Oglethorpe County, Georgia severe weather history spans 154 recorded events between 1963 and 2024. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 69.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,684 nationally and #122 in Georgia.
154
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$256.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Oglethorpe County, Georgia severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Oglethorpe County, Georgia severe weather history averages 2.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 41 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 27 events fall before 1990 and 127 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $255.4M 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 Oglethorpe County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 107 | 0 | $987K | 65 | 1963–2024 |
| Hail | 33 | 0 | $5K | 3 | 1967–2019 |
| Tornado | 7 | 0 | $255.4M | F2 | 1966–2021 |
| Flash Flood | 3 | 0 | $151K | 0 | 2015–2017 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2011 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2005–2005 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2014 |
Decade by decade
Oglethorpe County, Georgia severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 5 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994-08-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-02-13 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 6.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-04-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-04-13 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 26.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-05-03 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1983-12-03 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Oglethorpe County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28, 1984 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Feb 13, 1966 | 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
A tornado touched and completely leveled a two-story, 2,500 square-foot wood-frame house, along Georgia Highway 22. The tornado moved northwest and destroyed 3 broiler houses, 2 chicken houses and killed 30,000 chickens approximately 0.25 mile from the leveled home. Several pecan trees were uprooted before the tornado lifted and dissipated. Most of the tornado damage occurred during the first 0.25 mile of its path. Total property damage was estimated at $700,000.
The Oglethorpe County Emergency Manager reported a dam failed on a farm pond which flooded Centerville Road near Georgia Highway 77. A vehicle plunged into a flooded creek off of Arnold Caldwell Road. A swift water rescue was necessary to help the driver to safety. A few roads and culverts in the same area were either damaged or washed out due to flooded streams.
A National Weather Service survey determined that an EF0 tornado with maximum winds of 80 MPH and a maximum path width of 200 yards touched down along Robert Hardeman Road on the Clarke/Oglethorpe county line just south of Winterville. The tornado travelled east, snapping and uprooting several trees from Robert Hardeman Road across W. Beaverdam Road to just past Arnoldsville Road. Along Tim Lane, a roof was blown off a small barn. The tornado ended just south of Hargrove Lake Road where just a few larger tree limbs were seen snapped. [5/3/21: Tornado #5, County #1/1, EF-0, Oglethorpe, 2021:013].
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
15,509
Population (ACS)
$232K
Median home value
15
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 |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 10, 2018 | Hurricane | HURRICANE MICHAEL | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Oglethorpe County, Georgia?
154 events are on record between 1963 and 2024, causing 0 direct deaths and $256.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Oglethorpe County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 107 recorded events — 69.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Oglethorpe County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 5 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Oglethorpe County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Oglethorpe County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Oglethorpe County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Oglethorpe County as very low risk, placing it in the 8 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Oglethorpe 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
- Oconee County 180
- Paulding County 351
- Newton County 232
- Peach County 162
- Muscogee County 348
- Pickens County 204
Cite this page
“Oglethorpe County, Georgia.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/georgia/oglethorpe-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.