Coffee County, Georgia severe weather history spans 381 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 68.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,330 nationally and #29 in Georgia.
381
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
42
Direct injuries
$6.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Coffee County, Georgia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Coffee County, Georgia severe weather history averages 5.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 121 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 32 events fall before 1990 and 349 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $6.2M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Coffee County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 261 | 0 | $552K | 60 | 1962–2026 |
| Hail | 55 | 0 | $0 | 2.75 | 1980–2024 |
| Tornado | 28 | 0 | $6.2M | F2 | 1955–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 12 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2008–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 6 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 1998–2016 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2025 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2012–2012 |
| Winter Storm | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2025–2025 |
Decade by decade
Coffee County, Georgia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
32 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 8 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-04-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-11-12 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 3.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-06-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-05-12 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-01-05 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 3.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-04-18 | EF2 | 0 | 30 | 217.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1961-04-12 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 20.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-08 | EF1 | 1 | 7 | 92.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-01-09 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-01-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Coffee County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 18, 1969 | Tornado | 0 | 28 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 28, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | DOUGLAS | 0 | 6 | $250K |
| Nov 12, 2002 | Tornado | DOUGLAS | 0 | 2 | $500K |
| Feb 8, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Jul 2, 2012 | Lightning | NICHOLLS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 7, 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | PRIDGEN | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jan 5, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K | |
| Apr 2, 1955 | 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
Numerous reports of trees and powerlines down and property damage occurred in the Douglas, GA area. A carport was destroyed along Sinkhole Rd. Trees fell onto a couple of mobile homes along Bear Creek Rd destroying their roofs. The siding was blown off of mobile home along Worth Lane. Time estimated from radar.
A photographer posted photos of a likely downburst on Monday afternoon along U.S. Highway 441 between Pridgen and Broxton in Coffee County, GA. Large chicken houses had their metal roofs peeled off and the structures were destroyed along Lindsey Merritt Rd. The roof of a barn was lifted off the structure and destroyed near US 441 and Ernest Pridgen Rd. A tree fell on a home causing roof damage and leaks along Arthur Pridgen Rd. Multiple large trees were snapped and a tobacco field was destroyed near Solomon Rd and Old River Rd. The time of damage was based on radar data, and the cost of damage was unknown but estimated for inclusion of the event in Storm Data.
The tornado tracked over west central Coffee county across the rural outskirts west of Douglas by a short-lived supercell thunderstorm. There was damage to house siding, shallow rooted pine trees were pushed over, large branches were broken off trees, minor roof damage occurred, and loss of wood and metal panels occurred to small farm outbuildings. The cost of damage was unknown, but estimated for Storm Data.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
43,347
Population (ACS)
$129K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 30, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Sep 24, 2024 | Tropical Storm | TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | DR |
| Aug 5, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE DEBBY | EM |
| Sep 7, 2023 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDALIA | DR |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Douglas 106
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Coffee County, Georgia?
381 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $6.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Coffee County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 261 recorded events — 68.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Coffee County?
32 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 24 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Coffee County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Coffee County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Coffee County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Coffee County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 60 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Coffee County, Georgia 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
- Cobb County 608
- Colquitt County 349
- Clinch County 247
- Columbia County 384
- Clayton County 269
- Cook County 147
Cite this page
“Coffee County, Georgia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/georgia/coffee-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.