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Lafayette County, Mississippi severe weather history spans 366 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 51.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,400 nationally and #41 in Mississippi.
366
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
35
Direct injuries
$66.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Lafayette County, Mississippi severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Lafayette County, Mississippi severe weather history averages 4.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 101 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 76 events fall before 1990 and 290 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Lafayette County, Mississippi record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $62.6M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Lafayette County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 188 | 1 | $1.2M | 80 | 1964–2026 |
| Hail | 113 | 0 | $40K | 5 | 1962–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 27 | 0 | $1.5M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Tornado | 25 | 1 | $62.6M | F3 | 1952–2025 |
| Lightning | 11 | 0 | $680K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2001–2018 |
Decade by decade
Lafayette County, Mississippi severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
26 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 21 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971-02-21 | EF4 | 58 | 795 | 202.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-27 | EF3 | 0 | 8 | 13.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-02-05 | EF3 | 0 | 14 | 7.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-01-03 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 43.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1997-03-01 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1997-03-01 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-02-22 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 26.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-05-02 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 1.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-04-05 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 39.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Lafayette County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 20, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | OXFORD | 1 | 2 | $10K |
| May 2, 2010 | Tornado | ABBEVILLE | 1 | 0 | $250K |
| Feb 5, 2008 | Tornado | COLLEGE HILL STATION | 0 | 14 | $35.0M |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Tornado | SPRINGDALE | 0 | 8 | $1.5M |
| Jan 3, 2000 | Tornado | PARIS | 0 | 3 | $100K |
| Apr 21, 1984 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $25.0M | |
| Apr 25, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Feb 23, 1975 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $3K |
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 just southwest of Abbeville and tracked northeast hitting the south side of Abbeville. The tornado lifted along County Road 215. One fatality occurred when a single family home was destroyed. A double wide mobile home was also destroyed. Three other homes sustained major damage. Numerous trees were also uprooted along the path.
A tornado touched down along County Road 378, east-southeast of Springdale, and moved northeast. The most concentrated area of damage was in the Pine Flat community. A number of homes and mobile homes were damaged or destroyed. Numerous trees and power lines were knocked down as well. Damage occurred on County Roads 415, 369, and 469. The tornado lifted just north of Highway 278 along County Road 213. Eight injuries occurred from the tornado.
Showers and thunderstorms trained over Oxford for a couple of hours producing very heavy rain. Major flash flooding occurred as a result. Numerous streets had at least six inches of water covering them with others flooded up to three feet. Three homes were flooded on Chandler Avenue and one home was flooded on South 18th Street. The homes had anywhere from a few inches up to a foot of water inside them. Cars and apartments were flooded along Highway 314 near the Oxford Airport.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
58,327
Population (ACS)
$315K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Oct 22, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | DR |
| Aug 28, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | EM |
| May 4, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Apr 16, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Oxford 150
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Lafayette County, Mississippi?
366 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $66.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Lafayette County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 188 recorded events — 51.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Lafayette County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 21 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Lafayette County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Lafayette County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Lafayette County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Lafayette County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 64 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Lafayette County, Mississippi 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
- Kemper County 343
- Lamar County 590
- Jones County 950
- Lauderdale County 896
- Jefferson Davis County 424
- Lawrence County 423
Cite this page
“Lafayette County, Mississippi.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/mississippi/lafayette-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.