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St. Clair County, Alabama severe weather history spans 469 recorded events between 1963 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 58.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #983 nationally and #30 in Alabama.
469
Recorded events
45
Direct deaths
281
Direct injuries
$240.5M
Property damage
The record
What the St. Clair County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, St. Clair County, Alabama severe weather history averages 7.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 170 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 61 events fall before 1990 and 408 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the St. Clair County, Alabama record is tornado, responsible for 39 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $236.9M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in St. Clair County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 272 | 5 | $1.6M | 91 | 1963–2026 |
| Hail | 113 | 0 | $102K | 3 | 1967–2026 |
| Tornado | 44 | 39 | $236.9M | F4 | 1964–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 30 | 1 | $1.8M | 0 | 1998–2026 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $22K | 0 | 2002–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2006 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2020–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–1996 |
Decade by decade
St. Clair County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
49 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 38 touched down inside it and 11 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-04-27 | EF4 | 22 | 85 | 97.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1994-03-27 | EF4 | 22 | 150 | 50.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-01-23 | EF3 | 1 | 75 | 15.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1977-04-04 | EF3 | 1 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-01-10 | EF3 | 1 | 60 | 18.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-05-27 | EF3 | 1 | 44 | 41.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-03-25 | EF3 | 0 | 5 | 50.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1998-04-08 | EF2 | 2 | 12 | 14.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-03-19 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 15.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-04-28 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 14.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in St. Clair County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 1994 | Tornado | Ragland to 5 NE Rock | 22 | 150 | $500K |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Tornado | SANIE | 13 | 30 | $200.0M |
| Jul 4, 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ragland | 3 | 4 | $23K |
| Apr 9, 1998 | Tornado | MOODY | 2 | 12 | $2.0M |
| Jan 10, 1975 | Tornado | 1 | 60 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | PELL CITY | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | ACMAR | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Nov 24, 2004 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $400K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A strong wind gust with a thunderstorm collapsed a boat house under construction killing three people and injuring four others who had sought shelter. Eight people boating on Neely Henry Lake sought shelter in a partially completed boat house on the St. Clair shore of the lake. The people were injured and killed when the boat house roof collapsed during the wind gust. (F29O, F06O, M04O)
The tornado began 2.3 miles north-northeast of Moody and just west of US 411. The tornado crossed US 411 where a large church and associated buildings, some recently constructed were destroyed. The tornado traveled on an east-northeast track moving through relatively rural areas. It affected a portion of CR 174 and then crossed US 231 just south of Wattsville. The tornado damaged a number of buildings in the Coal City area including a mobile home where two people were killed and three children were injured. The tornado ended in an open area just east of Coal City. Emergency Management for St. Clair County reported that 26 homes were destroyed, 30 homes suffered major damage, and 59 sustained minor damage. This included 42 mobile homes.
Several roads were reported covered with water and were temporarily impassable. Several area streams and creeks rose above bankfull. Doppler radar estimated widespread rain amounts of 4 to 5 inches with a few spots approaching 12 inches. A potential dam break situation developed in the afternoon. The dam eventually failed near the Friendship Community resulting in significant damage. Runoff from these storms lasted for several hours after the heaviest rains ended. A 73 year old man died when his car was swept away in the high water near Pinedale Road.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
94,166
Population (ACS)
$226K
Median home value
30
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | EM |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Apr 26, 2018 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Oct 8, 2017 | Hurricane | HURRICANE NATE | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in St. Clair County, Alabama?
469 events are on record between 1963 and 2026, causing 45 direct deaths and $240.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in St. Clair County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 272 recorded events — 58.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed St. Clair County?
49 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 38 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover St. Clair County?
30 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include St. Clair County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is St. Clair County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates St. Clair County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 72 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the St. Clair County, Alabama severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Russell County 275
- Shelby County 739
- Randolph County 310
- Sumter County 333
- Pike County 244
- Talladega County 514
Cite this page
“St. Clair County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/st-clair-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.