Perry County, Mississippi severe weather history spans 211 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 49.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,379 nationally and #69 in Mississippi.
211
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
24
Direct injuries
$4.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Perry County, Mississippi severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Perry County, Mississippi severe weather history averages 3.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 63 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 16 events fall before 1990 and 195 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Perry County, Mississippi record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $2.0M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Perry County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 105 | 0 | $1.3M | 80 | 1971–2023 |
| Hail | 46 | 0 | $17K | 2.75 | 1975–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 34 | 0 | $2.0M | 0 | 1998–2022 |
| Tornado | 23 | 2 | $1.1M | F3 | 1958–2026 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2016 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $60K | 0 | 2015–2015 |
Decade by decade
Perry County, Mississippi severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
24 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 18 touched down inside it and 6 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 | EF4 | 1 | 1 | 53.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-02-10 | EF4 | 0 | 71 | 21.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-01-21 | EF3 | 4 | 57 | 31.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1958-02-26 | EF3 | 4 | 20 | 29.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1982-05-07 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 13.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2022-04-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-03-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2022-03-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-12-25 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 28.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1996-02-19 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 18.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Perry County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 27, 1958 | Tornado | 2 | 20 | $250K | |
| Jun 1, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Jan 21, 2017 | Tornado | TALLAHALA | 0 | 1 | $160K |
| May 7, 1975 | 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
Significant flash flooding occurred in the northeast part of Perry County, particularly in the town of Richton. In Richton, a dozen businesses were flooded. Water was knee deep in some businesses. At the height of the flash flooding, 15 people were rescued from a low lying apartment complex in Richton. In total for Perry County, over a dozen homes experienced major flood damage. Numerous roads were flooded and closed. One public road was destroyed by the flash flooding with 5 other roads experiencing major damage. Twelve other roads had minor flood damage.||Perry County EMA estimates damages of $300,000 to residences and business and $1.5 million in infrastructure damage.
A line of severe thunderstorms moved through the county between 950 pm and 1030 pm. The storms moved from west to east and blew down trees and power lines across the county. The most damage occurred along State Highway 42 leading into Richton from the west. In Richton several businesses were damaged or destroyed in the downtown area. The fire station had most of its roof and the west side of its building blown in. The police station suffered damage and a floral shop in the same area was heavily damaged. A car wash and a small barber shop were also destroyed. All the damage appeared to be caused by straight line winds. It appeared the winds were funnelled into the downtown area from the west as the line of storms moved through. No injuries were reported.
A large bow echo moved across the north part of Perry County. Several trees and powerlines were blown down northwest of Richton. Several manufactured homes were damaged with one turned over. One wood frame house was also damaged. No injuries. This area still had unrepaired damage from Hurricane Katrina that hit in August of 2005.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
11,449
Population (ACS)
$124K
Median home value
32
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Aug 12, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES. | DR |
| Oct 22, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | DR |
| Aug 28, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | EM |
| Dec 31, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE ZETA | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Perry County, Mississippi?
211 events are on record between 1958 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $4.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Perry County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 105 recorded events — 49.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Perry County?
24 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 18 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Perry County?
32 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Perry County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Perry County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Perry County as very low risk, placing it in the 20 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Perry County, Mississippi 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
- Pearl River County 350
- Pike County 349
- Panola County 305
- Pontotoc County 376
- Oktibbeha County 397
- Prentiss County 245
Cite this page
“Perry County, Mississippi.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/mississippi/perry-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.