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Cleburne County, Alabama severe weather history spans 180 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 51.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,549 nationally and #62 in Alabama.
180
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
13
Direct injuries
$4.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Cleburne County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cleburne County, Alabama severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 69 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 25 events fall before 1990 and 155 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Cleburne County, Alabama record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $3.1M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Cleburne County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 93 | 0 | $628K | 70 | 1970–2026 |
| Hail | 50 | 0 | $513K | 4.25 | 1970–2024 |
| Tornado | 21 | 0 | $3.1M | F3 | 1957–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 11 | 1 | $349K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $118K | 0 | 2003–2003 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2013 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Cleburne County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
21 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973-05-27 | EF4 | 7 | 199 | 139.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2018-03-19 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 35.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-04-28 | EF3 | 0 | 10 | 15.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-02 | EF2 | 1 | 6 | 1.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-04-03 | EF2 | 1 | 20 | 65.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-08-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-05-03 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 13.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1984-05-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-05-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-05-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cleburne County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 3, 2025 | Flash Flood | RANBURNE | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 28, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 8 | $25K | |
| May 8, 2003 | Flash Flood | HEFLIN | 0 | 1 | $8K |
| Nov 22, 1992 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| Feb 10, 1990 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| Jan 11, 1975 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
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 along the Talladega Scenic Drive just south of US Highway 78. It then moved along a slightly curved path until it crossed CR-79, and then tracked almost due east as it produced its most concentrated damage near SR-9. The tornado lifted near the end of Brockford Road in the vicinity of Shadow Lane, on the east side of the city of Heflin. Hundreds of trees were either snapped off or uprooted along the path. Eight homes were destroyed, and more than 40 others received significant damage.
Thirty to forty roads were flooded and impassable for at least 10 hours. The hardest hit areas were along the Cleburne and Randolph County line in extreme southern Cleburne County. A mudslide occurred on SR 9 near Heflin.
Numerous trees and power lines were blown down across the northern portion of the county. At least 10 buildings had roof damage due to downed trees, and at least 3 buildings had roofs completely blown off. Several mobile homes in a mobile home park suffered varying degrees of damage to underpinning, roofs, and structure.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
15,426
Population (ACS)
$166K
Median home value
22
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | EM |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 11, 2017 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IRMA | EM |
| Jan 21, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cleburne County, Alabama?
180 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $4.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cleburne County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 93 recorded events — 51.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cleburne County?
21 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 16 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cleburne County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Cleburne County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Cleburne County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Cleburne County as very low risk, placing it in the 27 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cleburne 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
- Clay County 246
- Coffee County 594
- Clarke County 555
- Colbert County 1,364
- Choctaw County 327
- Conecuh County 206
Cite this page
“Cleburne County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/cleburne-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.