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Tallapoosa County, Alabama severe weather history spans 421 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 54.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,169 nationally and #35 in Alabama.
421
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
28
Direct injuries
$120.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Tallapoosa County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Tallapoosa County, Alabama severe weather history averages 5.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 135 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 44 events fall before 1990 and 377 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Tallapoosa County, Alabama record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $118.5M 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 Tallapoosa County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 231 | 0 | $1.2M | 78 | 1961–2026 |
| Hail | 115 | 0 | $142K | 3 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 43 | 2 | $118.5M | F3 | 1952–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 16 | 0 | $318K | 0 | 1998–2023 |
| Lightning | 11 | 0 | $556K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2014 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2012 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–1999 |
Decade by decade
Tallapoosa County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
47 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 35 touched down inside it and 12 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 | 7 | 30 | 44.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2023-01-12 | EF3 | 7 | 16 | 82.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-03-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 20.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-03-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 24.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2012-03-02 | EF2 | 1 | 4 | 34.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-03-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 31.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-15 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 20.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1979-11-25 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 26.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1956-12-23 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 121.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-02-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Tallapoosa County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 2011 | Tornado | BARNESVILLE | 1 | 10 | $115.0M |
| Mar 3, 2012 | Tornado | OUR TOWN | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 5, 2008 | Lightning | OUR TOWN | 0 | 3 | $1K |
| Nov 25, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| May 4, 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | TALLAPOOSA CITY | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 17, 2017 | Lightning | STURDIVANT | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 20, 2014 | Lightning | SESSIONS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado touched down in central Elmore County, north of Wetumpka, and moved northeast through central Tallapoosa and western Chambers Counties, before it lifted west northwest of Lafayette. The tornado crossed into Tallapoosa County near Stoney Ridge Rd, south of CR 34, and intensified to EF4 strength with winds of 170 mph. Damage was widespread and severe with several well built multi-story homes destroyed with no walls remaining on floors above basement level. The tornado continued at this strength but became narrower to nearly 400 yards wide as it crossed AL Hwy 49 south of Dadeville where it destroyed 2 homes and rolled a pick-up truck 120 yards. The tornado continued northeast and weakened to EF3 strength with winds of 155 mph. It crossed U.S. Hwy 280 just east of Dadeville where it produced significant damage to several homes and businesses, and caused one fatality. The tornado crossed into Chambers County west of Lafayette, south of CR 48.
The second supercell merged with the original supercell at this time across southern Tallapoosa County. This re-energized the storm considerably. Damaging winds associated with this transformed supercell moved across extreme southern Tallapoosa County. Numerous trees were blown down from near Lake Martin to near Reeltown. Hail up to 2.00 inches in diameter accompanied the storm.
More than two inches of rain fell in a short period of time around Alexander City. Numerous roads were flooded and had to be temporarily closed. Several homes and businesses sustained water damage. A dam was also severely damaged due to the volume of water.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
40,938
Population (ACS)
$159K
Median home value
20
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| May 5, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Jan 15, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | EM |
| Jul 10, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Tallapoosa County, Alabama?
421 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $120.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Tallapoosa County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 231 recorded events — 54.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Tallapoosa County?
47 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 35 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Tallapoosa County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Tallapoosa County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Tallapoosa County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Tallapoosa County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 67 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Tallapoosa 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
- Talladega County 514
- Tuscaloosa County 852
- Sumter County 333
- Walker County 637
- Shelby County 739
- Washington County 314
Cite this page
“Tallapoosa County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/tallapoosa-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.