Marion County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Tennessee Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Marion County is lower than Tennessee average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Marion County is about the same as Tennessee average and is higher than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #53
| Marion County | 0.10 |
| Tennessee | 0.56 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Marion County | 0.0000 |
| Tennessee | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #47
| Marion County | 169.14 |
| Tennessee | 175.35 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 15,377 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Marion County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 39 | Dense Fog: | 1 | Drought: | 86 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 1,513 | Hail: | 4,289 | Heat: | 40 | Heavy Snow: | 63 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 5 | Ice Storm: | 19 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 60 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 8,278 | Tropical Storm: | 15 | Wildfire: | 2 | Winter Storm: | 62 | Winter Weather: | 58 |
| Other: | 847 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Marion County.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 2 historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Marion County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 24.0 | 1964-02-18 | 4.4 | 15 | 34.8 | -85.5 |
| 35.5 | 1984-10-09 | 4.2 | 12 | 34.75 | -85.2 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 70 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Marion County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 4.1 | 1963-03-11 | 2 | 35°00'N / 85°43'W | 35°09'N / 85°32'W | 14.70 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 6 | 250K | 0 | Marion |
| 6.9 | 2007-11-14 | 2 | 35°03'N / 85°41'W | 35°02'N / 85°39'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 9 | 2.5M | 0K | Marion |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Nine injuries resulted from the EF2 rated tornado which heavily damaged the roof of the Kimball Baptist Church as well as damaging several vehicles in the church parking lot. The tornado also destroyed several modular homes between Main Street and Interstate 24. Peak wind speed was estimated at 130 mph with a path width of 200 yards. Path length was 2 miles. EPISODE NARRATIVE: High shear with moderate instability in the warm sector ahead of strong late Fall cold front. The Event was characterized by a few wind damage reports and an EF 2 tornado (Marion County) all across Southeast Tennessee. | |||||||||||
| 13.0 | 1952-02-13 | 3 | 35°15'N / 85°50'W | 35°16'N / 85°45'W | 5.10 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Grundy |
| 19.8 | 1995-04-21 | 2 | 35°03'N / 85°17'W | 10.00 Miles | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0.1M | 0 | Hamilton | |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down over parts of suburban Chattanooga. The tornado most of its damage in a 16-block area. Overall 80 buildings were damaged. Of the 80 buildings damaged, 50 of them were homes and 30 of the buildings were businesses. Several apartments suffered roof damage and 43 persons were evacuated. | |||||||||||
| 20.3 | 1964-08-12 | 2 | 35°22'N / 85°24'W | 0.80 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 6 | 25K | 0 | Sequatchie | |
| 20.6 | 2009-04-10 | 2 | 35°21'N / 85°22'W | 5.00 Miles | 175 Yards | 0 | 0 | 100K | 0K | Sequatchie | |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An F2 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 120 mph occurred around 2 miles south of Dunlap. The tornado initially touched down along Frank Tate Road with a maximum wind speed of 90 mph (EF-1) and a width of 100 yards. The tornado continued in a northeast path and increased in size to an EF-2 with a maximum wind speed of 120 mph and a width of 175 yards. Several large hardwood trees were snapped off near the trunk base with extensive damage occurring in a concentrated path. The tornado continued its northeast movement and finally weakened to a EF-1 with a maximum wind speed of 100 mph as it dissipated at the foothill of Signal Mountain. A school and several homes suffered minor to moderate wind damage along the nearly 5 mile of the tornado. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A cold front tracked across east Tennessee during the afternoon and evening hours. The resulting squall line triggered numerous thunderstorm wind damage reports along with large hail. Three tornadoes were also reported. One person was injured. | |||||||||||
| 21.6 | 1997-03-29 | 3 | 35°03'N / 85°19'W | 35°03'N / 85°11'W | 8.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 44 | 45.0M | 0 | Hamilton |
| Brief Description: In Hamilton county...the tornado first touched down in the Tiftonia community just west of downtown Chattanooga around 1:10 am EDT. As the tornado moved due east across the southern part of the county, 50 homes were completely destroyed. Another 600 homes and one business were heavily damaged. Most of the damage was concentrated in the East Brainerd community. There, about half of the 180-unit Hickory Villa apartment complex was destroyed, and 18 of 23 townhomes of the Hickory Trace complex were destroyed. Two more apartment complexes, Hickory Valley and Ledford Apartments, were severely damaged. Around 20000 homes were without electricity after the storm. Most power had been restored by Monday morning. In Bradley county...the tornado destroyed 5 poultry farms, 4 homes, and 4 mobile homes. Another 45 homes, 16 mobile homes and 3 poultry farms were damaged. | |||||||||||
| 21.9 | 1994-06-26 | 2 | 35°20'N / 85°19'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Sequatchie | |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down near Lewis Chapel. A church and a mobile home and another mobile home were destroyed. Two other homes were damaged. Several trees were blown down as well. | |||||||||||
| 22.6 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 35°18'N / 85°58'W | 35°20'N / 85°56'W | 3.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 0K | 0 | Coffee |
| 22.8 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 35°15'N / 86°00'W | 35°18'N / 85°58'W | 4.10 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Franklin |
| 23.8 | 1988-05-09 | 2 | 34°50'N / 85°54'W | 34°46'N / 85°33'W | 14.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Jackson |
| 24.5 | 1997-03-28 | 2 | 35°28'N / 85°33'W | 35°29'N / 85°27'W | 6.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 100K | 0 | Sequatchie |
| Brief Description: The tornado started in the Savage Gulf State Natural area and went about 6 miles. It damaged 5 structures...including a grocery store in the Savage Gulf State Natural Area. The Tennessee Nitrate Technologies were completely destroyed near the junction of RT 111 and RT 8. The tornado dissipated on Mc Carver Loop Road. Tornado path length and width are approximations. | |||||||||||
| 24.6 | 2010-10-26 | 2 | 35°07'N / 85°11'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 6 | 200K | 0K | Hamilton | |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: NWS storm survey determined an EF2 tornado with maximum wind speed of 125 mph and a length of 1.2 miles with a path width of 100 yards touched down in the vicinity of the Chickamauga Dam. Damage from the storm included a roof torn off an apartment complex, a cement plant demolished, several vehicles on Highway 153 damaged and numerous trees and powerlines downed. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A cold front tracked through the region triggering scattered severe thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening hours. Storm reports contained mainly damaging thunderstorm wind, but an EF2 tornado formed in Hamilton County. Six people were injured. Tornadoes also formed in Bradley, Loudon and Marion Counties. | |||||||||||
| 26.3 | 1988-05-09 | 2 | 34°46'N / 85°33'W | 34°45'N / 85°32'W | 1.00 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Dekalb |
| 26.3 | 1992-11-22 | 2 | 34°45'N / 85°31'W | 34°47'N / 85°28'W | 3.50 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Dade |
| 28.7 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 35°07'N / 86°09'W | 35°19'N / 86°05'W | 14.40 Miles | 800 Yards | 5 | 21 | 250K | 0 | Franklin |
| 29.4 | 1992-11-22 | 2 | 34°40'N / 85°41'W | 34°45'N / 85°35'W | 7.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 4 | 0K | 0 | Dekalb |
| 29.6 | 1961-03-08 | 2 | 34°54'N / 85°18'W | 34°56'N / 85°02'W | 15.20 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Catoosa |
| 29.8 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°31'N / 85°46'W | 35°36'N / 85°39'W | 8.70 Miles | 100 Yards | 1 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Warren |
| 30.0 | 1965-04-15 | 3 | 34°42'N / 85°42'W | 34°42'N / 85°35'W | 6.60 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Dekalb |
| 30.4 | 2008-02-06 | 4 | 34°40'N / 85°50'W | 34°45'N / 85°41'W | 11.00 Miles | 660 Yards | 1 | 12 | 0K | 0K | Jackson |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Representatives from the National Weather Service and the Jackson County Emergency Management Agency conducted a storm survey of damage that occurred in Jackson County, Alabama early in the morning of February 6, 2008. The damage was determined to originate from a strong tornado, which at its peak had winds of at least 180 MPH, giving it a rating of EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. The most significant damage occurred at the corner of County Road 60 and 177, between the Rosalie and Pisgah communities in eastern Jackson County. This is also approximately the location where one fatality occurred. Trees along the tornado path were snapped and in some cases shredded, several houses were swept from their foundations, and a large section of a chicken house collapsed. Several large hay bales (weighing 2,500 pounds) were blown apart or tossed around. EPISODE NARRATIVE: The WFO Huntsville County Warning Area experienced the worst tornado outbreak in 19 years on February 6, 2008. While the number of observed tornadoes was low (4), the area experienced two EF-4 tornadoes, the first time the area has witnessed more than one devastating tornado on the same day since 1974. This event was part of a large tornado outbreak which spanned both February 5th (Super Tuesday) and 6th (Wednesday). A series of tornadic supercell thunderstorms swept across the Mid-South and Southeast states ahead of a potent cold front. | |||||||||||
| 30.5 | 1965-04-15 | 3 | 34°42'N / 85°45'W | 34°42'N / 85°42'W | 3.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Jackson |
| 30.5 | 1952-02-29 | 2 | 35°32'N / 85°51'W | 1.00 Mile | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Warren | |
| 30.6 | 2010-10-25 | 2 | 34°39'N / 85°45'W | 34°44'N / 85°33'W | 10.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0K | Dekalb |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF-2 tornado with peak winds up to 115 mph continued it's track from Jackson into DeKalb County producing it's worst damage near the intersection of County Road 134 and 131. At this location, a cinder-block foundation shed was completely destroyed. The tornado continued northeast lifting much of a roof and portions of a brick exterior of a home along County Roady 886. It also destroyed a 20 by 20 foot shed. As the tornado moved into the town of Ider, it destroyed the bleachers and scoreboard at the Ider High School football field. The bleachers were solid concrete and were reinforced with 1/2 inch thick rebar. Additional damage was observed along Highway 75 as the tornado tracked into Dade County, Georgia. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) produced three tornadoes in northeast Alabama, including one EF-2 which tracked through portions of Jackson and DeKalb Counties. Severe weather began as early as late evening on the 24th and lasted through the pre-dawn hours on the 25th. Two people were also injured by lightning in Colbert County. | |||||||||||
| 30.9 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 35°21'N / 86°04'W | 35°30'N / 86°00'W | 11.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Franklin |
| 32.3 | 1952-02-13 | 4 | 35°12'N / 86°17'W | 35°13'N / 86°05'W | 11.40 Miles | 100 Yards | 3 | 35 | 250K | 0 | Franklin |
| 33.1 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 35°07'N / 86°19'W | 35°21'N / 86°04'W | 21.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Lincoln |
| 35.0 | 1961-03-13 | 3 | 35°36'N / 85°55'W | 35°37'N / 85°45'W | 9.30 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Warren |
| 35.4 | 2008-12-10 | 2 | 34°44'N / 86°04'W | 34°46'N / 86°00'W | 4.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 300K | 0K | Jackson |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A tornado struck portions of central Jackson county around 1 AM CST Wednesday morning. This tornado initially snapped several cedar trees near county road 21, before toppling three TVA high voltage power line towers near Pikeville Alabama. It then rapidly proceeded northeast snapping trees, collapsing several barns, and ripping off roofs before lifting near the end of county road 34. According to Jackson County Emergency Management, the tornado and adjacent straight-line winds were to blame for up to twenty homes being damaged. Three mobile homes were destroyed and seven more were damaged. Nine barns were destroyed and three were damaged. The maximum wind speed with this tornado was estimated at 125 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A warm front pushed northeast from Mississippi into northern Alabama producing widespread rainfall during the afternoon of the 9th. A squall line then produced another round of heavy rainfall, along with several small bow echoes. One of these stronger bow echoes resulted in an EF-2 tornado in Jackson County after midnight on the 10th. Widespread rain amounts of 3 to 5 inches, locally near 6 inches, fell in Madison, Limestone, Morgan, and Lawrence counties resulting in widespread river and local flash flooding. | |||||||||||
| 35.5 | 1957-01-22 | 2 | 35°34'N / 85°59'W | 35°35'N / 85°54'W | 4.70 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Coffee |
| 35.8 | 2001-10-24 | 2 | 35°30'N / 86°04'W | 35°30'N / 86°04'W | 0.20 Mile | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3.0M | 0 | Coffee |
| Brief Description: Roof and one wall to a factory was blown off at Manchester Industrial Park. There was structural damage to other buildings in the Joint Industrial Park. Also, several trees were down. One estimate for damage from the combination of straight line winds and the tornadoes, which extended from the commercial vehicle weigh station at I-24 to the Manchester Industrial Park, continuing to Old Airport Road and the Ashbury community, were in the several millions of dollars. | |||||||||||
| 35.8 | 1996-11-07 | 2 | 35°03'N / 86°18'W | 35°08'N / 86°12'W | 7.90 Miles | 175 Yards | 0 | 1 | 500K | 10K | Franklin |
| Brief Description: The tornado destroyed one home and six mobile homes, damaged close to a dozen other homes and mobile homes, and heavily damaged numerous farm buildings and storage sheds during its trek through Franklin county. Storm damage was estimated to be about 1/2 million dollars. The tornado stayed generally south of U.S. Route 64. The tornado first touched down west of Huntland on McClure Cemetery Road where it destroyed a mobile home and damaged two other homes. The tornado continued east and destroyed 2 mobile homes and a storage building on Indian Creek Road. The tornado continued east and crossed Main Street in Huntland and destroyed a large hay barn. The tornado treked northeast to Old Salem and took the roof off the Old Salem Church of Christ on Bean Creek Rd. The most extensive damage was in Maxwell. 2 moble homes were destroyed. One of these mobile homes were lifted off its moorings and thrown 40 feet and then hit a tree. The occupant of the mobile home sustained a broken nose, multiple cuts and bruises. The tornado continued northeast to Belvidere where it destroyed some farm buildings. The tornado went up into the clouds, but reappeared in Decherd where it damaged a home. The tornado went back up into the clouds, but touched down briefly at Oak Grove, where it did some damage and again at Alto. The tornado destroyed a house at Alto on Rutledge Hill Rd. There were numerous trees and power lines down along the track of the tornado. Path length and width of the tornado are approximations. | |||||||||||
| 36.0 | 2010-10-25 | 2 | 34°37'N / 85°51'W | 34°39'N / 85°45'W | 6.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 150K | 0K | Jackson |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF-2 tornado with peak winds up to 115 mph touched down along Highway 40 just east of Highway 71. Significant damage occurred at highway 40 and County Road 22. A couple of sheds were destroyed and numerous large trees were snapped and uprooted. A single-wide manufactured home was lifted 4 to 6 feet off its foundation along County Road 382 north of Highway 40. Additional damage occurred along County Road 134 before the tornado crossed into DeKalb County. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) produced three tornadoes in northeast Alabama, including one EF-2 which tracked through portions of Jackson and DeKalb Counties. Severe weather began as early as late evening on the 24th and lasted through the pre-dawn hours on the 25th. Two people were also injured by lightning in Colbert County. | |||||||||||
| 36.3 | 1963-03-11 | 2 | 35°41'N / 85°46'W | 35°37'N / 85°43'W | 5.20 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Warren |
| 37.2 | 1997-05-02 | 2 | 35°01'N / 86°16'W | 35°00'N / 86°15'W | 0.90 Mile | 150 Yards | 0 | 0 | 60K | 100K | Franklin |
| Brief Description: A half dozen farm related buildings sustained damage. About 100 big trees were blown down in an apple orchard on White Gap Road. The trees were lying in different directions. | |||||||||||
| 37.6 | 1956-02-18 | 2 | 34°42'N / 85°17'W | 34°52'N / 84°56'W | 22.90 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Walker |
| 38.2 | 1973-05-19 | 2 | 34°40'N / 86°02'W | 34°36'N / 85°47'W | 14.90 Miles | 900 Yards | 0 | 9 | 2.5M | 0 | Jackson |
| 38.3 | 1952-02-13 | 4 | 35°12'N / 86°18'W | 35°12'N / 86°17'W | 1.30 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 9 | 250K | 0 | Moore |
| 39.2 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 35°27'N / 86°13'W | 35°32'N / 86°06'W | 2.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 50K | 0 | Coffee |
| Brief Description: The F2 tornado blew down a tree and a light pole at 3737 Woodbury Highway at mile marker 9 on Woodbury Highway. Also, two fully loaded tracker trailer trucks were blown around on I-24 near Busy Corner or mile marker 105. One truck was in the east bound lane and the other tracker trailer truck in the west bound lane of I-24. 11 tornadoes were reported in Middle Tennessee in one of the worst tornadic outbreaks ever in November. 8 people...and possibly a ninth victim...were killed in Middle Tennessee alone. Damage estimate for the tornadoes in Tennessee was placed at $160 million. Primary losses were due to houses and cars. The toll on government owned infrastructure is about $6 million. The federal government is expected to reimburse the state and affected counties for 75% of the costs of responding to the disaster. The FEMA Public Assistance Program has obligated more than $3.6 million to assist local governments. These funds will be used to reimburse local governments for debris removal, the repair of public buildings and utilities, and overtime paid to police officers, firefighters and other emergency personnel. More than 900 families across the state applied for storm aid. This was the worst tornado disaster since the April3-4 outbreak in 1974. The United States Small Business Administration has approved more than 9.7 million dollars in disaster loans to assist disaster victims with repairing their property or replacing lost personal items. The 20 counties that are eligible for disaster assistance to individuals, households, and businesses were: Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Carroll, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Fentress, Gibson, Henderson, Madison, Marshall, Montgomery, Morgan, Roane, Rutherford, Scott, Sumner and Tipton and Van Buren. | |||||||||||
| 39.4 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 35°30'N / 86°13'W | 35°34'N / 86°01'W | 12.30 Miles | 450 Yards | 2 | 24 | 250K | 0 | Coffee |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado killed 2 people and injured 24 others. The 2 people were inside their mobile home when the tornado struck. The mobile home was in the New Union Heights subdivision, off state Highway 53 north of Manchester. The boy was moved from his mobile home to the Hillcrest Baptist Church. He died in the church at 705 PM CST. A relative of the boy, a 43-year-old male, was also killed. He was impaled on the upright lid of a washing machine. 24 homes were destroyed, 51 other homes were damaged. 9 mobile homes were destroyed and 5 were damaged. 14 outbuildings also were damaged. M10MH, M43MH 11 tornadoes were reported in Middle Tennessee in one of the worst tornadic outbreaks ever in November. 8 people...and possibly a ninth victim...were killed in Middle Tennessee alone. Damage estimate for the tornadoes in Tennessee was placed at $160 million. Primary losses were due to houses and cars. The toll on government owned infrastructure is about $6 million. The federal government is expected to reimburse the state and affected counties for 75% of the costs of responding to the disaster. The FEMA Public Assistance Program has obligated more than $3.6 million to assist local governments. These funds will be used to reimburse local governments for debris removal, the repair of public buildings and utilities, and overtime paid to police officers, firefighters and other emergency personnel. More than 900 families across the state applied for storm aid. This was the worst tornado disaster since the April3-4 outbreak in 1974. The United States Small Business Administration has approved more than 9.7 million dollars in disaster loans to assist disaster victims with repairing their property or replacing lost personal items. The 20 counties that are eligible for disaster assistance to individuals, households, and businesses were: Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Carroll, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Fentress, Gibson, Henderson, Madison, Marshall, Montgomery, Morgan, Roane, Rutherford, Scott, Sumner and Tipton and Van Buren. | |||||||||||
| 39.6 | 1973-05-19 | 2 | 34°36'N / 85°47'W | 34°33'N / 85°46'W | 3.60 Miles | 900 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Dekalb |
| 40.6 | 1997-03-29 | 3 | 35°09'N / 84°54'W | 35°09'N / 84°54'W | 4.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 50 | 3.2M | 0 | Bradley |
| Brief Description: In Hamilton county...the tornado first touched down in the Tiftonia community just west of downtown Chattanooga around 1:10 am EDT. As the tornado moved due east across the southern part of the county, 50 homes were completely destroyed. Another 600 homes and one business were heavily damaged. Most of the damage was concentrated in the East Brainerd community. There, about half of the 180-unit Hickory Villa apartment complex was destroyed, and 18 of 23 townhomes of the Hickory Trace complex were destroyed. Two more apartment complexes, Hickory Valley and Ledford Apartments, were severely damaged. Around 20000 homes were without electricity after the storm. Most power had been restored by Monday morning. In Bradley county...the tornado destroyed 5 poultry farms, 4 homes, and 4 mobile homes. Another 45 homes, 16 mobile homes and 3 poultry farms were damaged. | |||||||||||
| 40.8 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 34°36'N / 85°59'W | 34°37'N / 85°55'W | 4.30 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Jackson |
| 41.2 | 1953-01-20 | 2 | 35°42'N / 85°51'W | 0.50 Mile | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Warren | |
| 41.4 | 1973-05-27 | 2 | 35°00'N / 86°20'W | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lincoln | |||
| 41.6 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 34°48'N / 86°19'W | 34°51'N / 86°11'W | 8.30 Miles | 700 Yards | 0 | 4 | 2.5M | 0 | Jackson |
| 41.9 | 1977-04-04 | 2 | 34°33'N / 85°59'W | 34°38'N / 85°55'W | 6.90 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Jackson |
| 42.2 | 1963-03-19 | 2 | 35°11'N / 84°54'W | 35°12'N / 84°51'W | 3.30 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Bradley |
| 42.7 | 1952-02-29 | 3 | 34°30'N / 85°42'W | 34°32'N / 85°40'W | 3.30 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 12 | 0K | 0 | Dekalb |
| 42.8 | 2009-04-10 | 3 | 34°32'N / 85°55'W | 34°33'N / 85°46'W | 10.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Dekalb |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This destructive tornado continued to move east northeast from Jackson county into Dekalb county. Just on the east side of Highway 35, a large metal industrial building that was securely anchored into the ground was completely destroyed. In Sylvania, significant damage occurred to several homes in the Stonebrook division. One home was completely lifted off its foundation and driven nearly 4 feet into the ground. Sporadic damage continued just to the east of Sylvania until the tornado apparently lifted between 335 and 340 PM CDT, just south of the Mahan Crossroads community in west central Dekalb county. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A strong upper level storm moving across the Mississipi Valley brought a dry line and cold front into north Alabama during the afternoon and early evening hours. Several classic supercell thunderstorms developed by early afternoon in northwest Alabama, sweeping across the remainder of north Alabama during mid to late afternoon hours. Many of the storms produced very large hail, up to baseball and softball sized, producing significant damage, especially from Decatur through Madison and northwest Huntsville. One of the supercells produced a long track tornado producing damage of up to EF-3 intensity which struck northeastern Marshall County, crossed Lake Guntersville, and moved into southern DeKalb County. | |||||||||||
| 43.1 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 35°00'N / 86°26'W | 35°07'N / 86°19'W | 10.40 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Lincoln |
| 43.7 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 35°45'N / 85°28'W | 35°45'N / 85°25'W | 2.90 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 75K | 0 | Van Buren |
| Brief Description: EMA reported a frame house was demolished at intersection of Highway 111 and Highway 30. 11 tornadoes were reported in Middle Tennessee in one of the worst tornadic outbreaks ever in November. 8 people...and possibly a ninth victim...were killed in Middle Tennessee alone. Damage estimate for the tornadoes in Tennessee was placed at $160 million. Primary losses were due to houses and cars. The toll on government owned infrastructure is about $6 million. The federal government is expected to reimburse the state and affected counties for 75% of the costs of responding to the disaster. The FEMA Public Assistance Program has obligated more than $3.6 million to assist local governments. These funds will be used to reimburse local governments for debris removal, the repair of public buildings and utilities, and overtime paid to police officers, firefighters and other emergency personnel. More than 900 families across the state applied for storm aid. This was the worst tornado disaster since the April3-4 outbreak in 1974. The United States Small Business Administration has approved more than 9.7 million dollars in disaster loans to assist disaster victims with repairing their property or replacing lost personal items. The 20 counties that are eligible for disaster assistance to individuals, households, and businesses were: Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Carroll, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Fentress, Gibson, Henderson, Madison, Marshall, Montgomery, Morgan, Roane, Rutherford, Scott, Sumner and Tipton and Van Buren. | |||||||||||
| 44.6 | 1988-06-18 | 2 | 35°05'N / 86°27'W | 35°00'N / 86°21'W | 7.00 Miles | 73 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Lincoln |
| 44.9 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 35°00'N / 86°30'W | 35°07'N / 86°19'W | 13.10 Miles | 800 Yards | 6 | 100 | 2.5M | 0 | Lincoln |
| 45.0 | 1983-05-19 | 3 | 34°29'N / 85°41'W | 1.20 Miles | 473 Yards | 0 | 3 | 2.5M | 0 | Dekalb | |
| 45.2 | 1973-05-19 | 4 | 34°28'N / 85°45'W | 34°30'N / 85°40'W | 5.40 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 19 | 2.5M | 0 | Dekalb |
| 45.3 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 35°29'N / 86°19'W | 35°30'N / 86°16'W | 3.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 3 | 100K | 0 | Bedford |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado struck near Bugscuffle and caused very minor injuries. A second floor was torn off 2 late model frame houses. Several houses had roofs stripped and a couple of barns were demolished. This tornado went into Coffee county. TEMA reported 5 homes destroyed, 6 damaged, one mobile home destroyed and a TVA 500 KV tower was destroyed. 11 tornadoes were reported in Middle Tennessee in one of the worst tornadic outbreaks ever in November. 8 people...and possibly a ninth victim...were killed in Middle Tennessee alone. Damage estimate for the tornadoes in Tennessee was placed at $160 million. Primary losses were due to houses and cars. The toll on government owned infrastructure is about $6 million. The federal government is expected to reimburse the state and affected counties for 75% of the costs of responding to the disaster. The FEMA Public Assistance Program has obligated more than $3.6 million to assist local governments. These funds will be used to reimburse local governments for debris removal, the repair of public buildings and utilities, and overtime paid to police officers, firefighters and other emergency personnel. More than 900 families across the state applied for storm aid. This was the worst tornado disaster since the April3-4 outbreak in 1974. The United States Small Business Administration has approved more than 9.7 million dollars in disaster loans to assist disaster victims with repairing their property or replacing lost personal items. The 20 counties that are eligible for disaster assistance to individuals, households, and businesses were: Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Carroll, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Fentress, Gibson, Henderson, Madison, Marshall, Montgomery, Morgan, Roane, Rutherford, Scott, Sumner and Tipton and Van Buren. | |||||||||||
| 45.8 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 35°06'N / 84°55'W | 35°14'N / 84°42'W | 15.40 Miles | 350 Yards | 1 | 100 | 250K | 0 | Bradley |
| 46.3 | 1965-04-15 | 3 | 35°11'N / 84°52'W | 35°18'N / 84°45'W | 10.40 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 50 | 2.5M | 0 | Bradley |
| 46.6 | 1997-04-22 | 2 | 34°28'N / 85°54'W | 34°31'N / 85°51'W | 5.00 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 10 | 2.2M | 10K | Dekalb |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado tracked from southwest to northeast across the center of Rainsville. The tornado began at 3:53 pm CDT three miles southwest of Rainsville just south of the intersection of County Roads 92 and 72. The tornado moved northeastward directly through the downtown section of Rainsville at the intersection of State Highways 75 and 35. Damage was severe to a number of buildings including the Rainsville police and fire department station and a number of commercial buildings. The tornado continued northeast crossing Dilbeck and Marshall Roads before ending about two miles northeast of Rainsville on the east side of Marshall Road. The tornado severely damaged a large poultry raising facility and debris from the chicken houses was blown over half a mile further to the northeast. The tornado had dissipated by 4:01 pm CDT. At the Rainsville police station, eleven of 12 police cars were either damaged or destroyed and several of the city's fire trucks were damaged. Five of the 10 people injured were hospitalized according to emergency management officials. Damage assessment indicated that 63 homes and/or apartments were damaged or destroyed along with 34 businesses. The tornado path was five miles in length and about 220 yards wide at the widest. | |||||||||||
| 47.0 | 1973-03-16 | 2 | 34°30'N / 85°15'W | 34°35'N / 85°10'W | 7.60 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Chattooga |
| 47.2 | 2009-04-10 | 2 | 34°29'N / 85°22'W | 34°29'N / 85°21'W | 0 | 0 | 900K | 0K | Chattooga | ||
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia confirmed that a brief EF2 tornado had touched down approximately one mile southeast of Summerville and tracked less than one mile almost due east. The tornado was determined to have a maximum path width of 200 yards with maximum winds estimated to be 120 mph. Considerable damage was noted in the Summerville area. Over 30 homes were damaged along with 10 businesses. Most of the damage to these structures was determined to be minor. The majority of the damage occurred on Commerce Street. The brick wall of a car care center collapsed, the roof was shifted and lifted from a lumber warehouse, and windows were blown out of a barbecue restaurant. All of these events occurred on Commerce Street. At the intersection of Cleghorn and Scoggin Streets nearby, a single-wide mobile home was completely destroyed. Although the mobile home was anchored, the metal frame was ripped from the foundation and the home was tossed on its side. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A vigorous upper closed low was moving from the mid-south and Mississippi valley region into the mid-Atlantic and southeast U.S. A strong cold front accompanied the upper system. A strong low-level jet in advance of these weather systems transported warm, moist Gulf air northward into the region. With strong dynamics, hence shear, combined with an unusually moist, unstable atmosphere, the atmosphere was primed for a major weather outbreak. One round of thunderstorms passed through north Georgia during the early morning hours. A few minor severe weather events accompanied this system in northwest Georgia. Partial clearing followed the morning convection, allowing temperatures to soar into the mid 70s across much of north and central Georgia in advance of the main weather system. Scattered to numerous discrete supercell thunderstorms developed during mid-afternoon in northwest Georgia and progressed east and southeast across the remaining portions of the county warning area during the evening hours. Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes lingered into the early morning hours of the 11th across the southern counties of central Georgia. During the eight hour period from 5 pm EDT on April 10th to 1 am EDT on April 11th, a total of 14 tornadoes were confirmed to have touched down in north and central Georgia causing millions in damages. While some injuries were observed, no deaths were observed. | |||||||||||
| 47.3 | 1977-03-30 | 2 | 34°27'N / 85°41'W | 2.50 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Dekalb | |
| 47.4 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 35°11'N / 84°52'W | 35°13'N / 84°42'W | 9.70 Miles | 500 Yards | 2 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Bradley |
| 47.5 | 1951-06-08 | 2 | 34°58'N / 86°26'W | 0 | 2 | 3K | 0 | Madison | |||
| 48.0 | 2009-04-10 | 3 | 34°30'N / 86°06'W | 34°32'N / 85°55'W | 14.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Jackson |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Just east of CR 67, this tornado continued east northeast from Marshall county and into southern Jackson county. Several homes were destroyed in the Macedonia community along with numerous large trees uprooted and snapped. Three TVA high voltage powerline towers also collapsed. As the tornado approached Powell, a double wide manufactured home was shifted off its foundation with total roof collapse and complete destruction to the front of the home. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A strong upper level storm moving across the Mississipi Valley brought a dry line and cold front into north Alabama during the afternoon and early evening hours. Several classic supercell thunderstorms developed by early afternoon in northwest Alabama, sweeping across the remainder of north Alabama during mid to late afternoon hours. Many of the storms produced very large hail, up to baseball and softball sized, producing significant damage, especially from Decatur through Madison and northwest Huntsville. One of the supercells produced a long track tornado producing damage of up to EF-3 intensity which struck northeastern Marshall County, crossed Lake Guntersville, and moved into southern DeKalb County. | |||||||||||
| 48.1 | 1958-04-06 | 3 | 34°28'N / 86°05'W | 34°35'N / 85°59'W | 9.90 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Jackson |
| 49.5 | 1994-03-27 | 4 | 34°26'N / 85°59'W | 34°28'N / 85°47'W | 23.00 Miles | 700 Yards | 0 | 20 | 5.0M | 0 | Dekalb |
| Brief Description: A tornado struck near the Grove Oak area in the western sections of Dekalb County moving northeast through the towns of Rainsville, Sylvania, and Henager. In the path of the tornado, Emergency Management personnel reported 16 homes and 13 mobile homes completely destroyed, 45 homes and two mobile homes with major damage, and 21 homes and nine mobile home with minor damage. Two businesses and 12 poultry houses were destroyed. | |||||||||||
| 49.9 | 1974-03-21 | 2 | 35°00'N / 84°45'W | 0.80 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 7 | 250K | 0 | Polk | |
| 50.0 | 1986-02-06 | 3 | 35°14'N / 84°49'W | 35°14'N / 84°40'W | 5.00 Miles | 270 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Bradley |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.