Franklin County, Georgia severe weather history spans 189 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 64.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,505 nationally and #95 in Georgia.
189
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$2.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Franklin County, Georgia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Franklin County, Georgia severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 64 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 26 events fall before 1990 and 163 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Franklin County, Georgia record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $1.9M 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 Franklin County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 122 | 0 | $173K | 60 | 1968–2026 |
| Hail | 41 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1974–2025 |
| Tornado | 13 | 1 | $1.9M | F2 | 1952–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 8 | 0 | $35K | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2005 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2015–2015 |
Decade by decade
Franklin County, Georgia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
13 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 13 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-09-16 | EF2 | 1 | 1 | 5.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-04-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-09-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1970-04-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-02-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-09-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-05-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-05-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-07-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-07-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Franklin County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16, 2004 | Tornado | FRANKLIN SPGS | 1 | 1 | $75K |
| Apr 6, 1985 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| May 6, 1999 | Lightning | CANON | 0 | 1 | $0 |
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 west of Franklin Springs, then moved north-northwest, damaging several homes, businesses, and vehicles as it tracked toward Carnesville. Numerous trees and power lines were also blown down. A 38-year-old woman was killed when the vehicle she was driving was hit by a falling tree. A passenger in the vehicle received minor injuries.
This tornado moved north across the town of Franklin Springs, damaging or destroying numerous structures along its 3-mile path. The city government building and the fire and police stations incurred significant damage, as did approximately 25 residences. Several large chicken houses were also destroyed.
County comms reported numerous trees and power lines blown down across Franklin County. The hardest hit area was the Gumlog community, where some structural damage occurred, mainly due to trees and large limbs falling on structures.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
24,234
Population (ACS)
$179K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 30, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Sep 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | HURRICANE HELENE | EM |
| Jan 12, 2021 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORM ZETA | DR |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Franklin County, Georgia?
189 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $2.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Franklin County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 122 recorded events — 64.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Franklin County?
13 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 13 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Franklin County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Franklin County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Franklin County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Franklin County as very low risk, placing it in the 33 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Franklin 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
- Forsyth County 341
- Fulton County 902
- Floyd County 512
- Gilmer County 240
- Fayette County 395
- Glascock County 43
Cite this page
“Franklin County, Georgia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/georgia/franklin-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.