Covington County, Alabama severe weather history spans 431 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 54.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,133 nationally and #34 in Alabama.
431
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
25
Direct injuries
$20.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Covington County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Covington County, Alabama severe weather history averages 6.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 117 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 65 events fall before 1990 and 366 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Covington County, Alabama record is lightning, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $9.3M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Covington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 235 | 0 | $1.4M | 85 | 1962–2026 |
| Hail | 111 | 0 | $21K | 4 | 1956–2025 |
| Tornado | 49 | 2 | $9.3M | F3 | 1956–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 19 | 0 | $6.0M | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Lightning | 10 | 3 | $88K | 0 | 1998–2015 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2012 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2020–2023 |
| Flood | 1 | 0 | $3.2M | 0 | 2015–2015 |
Decade by decade
Covington County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
50 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 45 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 23.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-02-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 14.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2006-11-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-12-28 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 15.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-07-11 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 7.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-01-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-06-28 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 11.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2001-03-12 | EF1 | 2 | 1 | 3.2 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Covington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 12, 2001 | Tornado | RED LEVEL | 2 | 1 | $1.0M |
| Jun 24, 2015 | Lightning | OPP | 2 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 8, 2004 | Lightning | FLORALA | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Feb 22, 1990 | Tornado | 0 | 10 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 11, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250 | |
| Apr 20, 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | GANTT | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| Jun 28, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| May 3, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A 71 year old male was standing in a carport during a thunderstorm. Lightning struck a tree near the carport and then the bolt hit the man in the chest while he was standing underneath the metal carport. The male was not found for a couple of hours and was already dead when help arrived.
The tornado continued east from extreme southeastern Conecuh County, Alabama. The tornado snapped or uprooted trees along a 150 yard wide path, producing damage to several homes, outbuildings and structures adjacent to Brooklyn Road. Several homes had significant roof damage with some having trees blown over onto them. The tornado crossed U.S. Highway 29 at County Road 56 then lifted as it moved across the Covington County Arena area producing roof damage to the Kiwanis Building.
The tornado first touched down near Hillcrest Ponds around the junction of county roads 34 and 45, then moved northeast, before lifting back into the clouds near county road 70 just west of Friendship. Considerable damage occurred along the path of the tornado. The first residence hit had two large grain silos torn from their foundations. One was thrown roughly 15 yards, the other about 150 yards across the road and into a nearby pasture. Another home sustained considerable damage when an outbuilding was lifted by the tornado and thrown into the home. Several other homes along the path of the tornado suffered roof damage. The most significant and widespread damage along the path of the tornado occurred near Opine, where up to six commercial poultry farm buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged. Approximately 130,000 chickens were killed.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
37,628
Population (ACS)
$152K
Median home value
33
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 |
| Jul 10, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| May 21, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Andalusia 101
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Covington County, Alabama?
431 events are on record between 1956 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $20.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Covington County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 235 recorded events — 54.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Covington County?
50 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 45 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Covington County?
33 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Covington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Covington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Covington County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 82 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Covington 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
- Coosa County 171
- Crenshaw County 248
- Conecuh County 206
- Cullman County 1,074
- Colbert County 1,364
- Dale County 601
Cite this page
“Covington County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/covington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.