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Simpson County, Mississippi severe weather history spans 594 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #602 nationally and #14 in Mississippi.
594
Recorded events
17
Direct deaths
181
Direct injuries
$36.4M
Property damage
The record
What the Simpson County, Mississippi severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Simpson County, Mississippi severe weather history averages 8.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 186 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 78 events fall before 1990 and 516 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Simpson County, Mississippi record is tornado, responsible for 16 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $28.8M 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 Simpson County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 309 | 1 | $4.9M | 96 | 1966–2026 |
| Hail | 154 | 0 | $1.9M | 2.75 | 1968–2023 |
| Tornado | 82 | 16 | $28.8M | F4 | 1953–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 37 | 0 | $559K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2014–2022 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $210K | 0 | 2005–2014 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2015 |
Decade by decade
Simpson County, Mississippi severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
78 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 62 touched down inside it and 16 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-01-23 | EF4 | 32 | 241 | 117.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1992-11-21 | EF4 | 12 | 122 | 128.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1975-01-10 | EF4 | 9 | 210 | 56.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1976-03-29 | EF4 | 0 | 8 | 126.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1976-03-26 | EF4 | 0 | 11 | 18.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-11-27 | EF3 | 2 | 0 | 40.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-02-26 | EF3 | 1 | 34 | 71.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-04-04 | EF3 | 1 | 75 | 40.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-12-16 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 18.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-03-26 | EF3 | 0 | 25 | 17.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Simpson County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 1969 | Tornado | 12 | 65 | $250K | |
| Nov 28, 1994 | Tornado | 2 | 0 | $2.0M | |
| Apr 26, 1966 | Tornado | 1 | 10 | $250K | |
| Apr 26, 1980 | Tornado | 1 | 7 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 4, 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | SARATOGA | 1 | 0 | $500K |
| Apr 4, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 50 | $250K | |
| Mar 26, 2009 | Tornado | JAYNESVILLE | 0 | 25 | $5.0M |
| Mar 27, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 11 | $2.5M |
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 1 mile northwest of Magee in Simpson County moved northeast and moved into Smith County, 4 miles southwest of Cohay, at 2225CST. The tornado moved across Smith County and moved into Jasper County, 4 miles west of Louin, at around 2300CST. The tornado lifted at 2315CST 3 miles south of Baxter. The most intense segment of this tornado (F3) was when it moved across the north portions of Magee. Forty to fifty houses or mobile homes had major damage. Two people were killed in Magee when a large tree fell across their mobile home. Most of the damage in Smith County was to trees and power lines. In Jasper County, several chicken houses were destroyed around Montrose and most other damage as to trees. The tornado was weaker in Smith and Jasper counties and ranged from F0-F1. F38M M02M
The tornado first touched down just north of Mount Zion Road in Southwest Simpson County and continued northeast through the northwest side of Magee and then across the Smith County line before lifting near South County Road 503. Along the path, 60 homes were damaged or destroyed. A large, well-built church was destroyed. A warehouse was significantly damaged and a radio tower was snapped. Hundreds of hardwood and softwood trees were snapped and uprooted. The highest winds occurred at the church and nearby houses and trees just southwest of Magee along and just off Highway 28. Maximum winds were around 150 mph.||The EF3 rating was in Simpson County while the highest rated damage in Smith County was EF1. Total path length across both counties was near 18 miles.
This tornado continued out of northern Lawrence county and moved into southwest Simpson county 5 miles southwest of the Shivers community. As this tornado tracked northeast, several hundred trees were uprooted and snapped. Several chicken houses sustained major damage along with a few totally destroyed. Three homes sustained major damage and nine mobile homes sustained major damage. This tornado tracked across several highways including State Highway 28 and 13. This tornado also crossed US Highway 49, 4 miles northwest of Magee. Here the tornado severely damaged the VFW Post 9122 building and rolled over an RV. This tornado weakened as moved a little more northeast and dissipated 4 miles north of Magee.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
25,691
Population (ACS)
$122K
Median home value
30
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 |
| May 4, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Magee 106
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Simpson County, Mississippi?
594 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 17 direct deaths and $36.4M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Simpson County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 309 recorded events — 52.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Simpson County?
78 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 62 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Simpson County?
30 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Simpson County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Simpson County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Simpson County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 51 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Simpson 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
- Sharkey County 215
- Smith County 610
- Scott County 546
- Stone County 194
- Rankin County 1,335
- Sunflower County 446
Cite this page
“Simpson County, Mississippi.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/mississippi/simpson-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.