Mobile County, Alabama severe weather history spans 1,121 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 42.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #96 nationally and #5 in Alabama.
1,121
Recorded events
6
Direct deaths
85
Direct injuries
$26.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Mobile County, Alabama severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Mobile County, Alabama severe weather history averages 14.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 282 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 227 events fall before 1990 and 894 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Mobile County, Alabama record is lightning, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $8.9M 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 Mobile County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 473 | 1 | $6.8M | 88 | 1957–2025 |
| Hail | 242 | 0 | $52K | 3.5 | 1959–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 173 | 0 | $8.9M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 127 | 1 | $7.1M | F3 | 1950–2026 |
| Lightning | 63 | 3 | $3.5M | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 12 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2023 |
| Waterspout | 11 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2000 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $20K | 0 | 2013–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2012 |
| Coastal Flood | 5 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 1999–1999 |
| Rip Current | 2 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2003 |
Decade by decade
Mobile County, Alabama severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
114 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 112 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-11-21 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1982-04-25 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-11-03 | EF3 | 0 | 18 | 70.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1950-04-18 | EF3 | 0 | 15 | 14.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-01-12 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-12-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-03-09 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-11-06 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-05-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-06-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Mobile County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26, 1996 | Tornado | GULF CREST | 1 | 3 | $100K |
| Jun 16, 2019 | Lightning | PRICHARD | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 17, 2003 | Rip Current | DAUPHIN IS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 7, 1998 | Lightning | MOBILE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 29, 1997 | Lightning | DAUPHIN IS | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Dec 31, 1985 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Apr 18, 1950 | Tornado | 0 | 15 | $25K | |
| Nov 3, 1968 | Tornado | 0 | 14 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A local male drowned while rescuing his two sons who got into trouble in rough water near the west end of Dauphin Island. The two kids were swimming when the current started carrying them out into the Gulf. The father jumped into the current and was able to get his two kids into shallow water but he collapsed and drowned. Rescuers were not able to resuscitate him.
Two males were fishing from a boat near the bayway in Mobile Bay in a fishing tournament. Thunderstorms had been moving through the area for several hours. Lightning hit one of the males and he died before reaching the hospital.
Two males were fishing in a wooden boat, when lightning struck and killed one occupant. The other occupant was not injured. They were fishing along the northern section of the island when the lightning struck. There were numerous storms in the area at the time.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
412,590
Population (ACS)
$191K
Median home value
40
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Jan 15, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Dec 10, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ZETA | DR |
| Sep 20, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | DR |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE SALLY | EM |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Mobile 137
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Mobile County, Alabama?
1,121 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 6 direct deaths and $26.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Mobile County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 473 recorded events — 42.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Mobile County?
114 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 112 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Mobile County?
40 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Mobile County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Mobile County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Mobile County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 98 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Mobile 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
- Marshall County 902
- Monroe County 295
- Marion County 518
- Montgomery County 519
- Marengo County 252
- Morgan County 1,097
Cite this page
“Mobile County, Alabama.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/alabama/mobile-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.