How Often Do Hurricanes Hit Palm Coast, Florida?

Q: How often do hurricanes hit Palm Coast?

Less often than most of Florida. NOAA's estimates show a hurricane passing within about 58 miles of the Northeast Florida coast roughly once every 12 to 13 years, and a major hurricane about once every 37 to 40 years, about half as often as in South Florida. The last hurricane to make landfall on this stretch of coast was Dora near St. Augustine in 1964. The damage Palm Coast and Flagler Beach have seen recently came from storms passing offshore or crossing the state, Matthew in 2016, Ian and Nicole in 2022 and Milton in 2024, mostly through beach erosion, flooding and wind.

How often a hurricane passes within about 58 miles (NOAA estimates)

Topic	Any hurricane	Major hurricane (Category 3+)
Northeast Florida coast (Flagler, St. Johns, Volusia)	About every 12 to 13 years	About every 37 to 40 years
Southeast Florida (Palm Beach to Miami)	About every 6 to 8 years	About every 14 to 19 years
Florida Gulf coast	About every 9 to 13 years	About every 27 to 46 years

Market numbers: Stellar MLS; they refresh live when you open this page. Single-family homes, condos and townhomes.

Why Northeast Florida is hit less often

Most Atlantic hurricanes either curve north well offshore before they reach this part of the coast or come ashore farther south. That's why NOAA's return-period estimates for the Flagler coast are about twice as long as for Palm Beach and Miami. It doesn't mean never: Dora came ashore near St. Augustine as a Category 2 in 1964, destroyed about half of the Flagler Beach pier and washed out A1A.

What recent storms did here

Matthew (2016) stayed offshore but washed out parts of A1A in Flagler Beach and caused about $73 million in damage countywide, most of it in Flagler Beach and the unincorporated beachfront. The City of Palm Coast says it was spared flooding.
Ian (2022) came ashore on the Gulf coast and crossed the state, flooding some Palm Coast neighborhoods and damaging the Flagler Beach pier, which has been closed since.
Nicole (2022) made landfall at Vero Beach, but its surge and erosion collapsed sections of A1A in Flagler Beach again.
Milton (2024) also crossed from the Gulf, dropped more than 5 inches of rain on Flagler Beach and pushed Palm Coast's saltwater canals 23 inches over their banks.

The pattern is that oceanfront and low-lying homes take the brunt, through erosion and water, while most of inland Palm Coast deals with wind, power outages and street flooding.

Dunes and A1A have been rebuilt

The Army Corps rebuilt 3.5 miles of beach and dune in Flagler Beach in 2024 with 1.7 million cubic yards of sand. Dunes along the Hammock were rebuilt from late 2025 into April 2026, and the next stretch, from North 7th Street to Varn Park, is scheduled to start in early 2027. The state also built a buried seawall under A1A in north Flagler Beach after Ian and Nicole.

How Palm Coast homes are built

Most of Palm Coast was built after Florida's statewide building code took effect in 2002, which set modern wind standards; about 61 percent of the city's homes were built in 2000 or later. Flagler County's building department publishes design wind-speed lines for the county, and the code's 9th edition takes effect December 31, 2026. For any home, ask for the wind mitigation report, which lists roof shape, roof-to-wall connections and opening protection, and which can lower your insurance. The state's My Safe Florida Home program offers free inspections and grants when it's funded.

Know your zones before you buy

Your evacuation zone and your flood zone are two different things. Look up the evacuation zone on Flagler County's lookup map or the state's Know Your Zone site, and the flood zone on FEMA's flood map. Both vary street by street, and oceanfront and canal homes need the closest look. Read Palm Coast flood zones and home insurance and my hurricane-proofing guide.

My take

I spent 12 years with Flagler Beach Ocean Rescue and 8 more in fire rescue, so I take storm risk seriously without being alarmist about it. For every home I show, I check the flood zone, the elevation certificate if there is one, the roof age and the wind mitigation report, and I get an insurance quote early. That way you know the real cost before you're committed.

David Stanley, Broker Associate, CENTURY 21 Fine Homes & Estates Realty Exchange. 23 years in North Florida, over $60 million in closed sales.

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How often do hurricanes hit Palm Coast?