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Bedford County, Tennessee severe weather history spans 378 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 61.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,342 nationally and #29 in Tennessee.
378
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$5.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Bedford County, Tennessee severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Bedford County, Tennessee severe weather history averages 5.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 107 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 31 events fall before 1990 and 347 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Bedford County, Tennessee record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $2.4M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Bedford County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 231 | 0 | $2.4M | 85 | 1957–2026 |
| Hail | 70 | 0 | $55K | 3 | 1976–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 36 | 0 | $603K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Tornado | 20 | 1 | $2.4M | F2 | 1955–2025 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $123K | 0 | 2008–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 8 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1999–2024 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2006–2006 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $1K | 0 | 2012–2012 |
Decade by decade
Bedford County, Tennessee severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
23 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 18 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-11-06 | EF2 | 1 | 3 | 10.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-27 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-04-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-11-10 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-01-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-02-01 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-20 | EF1 | 1 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-04-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 12.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Bedford County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 2000 | Tornado | WARTRACE | 1 | 0 | $30K |
| Nov 10, 2002 | Tornado | BUGSCUFFLE | 0 | 3 | $100K |
| Jan 24, 1997 | Tornado | WHEEL | 0 | 3 | $250K |
| Apr 20, 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 2 | $100K |
| Apr 3, 1974 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $3K | |
| Aug 4, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | SHELBYVILLE | 0 | 1 | $25K |
| May 18, 1995 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $200K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous trees and power lines were down. Flat Creek and Hilltop areas were hardest hit. A 2-story brick home lost the front porch which was facing west at 415 Smith Chapel Rd. The damage to the home was estimated to be about $40,000. The EMA Director estimated one million dollars worth of damage to utilities because of the straight line winds.
An EF-1 tornado first touched down in far northwest Bedford County near Carter Crossroads on Kingdom Road. At this location, a half dozen outbuildings, storage buildings, and barns were damaged or destroyed. The tornado continued east-northeast where some minor damage occurred to homes along Longview Road. Garage doors were blown in, fences were knocked down, outbuildings were destroyed, and minor roof damage was observed. The tornado then continued into far southwest Rutherford County. Damages are a rough estimate.
Numerous roads were flooded and closed across Bedford County, including Highway 30 between the Duck River Bridge and Sulphur Springs Road, Sevier Street, Lipscomb Street, Coopertown Road, Maxwell Chapel Road, Threet Road, Longview Road, Rattlesnake Lodge Road, McDale Lane, Blue Ribbon Parkway, and many others.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
52,237
Population (ACS)
$281K
Median home value
18
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 6, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 2, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM |
| Apr 21, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Apr 2, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Shelbyville 107
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Bedford County, Tennessee?
378 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $5.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Bedford County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 231 recorded events — 61.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Bedford County?
23 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 Bedford County?
18 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Bedford County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Bedford County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Bedford County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 69 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Bedford County, Tennessee 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
- Anderson County 360
- Benton County 287
- Bledsoe County 287
- Blount County 533
- Bradley County 438
- Campbell County 279
Cite this page
“Bedford County, Tennessee.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/tennessee/bedford-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.