch212022: 4 reports, 2 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch222023: 3 reports, 2 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch232024: 2 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch242025: 4 reports, 3 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.25 inch252026: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch26*
  • reports
  • days with hail of 1 inch or more
  • * 2026 runs to June only
Gaston County: NOAA hail reports by calendar month, 2014 to June 2026January: 0 reports0JanFebruary: 0 reports0FebMarch: 1 reports1MarApril: 6 reports6AprMay: 11 reports11MayJune: 10 reports10JunJuly: 1 reports1JulAugust: 2 reports2AugSeptember: 1 reports1SepOctober: 0 reports0OctNovember: 0 reports0NovDecember: 0 reports0Dec

Reports by calendar month, all years together. Peak: May, 11 reports.

The same numbers as a table (years with at least one report)
YearReportsDays, 1 inch or moreDays, 1.75 inch or moreLargest stoneDamage reported
20148401.5 in–
20153111.75 in–
20163111.75 in–
20171101.5 in–
20181112 in–
20192000.75 in–
20211000.75 in–
20224201 in–
20233201 in–
20242101 in–
20254301.25 in–

Biggest hail days in Gaston County

DateLargest stoneReports that dayDamage reportedNear
April 15, 20182 in1none recordedBelmont South
April 20, 20151.75 in3none recordedGastonia
July 8, 20161.75 in1none recordedAlexis
June 10, 20141.5 in3none recordedGastonia
June 13, 20141.5 in2none recordedLowell

Where large hail was reported

FEMA scores the county as a whole. NOAA’s reports show where inside Gaston County the big stones fell.

Reported hail locations, Gaston County

1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1.25 in hail1.25 in hail1.25 in hail1.5 in hail1.5 in hail1.5 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail2 in hail Gastonia
  • 161 to 1.74 in
  • 31.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
  • 02.75 in and up, baseball

Largest plotted stone: 2 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.

19 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.

Sources: NOAA, Census county outline

Wind and tornado records for Gaston County

Fastest gusts in Gaston County

DateGustNear
May 16, 202386 mphDellview
July 3, 201469 mphCherryville
July 8, 201669 mphCherryville
May 8, 202469 mphMountian View

Strongest tornado tracks in Gaston County

DateScaleLengthInjured / killedNear
May 8, 2024EF18.22 mi2 / 0Gastonia
May 8, 2024EF17.91 mi0 / 0Dellview
February 6, 2020EF13.52 mi0 / 0Mountian View
January 12, 2023EF06.06 mi0 / 0Spencer Mtn

6 tornado tracks in all since 2014; the strongest 4 are listed.

How old the roofs are

Census counts homes by the decade they were built. Under each bar is the number of hail days of 1 inch or more that an original roof from that decade has met, at Gaston County’s 2014 to 2025 pace of 1.33 such days a year. Most roofs have been replaced since; the row shows what a roof that never was would have taken.

Gaston County: share of homes by decade built, with the hail days at 1 inch or more that an original roof from each decade has met at the county's 2014 to 2025 ratepre-1940: 7.4% of homes7.4%<19401211940s: 5.7% of homes5.7%1940s1081950s: 9.6% of homes9.6%1950s951960s: 11.8% of homes11.8%1960s811970s: 13.1% of homes13.1%1970s681980s: 12.9% of homes12.9%1980s551990s: 12.9% of homes12.9%1990s412000s: 14.6% of homes14.6%2000s282010s: 10.6% of homes10.6%2010s152020+: 1.5% of homes1.5%2020+4

Bars: share of 100,109 housing units by decade built. Figures under the decade: hail days met by an original roof, at the county’s 2014 to 2025 pace. The pace of earlier years is unknown.

Median year built1982
Built before 198047.6%
Built before 200073.4%
Built since 201012.0%
Owner-occupied65.8%
Median home value$235,000
Single-family permits, 2014 to 202516,610
Permits per 1,000 homes165.9

Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) and 25 to 30 years (architectural). Source: Census ACS 2019 to 2023 and Building Permits Survey.

Roofers and past disasters in Gaston County

Roofing firms in Gaston County

Roofing contractor establishments, 202311
Change since 2016+2 (+22%)
Homes per roofing firm9,101
Median across counties5,189
Employees, 2023113

Source for Gaston County: Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 238160.

Nearby counties

The closest counties that have a risk page, by distance between county centres. Loss is per $1 million of buildings; the columns marked "times here" divide the neighbour's loss by Gaston County's.

CountyMilesOverallHail lossHail, times hereWind lossWind, times hereNOAA hail reports
Cabarrus County, NC37 Relatively Moderate $6.710.75$2.890.8132
Forsyth County, NC77 Relatively Moderate $7.950.89$2.470.6923
Buncombe County, NC79 Relatively Moderate $7.280.82$4.041.1335
Guilford County, NC96 Relatively Moderate $101.14$3.230.9048
Alamance County, NC114 Relatively Low $182.00$6.651.8619
Cumberland County, NC136 Relatively Moderate $141.61$112.9825

More North Carolina counties, nearest first

All 194 counties, with a filter by state and sorting

Cities and ZIP areas in Gaston County

1 city in this county is on PickARoofer. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are Census shapes that approximate ZIP codes; where we have a city’s ZIPs, the share is the part of each area’s land that lies in this county. 13 such areas have more than half their land here.

CityZIP areas (share of land in the county)Pages
Gastonia 28054 (100%) Roofers

Storm hit your roof in Gaston County? A free inspection tells you if there is damage. One local roofer answers, not five.

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Questions

How high is storm risk in Gaston County?

FEMA's National Risk Index gives Gaston County an overall score of 84.86 (Relatively Moderate), 477th of 3,144. Hail scores 68.42 (Relatively Low), strong wind 95.23 (Relatively High) and tornado 91.09 (Relatively High).

In Gaston County, how many hail reports has NOAA logged?

A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell. NOAA has 32 for Gaston County between 2014 and June 2026, on 16 days with hail of 1 inch or more; the largest stone was 2 inches.

What do hail and wind cost a home in Gaston County each year, on average?

Applying FEMA's county rates to its median home value of $235,000: FEMA's estimate is about $2.10 a year for hail and $0.84 for wind, before any deductible, against $5.25 and $4.79 at the U.S. median county rates. This is an average over many years and all buildings, not a prediction for one roof; one bad storm costs far more than the average year.

How does Gaston County compare with the rest of North Carolina?

Per $1 million of buildings Gaston County loses $8.92 to hail a year, against $9.65 in the median county of the state. Among 100 rated counties it is 25th for hail, 7th for strong wind and 9th for tornado.

How old are the roofs in Gaston County?

The median home was built in 1982, 44 years ago, and 73.4% of the 100,109 housing units in Gaston County date from before 2000. Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) or 25 to 30 years (architectural), so an original roof of either kind is past its rated life. The Census does not record when a roof was replaced.

What does expected annual loss mean?

It is FEMA's estimate of the average yearly loss from a hazard, in dollars, summed over the county. It is built for comparing counties at planning level, not for pricing one house.

Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?

No. The index compares counties and cannot say what will happen on your street. After a storm, a roof inspection is the only way to know.

Sources for Gaston County: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database hail reports for Gaston County; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020); Census ACS and Building Permits Survey, homes in Gaston County; Census County Business Patterns, roofing firms in Gaston County. Planning-level information about Gaston County, not an inspection and not insurance advice.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).