45
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$4.8M
Property damage
Tornado in Suwannee County, Florida: 45 recorded events between 1954 and 2020. The strongest on record measured F2. That places the county #479 nationally and #32 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Suwannee County, Florida: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Suwannee County is the 1970s, when 16 of the county's 45 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 Suwannee County archive, tornado makes up 10.4% of all recorded severe weather across 9 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #479 for this hazard and #32 within Florida, putting it in the 83.2 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for tornado in Suwannee County with 9 recorded events, while Oct 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.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
| Date | Scale | Path length | Max width | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-03-13 | EF2 | 3.5 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1998-09-29 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1975-02-06 | EF2 | 22.9 mi | 100 yd | Crossed in |
| 1972-12-21 | EF2 | 12.2 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1965-06-15 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1954-06-10 | EF2 | 2.0 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 2015-04-19 | EF1 | 3.6 mi | 60 yd | Touched down here |
| 2009-03-31 | EF1 | 2.2 mi | 200 yd | Touched down here |
| 1983-12-28 | EF1 | 3.0 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
| 1983-12-28 | EF1 | 3.0 mi | 30 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 30, 1998 | LIVE OAK | F2 | 0 | 5 | $600K |
| Jun 10, 1954 | F2 | 0 | 1 | $25K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 2020 | LIVE OAK SUWANE ARPT | EF0 | $0 |
| Mar 31, 2020 | PINE MOUNT | EF0 | $0 |
| Jan 7, 2017 | LIVE OAK SUWANE ARPT | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 19, 2015 | LANCASTER | EF1 | $0 |
| Jun 6, 2013 | SUWANNEE SPGS | EF0 | $0 |
| Apr 1, 2009 | ELLAVILLE | EF1 | $750K |
| Apr 28, 2008 | LIVE OAK SUWANE ARPT | EF0 | $0 |
| Mar 7, 2008 | WELLBORN | EF0 | $0 |
| Mar 2, 2007 | WELLBORN | EF0 | $10K |
| Jul 10, 2005 | LIVE OAK | F0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Suwannee County
- Thunderstorm Wind 244
- Hail 63
- Heavy Rain 51
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The tornado touched down as an EF-0 in an open field just east of the Suwannee River and south of the Progress Energy power plant. It increased to intensity becoming a low end EF-1 tornado several hundred feet down track where it impacted several farm buildings and mobile homes. Several small farm structures were destroyed and winds here we estimated to be between 86 and 90 mph. The tornado continued moving northeastward as an EF-0 snapping trees along its path near the entrance to the Suwannee River State Park and along Stagecoach Road. It then went through a wooded area emerging along West Tower Road where it began the occlusion process. The rear flank downdraft heavily damaged two chicken houses with a loss of about a quarter million dollars. At this point the tornado took a northward turn toward the Jenkins Farm house destroying a large work shed with heavy machinery and damaging the home. The tornado was rated as an EF-1 here with winds of 95 to 100 mph. Debris from the shed was strewn across the field north of the Jenkins Farm house to Stagecoach Road.
An EF0 tornado with peak winds near 75 mph touched down near the Farmer's Coop in Live Oak. The tornado tracked NE with spotty damage (lifting up and touching back down) before finally lifting on the NE side of town south of the WalMart near I-10 along Highway 129. The tornado damaged three buildings near Goldkist Blvd and partially peeled back the roof of the Farmer's Coop Building. Additional wind damage occurred near Ferry Road and Houston Ave. Chicken houses were damaged.
Storm survey by county EM team indicated a brief EF0 tornado that touchdown near the intersection of 96th Place and 147th Road, with damage extending east along 96th Place before the circulation dissipated. Max winds were estimated near 80 mph. Several properties had damage including roof damage, extensive tree damage and other structural damage.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Suwannee County, Florida?
45 tornado events are recorded in Suwannee County between 1954 and 2020, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Suwannee County?
The strongest tornado on record in Suwannee County measured F2.
Where does the tornado data for Suwannee 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
“Tornado in Suwannee County, Florida.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/florida/suwannee-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.