Carter County, Tennessee severe weather history spans 183 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 60.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,539 nationally and #86 in Tennessee.
183
Recorded events
9
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$85.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Carter County, Tennessee severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Carter County, Tennessee severe weather history averages 2.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 65 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 12 events fall before 1990 and 171 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Carter County, Tennessee record is flash flood, responsible for 7 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $83.2M 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 Carter County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 111 | 2 | $704K | 74 | 1958–2025 |
| Hail | 31 | 0 | $56K | 2.75 | 1966–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 31 | 7 | $83.2M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Tornado | 4 | 0 | $220K | F1 | 1989–2011 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $1.5M | 0 | 2009–2021 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–1999 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2013–2013 |
Decade by decade
Carter County, Tennessee severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
4 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 4 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-05-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-06-03 | EF1 | 0 | 3 | 9.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-06-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-09 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Carter County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 8, 1998 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 7 | 0 | $20.0M |
| Jul 8, 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | DENNIS COVE | 2 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A married couple was killed by a falling tree at their campsite near the south shore of Watauga Lake. They were beside their tent under an awning they had arranged. Numerous trees were downed in the area. Victims included a male aged 60 and a female aged 47.
Heavy rain resulted in releases from Watauga Dam that began to flash flood garages and yards of riverside homes along Watauga Drive in Elizabethton around 10:30 am EST. Flash flooding flowing down the Doe River from the Roan Mountain vicinity began to flood homes and roads in the Valley Forge area around 11:25 am EST. Flooding of areas near the Doe River in Elizabethton began around 11:45 am EST when the stage exceeded 9.5 feet. Much of Elizabethton along either side of North Main and South Main Streets flooded as the Doe exceeded 10 feet. Billy Bob Garrison Field had as much as two feet of water. Homes and businesses flooded on North East Street (adjacent to North Main), where vehicles were moved and flipped by flood waters. At 1:50 pm EST, Sycamore Shoals Hospital on the west side of Elizabethton was evacuated. The Doe River and its flash flooding impacts peaked at 1:30 pm EST with a crest of 10.78 feet, and fell below 9.5 feet at 4 pm EST. The Watauga River crested at 13.57 feet at 2:15 pm EST, and flooding continued into the next day.
Heavy rain and water flowing from flooded streams caused mud slides and rock debris to wash across several roads in Valley Forge. County reports that 30 men worked non-stop for six days to clear debris off roadways and make them passable, again.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
56,712
Population (ACS)
$168K
Median home value
18
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 2, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM |
| Oct 2, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | DR |
| Sep 27, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM HELENE | EM |
| Apr 2, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Carter County, Tennessee?
183 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 9 direct deaths and $85.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Carter County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 111 recorded events — 60.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Carter County?
4 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 4 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Carter County?
18 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Carter County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Carter County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Carter County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 63 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Carter County, Tennessee 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
- Carroll County 330
- Cheatham County 299
- Cannon County 208
- Chester County 189
- Campbell County 279
- Claiborne County 289
Cite this page
“Carter County, Tennessee.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/tennessee/carter-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.