Myrtle Beach and Wilmington Tropical Cyclone Wind History
The National Weather Service provides a history of tropical cyclone wind events for Wilmington, NC, and Myrtle Beach, SC. This record details the name and date of each tropical cyclone that brought wind gusts of at least tropical storm force (39 mph or greater) based on official observations.
Myrtle Beach’s highest recorded wind gust was 106 mph during Hurricane Hazel on October 15, 1954. This observation was made by Dr. Lopez, a meteorologist visiting from International Paper, even though the Myrtle Beach tower was officially evacuated at the time. Other significant wind gusts in Myrtle Beach include 76 mph during Hurricane Hugo on September 22, 1989, and 76 mph during Hurricane Fran on September 5, 1996.
Wind observations in Myrtle Beach were taken at the Myrtle Beach Air Force Base/Myrtle Beach Airport (MYR) from 1941 through 1998. Since 1999, the North Myrtle Beach Airport (CRE) has served as the official wind observation site for the Grand Strand area.
For Wilmington, the highest recorded wind gust was 135 mph during Hurricane Helene on September 27, 1958. Other notable wind gusts in Wilmington include 105 mph during Hurricane Florence on September 14, 2018, 97 mph during Hurricane Donna on September 11, 1960, and 98 mph during Hurricane Hazel on October 15, 1954.
Official wind observations in downtown Wilmington began in 1871, initially recorded by the US Army Signal Corps. The US Weather Bureau assumed responsibility for these observations in 1891.
This historical data was researched and authored by Tim Armstrong and was last updated on September 27, 2026.
