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Fentress County, Tennessee severe weather history spans 298 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 55.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,795 nationally and #48 in Tennessee.
298
Recorded events
9
Direct deaths
163
Direct injuries
$11.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Fentress County, Tennessee severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Fentress County, Tennessee severe weather history averages 4.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 111 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 16 events fall before 1990 and 282 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Fentress County, Tennessee record is tornado, responsible for 7 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $5.0M 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 Fentress County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 166 | 0 | $1.3M | 76 | 1971–2026 |
| Hail | 59 | 0 | $51K | 2.5 | 1993–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 29 | 0 | $310K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Tornado | 20 | 7 | $4.7M | F4 | 1956–2025 |
| Lightning | 11 | 2 | $333K | 0 | 2002–2017 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $5.0M | 0 | 1998–2021 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2011 |
Decade by decade
Fentress County, Tennessee severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
21 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 18 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-04-03 | EF4 | 7 | 150 | 18.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-03 | EF4 | 5 | 6 | 11.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-02-06 | EF2 | 2 | 3 | 21.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-03 | EF2 | 0 | 11 | 27.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1972-05-14 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-04-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-11-18 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 13.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2023-06-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 11.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-06-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-06-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Fentress County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 1974 | Tornado | 7 | 150 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 1, 2005 | Lightning | ALLARDT | 1 | 3 | $10K |
| Aug 13, 2005 | Lightning | JAMESTOWN | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| May 15, 1972 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $25K | |
| Nov 18, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Feb 18, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Jul 25, 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | PALL MALL | 0 | 1 | $1K |
| Mar 23, 1991 | 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
Mr. Terry Binion, a 38-year-old Hartsville resident, was struck and killed by lightning while riding a horse at the East Fork Stables in Allardt. He was riding with his wife, son, and 2 friends. The lightning bolt struck a tree, then bounced off the tree hitting the man and hitting his 2 friends, Kelly Overton and Kyle Deering. Mr. Binion and his horse died at the scene. Mrs. Binion, Overton and Deering were treated and released from Jamestown Regional Medical Center. Overton's horse also died. The damage on the tree by the lightning was about 2 inches wide and 20 feet down.
A husband and wife were mule riding. A thunderstorm developed so they took cover underneath a 200 foot tree. The lightning struck the tree, went down through the tree, hit the ground and hit a 67-year-old female standing underneath the tree. The lightning bolt killed the 2 mules and injured her husband.
South Main Street was covered in about a foot of water near York High School. A tree was also reported down on State Highway 52 West.||Newspapers reported that considerable flooding occurred in some areas of the county, causing considerable damage to several roads, including the complete washout of West Cave Road, State Highway 154, at the intersection at the intersection of State Highway 52 west of Jamestown. The heavy rainfall was also responsible for washing out a water line on Glenobey Road.||All this damage was the result of more than 5 inches of rain falling in less than 4 hours in some parts of the county.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,309
Population (ACS)
$168K
Median home value
24
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 |
| May 17, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADO | DR |
| May 8, 2021 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 21, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Jamestown 100
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Fentress County, Tennessee?
298 events are on record between 1956 and 2026, causing 9 direct deaths and $11.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Fentress County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 166 recorded events — 55.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Fentress County?
21 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 18 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Fentress County?
24 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Fentress County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Fentress County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Fentress County as very low risk, placing it in the 28 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Fentress 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
- Fayette County 356
- Franklin County 449
- Dyer County 263
- Gibson County 399
- Dickson County 484
- Giles County 327
Cite this page
“Fentress County, Tennessee.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/tennessee/fentress-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.