North Carolina Power Outage Season

When outages happen most in North Carolina, and what to expect.

July is historically North Carolina's busiest month for recorded power outages, part of a summer season (June–August) that accounts for about 33% of all recorded outages statewide, averaging 3.0 hours per event. 14 of North Carolina's 100 tracked counties currently carry a Reliability Grade of F.

Total outage events

119,820

In historical records

Peak month

July

Most recorded outages

Average duration

3.0 hrs

Per outage event

Grade F counties

Of 100 tracked

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North Carolina outages by month

Total recorded events and average duration per event, summed across every tracked county in North Carolina.

Peak season insight

North Carolina's outage season runs June–August, accounting for 33% of all recorded outages. July has the highest frequency.

Month-by-month data table

Month	Events	Avg duration
January	8,279	3.1 hrs
February	7,253	3.2 hrs
March	7,801	2.3 hrs
April	9,538	2.7 hrs
May	11,720	2.5 hrs
June	12,548	2.6 hrs
July	14,357	2.5 hrs
August	12,423	2.9 hrs
September	10,431	4.9 hrs
October	8,797	4.7 hrs
November	7,928	2.3 hrs
December	8,745	3.1 hrs

This month in North Carolina

October has historically recorded 8,797 outage events across North Carolina, below the state's typical monthly average. Outages that start in October have averaged 4.7 hours.

Main causes by season

Named storms behind North Carolina's worst recorded outages, from the NOAA Storm Events Database.

Winter (December–February)

Winter Storm
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
Heavy Snow
Ice Storm
High Wind

Spring (March–May)

Flood
Coastal Flood
High Wind
Thunderstorm Wind
Tornado

Summer (June–August)

Thunderstorm Wind
Tropical Storm Isaias
Hail
Tropical Storm Chantal
Tornado

Fall (September–November)

Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Florence
High Wind
Tropical Storm Zeta
Hurricane Matthew

North Carolina's worst outage events on record

The five largest outages in North Carolina by duration and customers affected.

Date	Duration	Customers affected	Cause
Sep 16, 2018	300 hrs	104,279 (70%)	Hurricane Florence
Sep 15, 2018	231 hrs	85,376 (45%)	Hurricane Florence
Sep 15, 2018	178 hrs	71,864 (39%)	Hurricane Florence
Oct 11, 2018	127 hrs	95,814 (36%)	Tropical Storm Michael
Oct 8, 2016	98 hrs	119,303 (21%)	Hurricane Matthew

Highest-risk counties in North Carolina

Lowest reliability percentile among North Carolina's tracked counties.

County	Grade	National percentile
Polk County	F	3rd
Pamlico County	F	7th
Tyrrell County	F	8th
Moore County	F	10th
Jones County	F	11th

Live weather alerts for North Carolina

There are no active National Weather Service alerts for North Carolina right now.

These live alerts come from the National Weather Service. They are public-safety information, not an outage prediction.

North Carolina power outage FAQ

When do power outages happen most in North Carolina?

July is historically the busiest single month for recorded outages in North Carolina, and Summer (June–August) accounts for about 33% of all recorded outages across the state.

How long do power outages in North Carolina typically last?

Across North Carolina's tracked counties, the average recorded outage lasts about 3.0 hours, though individual events -- especially named storms -- can run much longer.

Which counties in North Carolina have the highest outage risk?

Polk County, Pamlico County, Tyrrell County, Moore County, Jones County currently rank lowest for reliability in North Carolina. See each county's page for its full history.

Does this page predict a power outage in North Carolina?

No. It describes patterns in recorded county-level outage history, not a guaranteed future event. Check the live National Weather Service alerts below for current conditions.