Washington County, Georgia severe weather history spans 215 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 59.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,349 nationally and #73 in Georgia.
215
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
11
Direct injuries
$2.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Washington County, Georgia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Washington County, Georgia severe weather history averages 3.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 74 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 19 events fall before 1990 and 196 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $1.5M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Washington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 127 | 0 | $703K | 65 | 1965–2026 |
| Hail | 52 | 0 | $61K | 1.75 | 1980–2022 |
| Tornado | 23 | 0 | $1.5M | F2 | 1958–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 7 | 0 | $177K | 0 | 2013–2021 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $111K | 0 | 2000–2023 |
| Flood | 3 | 0 | $2K | 0 | 2008–2009 |
Decade by decade
Washington County, Georgia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
22 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 21 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989-10-01 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-01-04 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-04-13 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 14.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-03-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-03-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-03-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-01-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-01-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Washington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 14, 1975 | Tornado | 0 | 7 | $250K | |
| Jan 4, 2023 | Tornado | KAOLIN | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Mar 29, 1991 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| Apr 28, 1990 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| Jul 25, 1988 | 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
This tornado began along News Bridge Road destroying a building before moving over more rural sections and snapping hundreds of trees consisting of both softwoods and |hardwoods. The tornado was remarkably consistent in its track, producing EF1 damage between 95 and 100 mph nearly the entire path. Dozens of homes were damaged with a few destroyed from trees falling on them. The tornado near HJ lane pick up two |vehicles including a truck and displaced them 100 yards. Shortly before the tornado lifted, it crossed into Jefferson county where additional tree damage occurred. [04/13/20: Tornado #21, County #1/2, EF-1, Washington, 2020:027].
A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia confirmed that straight-line winds of 60 to 70 mph affected a one to two mile wide area south of an EF0 tornado that tracked across north central and east central Washington county. The strong winds caused moderate damage to several structures just north of Sandersville and Davisboro.
A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia, confirmed that an EF0 tornado touched down in north central Washington county, about four miles northeast of Sandersville, near the intersection of Georgia Highway 15 and Mayview Road. The tornado remained an EF0 as it tracked almost due eastward on a 33 mile long track through central Jefferson county and into far western Burke county before lifting. Within Washington county, the path length was approximately 11 miles with a maximum path width of 440 yards or 1/4 mile. Many structures sustained minor damage along the path of the tornado. A number of trees and several power lines were also blown down.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,849
Population (ACS)
$113K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 30, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 14, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MICHAEL | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Washington County, Georgia?
215 events are on record between 1958 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $2.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Washington County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 127 recorded events — 59.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Washington County?
22 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 21 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Washington County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Washington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Washington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Washington County as very low risk, placing it in the 24 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Washington County, Georgia 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
- Warren County 80
- Wayne County 322
- Ware County 303
- Webster County 75
- Walton County 433
- Wheeler County 89
Cite this page
“Washington County, Georgia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/georgia/washington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.