This SC city at high risk for hurricanes. It ranks as top storm place in the state
With little more than a month into the hurricane season, the Myrtle Beach area has already had its first brush with a tropical storm.
Tropical Storm Chantal hit the Grand Strand during the July 4th weekend, bringing with it heavy rain and wind.
Such storm encounters have placed Myrtle Beach among the top 10 cities and islands in the world that are most affected by tropical storms and hurricanes.
Myrtle Beach ranks No. 8 as a place to receive brushes or hits in the Atlantic basin, according to HurricaneCity.com, a website that provides hurricane history and data across the country.
The current rankings are based on 2024 Atlantic hurricane season data, which provides the amount of years between a storm or hurricane affecting the city or island. The ranking method is based on tracking charts dating back to 1871 from every hurricane season in the Atlantic basin, according to the website.
Hurricane season typically runs from June through Nov. 30 each year, and NOAA is predicting an above-normal storm season for this year.
Myrtle Beach is affected by a storm every 1.82 years, according to HurricaneCity.com’s data.
Last year, the coastal city was brushed by tropical storms Debby and Helene. It is the most impacted area in South Carolina due to many brushes of systems hitting North Carolina, the site said.
Cape Hatteras and Morehead City in North Carolina were ranked No. 1 and 2 on the list of cities. Wilmington, North Carolina, which is about an hour from Myrtle Beach, was ranked No. 4.
Horry County also has been ranked among the top counties in the United States that will be most affected by this year’s hurricane season.
While the county received an overall rating of 33 among U.S. counties that are most likely to be in harm’s way, Horry County was ranked No. 11 for its hurricane risk, according to LawnStarter.
This story was originally published July 18, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
