213
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$808K
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Alabama: 213 recorded events between 1966 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 70. That places the county #934 nationally and #37 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Alabama: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Lee County is the 2020s, when 47 of the county's 213 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Lee County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 49.1% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #934 for this hazard and #37 within Alabama, putting it in the 70.2 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Lee County with 38 recorded events, while Sep is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 1998 | AUBURN | 55 | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Mar 7, 1996 | OPELIKA | 70 | 1 | 0 | $50K |
| Feb 7, 2017 | PEPPERELL | 55 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Feb 22, 1990 | 0 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 16, 2026 | J C MEADOWS XRDS | 50 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2026 | SMITHS | 50 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2026 | SMITHS | 52 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2026 | MOTTS | 50 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2026 | MITCHELL XRD | 50 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2026 | PEPPERELL | 50 | $0 |
| Jan 10, 2026 | SALEM | 50 | $0 |
| Jul 11, 2025 | MOTTS | 50 | $0 |
| Apr 11, 2025 | OPELIKA | 50 | $0 |
| Apr 11, 2025 | AUBURN | 50 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Lee County
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Trees and power lines were blown down at several locations across Lee County. A church roof sustained moderate damage, and a parking deck had minor roof damage. A large tree fell onto a county bucket truck, and damaged the county garage shop.
Thunderstorm winds damaged or uprooted 15 trees on the Auburn University campus, two trees falling on vehicles. Damage was also caused to a pavilion at the track, a window on the top floor of the Haley Center, and to windows in several vehicles.
A wind gust to 57 miles an hour was reported at the East Alabama Medical Center on their measuring equipment in Opelika. Trees were downed in scattered areas across the county. One tree fell and blocked a road for a short time on the Auburn University campus.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Lee County, Alabama?
213 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Lee County between 1966 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Lee County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Lee County measured 70.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Lee County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/lee-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.