93
Recorded events
11
Direct deaths
84
Direct injuries
$54.4M
Property damage
Tornado in Smith County, Mississippi: 93 recorded events between 1951 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #70 nationally and #3 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Smith County, Mississippi: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Smith County is the 2000s, when 24 of the county's 93 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 Smith County archive, tornado makes up 15.2% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #70 for this hazard and #3 within Mississippi, putting it in the 97.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Apr is the peak month for tornado in Smith County with 24 recorded events, while Jul 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-01-23 | EF4 | 117.8 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-27 | EF4 | 122.0 mi | 1,050 yd | Touched down here |
| 1992-11-22 | EF4 | 40.0 mi | 1,760 yd | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-29 | EF4 | 126.5 mi | 880 yd | Crossed in |
| 1994-11-27 | EF3 | 40.0 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 1957-04-04 | EF3 | 40.2 mi | 167 yd | Crossed in |
| 2020-04-12 | EF3 | 83.2 mi | 2,041 yd | Crossed in |
| 2019-12-16 | EF3 | 18.6 mi | 1,320 yd | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-27 | EF3 | 8.9 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 2009-03-26 | EF3 | 17.4 mi | 500 yd | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 1969 | F4 | 9 | 35 | $250K | |
| Apr 4, 1957 | F3 | 1 | 25 | $0 | |
| Apr 27, 2011 | RALEIGH | EF3 | 1 | 0 | $500K |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F4 | 0 | 15 | $25.0M | |
| Nov 24, 2004 | RALEIGH | F2 | 0 | 2 | $3.5M |
| Nov 18, 2003 | COHAY | F1 | 0 | 2 | $400K |
| Dec 29, 1954 | F1 | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Mar 7, 1995 | Raleigh to | F1 | 0 | 1 | $250K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 6, 2025 | SUMMERLAND | EF1 | $15K |
| Apr 6, 2025 | RALEIGH | EF2 | $1.2M |
| Mar 15, 2025 | TAYLORSVILLE | EF2 | $0 |
| Jan 6, 2025 | COHAY | EF1 | $70K |
| Dec 29, 2024 | BURNS | EF1 | $200K |
| Dec 29, 2024 | RALEIGH | EF0 | $3K |
| Dec 29, 2024 | MIZE | EF1 | $30K |
| Dec 10, 2023 | TRAXLER | EF0 | $20K |
| Nov 21, 2023 | CENTER RIDGE | EF1 | $500K |
| Jun 19, 2023 | PINEVILLE | EF0 | $25K |
Other hazards here
More from Smith County
- Thunderstorm Wind 347
- Hail 123
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado touched down just south of Raleigh on State Highway 35 and tracked northeast to the Jasper Smith county line, 7 miles northeast of Sylvarena, where it then moved into Jasper county. Along its path it uprooted and destroyed a few thousand trees. Thirteen chicken houses were destroyed and six others were damaged. Three mobile homes and one residential home were destroyed along with five other homes sustaining major damage. Two people were injured when a mobile home was blown off its foundation and destroyed 10 miles northeast of Raleigh. At 210 AM the strong tornado moved into northwest Jasper county. The total path length of this tornado was 38 miles across Smith, Jasper and Newton counties.
This tornado touched down along Highway 18, 5 miles east of Raleigh, and tracked northeast for 16 miles before moving into southwest Scott county. The most significant damaged occurred about 2 miles north of Highway 18 where six chicken houses were destroyed and another 3 were damaged. The tornado continued northeast along Boykin Church Road and into the Oakahay Creek bottom. Several hundred trees were uprooted and snapped between Highway 18 and 35. The tornado then crossed Highway 35 near the Lemon community. Here, three homes sustained minor roof damage and numerous trees and power lines were torn down. Continuing northeast, the tornado moved mainly through the Leaf River bottom before tracking across Highway 501 at the Scott/Smith county line. The total path length was 19 miles across Smith and Scott counties.
This tornado started west southwest of Raleigh along county road 516 near Highway 540. The tornado tracked northeast downing numerous trees and power lines along the path. At its widest point the tornado produced substantial damage to a brick home…removing half of the roof and severely damaging the remaining half. The walls of the home fell in the section of the house where the roof was removed. Several other houses received minor to moderate roof damage. Numerous sheds and small barns were destroyed or damaged. Tin roofing and siding was removed from a storage shed…some of which became projectiles that were forced through the walls of a wood frame house. A mobile home was blown off its foundation. Widespread tree damage also occurred. Maximum winds were around 125 mph.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Smith County, Mississippi?
93 tornado events are recorded in Smith County between 1951 and 2025, causing 11 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Smith County?
The strongest tornado on record in Smith County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Smith 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 Smith County, Mississippi.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/mississippi/smith-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.