Baldwin County, Alabama severe weather history spans 897 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 39.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #211 nationally and #12 in Alabama.
897
Recorded events
20
Direct deaths
121
Direct injuries
$44.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Baldwin County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Baldwin County, Alabama severe weather history averages 11.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 230 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 123 events fall before 1990 and 774 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Baldwin County, Alabama record is rip current, responsible for 11 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $30.5M in reported property damage. In total, 11 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Baldwin County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 358 | 0 | $3.5M | 104 | 1959–2026 |
| Hail | 178 | 0 | $20K | 4 | 1955–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 125 | 1 | $30.5M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 116 | 0 | $9.8M | F3 | 1950–2025 |
| Lightning | 43 | 7 | $932K | 0 | 1996–2022 |
| Waterspout | 26 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2001 |
| Heavy Rain | 19 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 12 | 0 | $2K | 0 | 2000–2012 |
| Rip Current | 11 | 11 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2005 |
| Flood | 8 | 1 | $15K | 0 | 2013–2018 |
| Coastal Flood | 1 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 1999–1999 |
Decade by decade
Baldwin County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
115 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 110 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-10-13 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-11-03 | EF3 | 0 | 18 | 70.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-03-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-11-27 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2001-10-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-02-10 | EF2 | 0 | 62 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-04-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-02-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1972-11-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-09-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Baldwin County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 23, 2005 | Lightning | GULF SHRS | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 26, 2017 | Lightning | GULF SHRS | 1 | 5 | $0 |
| Apr 29, 2014 | Flash Flood | SPANISH FT | 1 | 1 | $27.0M |
| Sep 19, 1999 | Rip Current | GULF SHRS | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 30, 1996 | Rip Current | ORANGE BEACH | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2019 | Lightning | OAK | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 5, 2015 | Lightning | FT MORGAN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 2, 2014 | Flood | LILLIAN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A man and his stepson were trying to retrieve their beach belongings during a thunderstorm along the Gulf Shores beach. They were both struck and killed by a lightning bolt. They were on a weekend outing at the beach. The man's wife was watching them from a condo and observed the strike. Another of the mans stepsons was walking several yards in front of them and didn't even know the pair had been struck.
Lightning struck a 12 year old girl playing volleyball on Fort Morgan. There were 7 other near her that were affected by the closeness of the strike. However, only the girl was transported to the hospital. She passed away two days later from her injuries.
An eleven year old boy was struck and killed by lightning while watering his animals near Elberta. Witnesses said there was only one cloud in the sky and the sun was shining when the boy was hit. He was likely hit by the first strike from the storm. He had a water hose in his hand when he was struck.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
246,989
Population (ACS)
$317K
Median home value
38
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Sep 20, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | DR |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | EM |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 12, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MICHAEL | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Baldwin County, Alabama?
897 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 20 direct deaths and $44.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Baldwin County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 358 recorded events — 39.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Baldwin County?
115 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 110 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Baldwin County?
38 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Baldwin County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Baldwin County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Baldwin County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 97 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Baldwin County, Alabama 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
- Autauga County 371
- Barbour County 259
- Bibb County 276
- Blount County 564
- Bullock County 149
- Butler County 218
Cite this page
“Baldwin County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/baldwin-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.