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Marion County, Mississippi severe weather history spans 489 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 42.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #912 nationally and #26 in Mississippi.
489
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
66
Direct injuries
$88.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Marion County, Mississippi severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Marion County, Mississippi severe weather history averages 6.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 176 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 58 events fall before 1990 and 431 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Marion County, Mississippi record is tornado, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $31.3M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Marion County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 206 | 0 | $3.1M | 96 | 1970–2025 |
| Hail | 138 | 0 | $28.2M | 4 | 1968–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 83 | 0 | $25.6M | 0 | 1997–2026 |
| Tornado | 54 | 4 | $31.3M | F3 | 1950–2026 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $342K | 0 | 2001–2017 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2012–2018 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2021–2021 |
Decade by decade
Marion County, Mississippi severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
54 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 42 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-03-15 | EF4 | 6 | 6 | 67.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-04-12 | EF4 | 4 | 3 | 22.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-04-19 | EF4 | 1 | 1 | 53.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2014-12-23 | EF3 | 3 | 50 | 12.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-15 | EF3 | 1 | 2 | 26.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-12-10 | EF3 | 0 | 5 | 19.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-15 | EF2 | 1 | 1 | 18.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-11-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-12-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Marion County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 23, 2014 | Tornado | COLUMBIA | 3 | 50 | $25.0M |
| Apr 20, 2020 | Tornado | ST PAUL | 1 | 0 | $400K |
| Dec 10, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $25K | |
| Feb 20, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $25K | |
| Mar 15, 2025 | Tornado | KOKOMO | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| Jan 17, 2012 | Tornado | PINEBUR | 0 | 2 | $250K |
| Nov 18, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Jun 18, 1988 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado first touched down just east of the Pearl River just south of Columbia. It quickly became strong and moved northeast impacting the southeast side of Columbia. The tornado remained on the ground through Marion County before lifting as it approached the Lamar County line. Numerous businesses, homes, mobile homes, a National Guard building and power poles and lines were heavily damaged or destroyed by the tornado. One well-built home was mostly destroyed and nearly reduced to a slab. This home received the highest damage rating. Extensive tree damage also occurred along the path of the storm. Maximum wind speed of this tornado was 165mph.
Over six inches of rain fell in Columbia in a three hour period and eight and a quarter inches fell in a 24 hour period. Water entered thirty businesses in Columbia. Twevle of the business suffered major damage. Eight homes also suffered flood damage. Many roads were washed out and had to be closed.Numerous cars were under water.
A slow moving cluster of thunderstorms dumped 4 to 6 inches in rain across central Marion county causing the worst flooding in 10 years in and around Columbia. All the rain fell in 1 to 2 hours which flooded nearly all the streets in Downtown Columbia and several surrounding roads. Around 40 businesses suffered either minor or major flooding as 1 to 4 feet of water impacted those buildings. A tremendous amount of merchandise was damaged, varying from books to wood furniture, by the flood water. In addition to the businesses, nearly a dozen homes were flooded around town as well.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
24,193
Population (ACS)
$123K
Median home value
37
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| May 21, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 22, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | DR |
| Aug 28, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | EM |
| Oct 8, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE DELTA | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Columbia 230
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Marion County, Mississippi?
489 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 4 direct deaths and $88.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Marion County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 206 recorded events — 42.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Marion County?
54 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 42 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Marion County?
37 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Marion County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Marion County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Marion County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 60 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Marion 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
- Madison County 816
- Marshall County 268
- Lowndes County 628
- Monroe County 468
- Lincoln County 578
- Montgomery County 277
Cite this page
“Marion County, Mississippi.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/mississippi/marion-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.