Live
Active alerts for this county
Heat Advisory
Stewart; Montgomery; Robertson; Sumner; Macon; Clay; Houston; Humphreys; Dickson; Cheatham; Davidson; Wilson; Trousdale; Smith; Jackson; Putnam; Overton; Perry; Hickman; Lewis; Williamson; Maury; Marshall; Rutherford; Cannon; De Kalb; White; Bedford; Coffee; Warren; Wayne; Lawrence; Giles
Cheatham County, Tennessee severe weather history spans 299 recorded events between 1960 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 55.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,788 nationally and #45 in Tennessee.
299
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$20.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Cheatham County, Tennessee severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cheatham County, Tennessee severe weather history averages 4.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 107 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 21 events fall before 1990 and 278 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Cheatham County, Tennessee record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $12.5M 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 Cheatham County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 167 | 0 | $1.5M | 78 | 1960–2026 |
| Hail | 56 | 0 | $105K | 4 | 1982–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 44 | 1 | $1.7M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 13 | 0 | $4.1M | F2 | 1972–2023 |
| Flood | 7 | 1 | $12.5M | 0 | 2010–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2016 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $500K | 0 | 2003–2016 |
Decade by decade
Cheatham County, Tennessee severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
15 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-04-27 | EF4 | 3 | 85 | 42.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-04-07 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 18.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-04 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 11.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2023-12-09 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 18.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-11 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 12.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-04-07 | EF2 | 0 | 15 | 23.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-01-30 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 3.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-03-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-03-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-05-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cheatham County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 2021 | Flood | SULPHUR SPGS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Feb 7, 2019 | Flash Flood | PEGRAM | 1 | 0 | $99K |
| Apr 18, 2002 | Heavy Rain | MARROWBONE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Dec 11, 2021 | Tornado | BELL TOWN | 0 | 1 | $1.5M |
| Jan 30, 2013 | Tornado | ASHLAND CITY | 0 | 1 | $200K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Cheatham County Emergency Management reported major flash flooding along Pond Creek Road near the Davidson County line, which was underwater and impassable in many locations. Around 955 pm CST, one woman was swept away and drowned after attempting to walk across a flooded bridge along the driveway to her home at 4660 Pond Creek Road. Another man was rescued from the hood of his vehicle at Green Valley Drive and Pond Creek Road after attempting to drive through flooding. Three other water rescues occurred across the county. Total damage was estimated at $99,432.
Locally heavy rains caused some creeks to swell. There was no flooding on any creeks or streams according to EMA officials. However, a 63 year old woman was swept away in her car while crossing a creek that partially covered a private road just off Big Marrowbone Road. She might have been unaware that the creek had risen to a depth of 3 feet, although she had crossed the creek earlier that afternoon. The creek was not out of its banks.
This EF-2 tornado touched down near Highway 70 between White Bluff and Kingston Springs, blowing down a few trees and causing roof damage to a few homes in Dickson County. Moving into Cheatham County while staying north of Highway 70, there was severe roof damage to homes on Sneed Road and dozens of trees were snapped. Many more homes and a few businesses and churches suffered roof damage and dozens of trees were blown down further to the east along Highway 70, Butterworth Road, and Old Butterworth Road. Several outbuildings collapsed, more homes and churches were damaged, and power poles blown down further eastward along Highway 70 and Cedar Hill Road. The tornado continued northeastward across rural areas of southeastern Cheatham County, blowing down more trees and damaging roofs and outbuildings along Sams Creek Road, Indian Springs Road and Pond Creek Road before the tornado lifted just east of the Davidson County line. The track of this tornado was adjusted using high resolution NASA satellite imagery. Total path length of this tornado was 12.61 miles.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
41,829
Population (ACS)
$339K
Median home value
25
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Jun 19, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 2, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM |
| Jun 17, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Dec 13, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND TORNADOES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cheatham County, Tennessee?
299 events are on record between 1960 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $20.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cheatham County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 167 recorded events — 55.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cheatham County?
15 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 10 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cheatham County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Cheatham County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Cheatham County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Cheatham County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 46 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cheatham 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
- Carter County 183
- Chester County 189
- Carroll County 330
- Claiborne County 289
- Cannon County 208
- Clay County 187
Cite this page
“Cheatham County, Tennessee.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/tennessee/cheatham-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.