Ben Hill County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Ben Hill County: 0.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 26, 2024Hurricane (Typhoon), Ben Hill$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The 911 system went down. There were three trees on homes, blocked/damaged roadways, and minor car accidents. 97% of utility customers lost power.

2. Sep 10, 2017Tropical Storm, Ben Hill$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hurricane Irma brought numerous impacts to the Florida Big Bend, southwest Georgia and southeast Alabama including widespread downed trees and power lines, roads blocked by trees, power outages, and trees on homes. Two people died during the event - one due to a car crash (Liberty County, FL) and another that had a heart attack (Worth County, GA). Two indirect deaths occurred due to carbon monoxide from a generator (Taylor County, FL). While many counties across the Florida Big Bend and southwest Georgia were impacted, the greatest impacts were across the eastern portion of the area near the I-75 corridor. There were over 6.5 million customers without power in Florida, over…

3. Dec 25, 2006Tornado$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado touched down four miles east of Fitzgerald just south of Georgia Highway 206 and U.S. Highway 319. There were several areas along its northeasterly track where trees had been twisted off at approximately 15 feet above ground level. Debris from the initial touchdown was discovered three miles due north. The tornado touched down four times as evidenced by the sporadic damage. Two homes were destroyed, two homes were heavily damaged, and three irrigation pivots were destroyed. The tornado finally lifted at an old recreation area known as Red Bluff where roof damage was reported.

4. Mar 30, 2000Flash Flood$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Ben Hill County EMA reported numerous county and state roads closed due to high water from five to six inches of rain which had fallen since 4 am EST. Numerous streets in Fitzgerald were closed by high water. Several flooded downtown businesses reported water up to three feet deep. One family was rescued from their stranded pickup truck on Stuart Street in Fitzgerald. The Rainbow Irrigation warehouse and welding shop along the Ocilla highway were flooded.

5. Aug 30, 2023Tropical Storm, Ben Hill$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Approximately 1409 residents, or 42% lost power. 10 power transmission poles were broken. Over 100 trees fell into roads.

6. Oct 10, 2018Tropical Storm, Ben Hill$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hurricane Michael started as typical weak October Caribbean tropical system. However, after approximately a week of slow development, the system moved into warm Gulf of Mexico waters and rapidly intensified into a major hurricane as it moved north towards the Florida Panhandle. After a 2-day long intensification period over the eastern Gulf, Michael made landfall as an unprecedented (for the region) high-end category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale in the Florida Panhandle with maximum sustained wind speed of 155 mph and a minimum pressure 919 mb. Based on wind, Michael is the fourth most powerful hurricane to hit the United States, behind the Labor Day…

7. Apr 13, 2009Tornado$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down about two miles southwest of Fitzgerald near the municipal airport. It destroyed a barn and blew a batting cage across a field. It also uprooted or snapped numerous trees and blew down signs. The tornado continued on a northeast path into portions of downtown Fitzgerald. The brick facade of a building collapsed. Much of the damage was caused by fallen trees. The tornado was classified an EF1 with winds estimated between 80 and 90 mph.

8. Mar 20, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Straight-line winds damaged an elementary school and a church. A roof was blown off a house. Reported by a contract observer.

9. May 2, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous downed trees and power lines. Several carports and sheds damaged. Several vehicles damaged by fallen trees. Reported by the Ben Hill County EMA.

10. Jul 9, 2005Hurricane (Typhoon), Ben Hill$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Hurricane Dennis came ashore along the central Gulf coast on July 10. The lowest sea-level pressure and peak wind gust recorded were 1007.5 mb and 42 mph, respectively, at Albany, GA. Heavy rainfall commenced July 10, and persisted into the early morning hours of July 11. A nearly stationary feeder band from the eastern Florida Panhandle into southwest Georgia produced four to eight inches, with isolated amounts up to a foot. In Colquitt County, flash flooding along the Okapilco Creek in Moultrie damaged many homes, washed out roads, and forced the evacuation of 100 homes. Heavy rains in the upper Flint River basin generated high flows which reached as far south as Bainbridge, GA.…

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

106°FSep 5, 1925

All-time low

0°F2 times, most recently Jan 22, 1985

Warmest night

80°FJun 29, 1931

Coldest day

22°F2 times, most recently Dec 24, 1989

Wettest day

9.01 inAug 8, 2012

Snowiest day

5.0 inJan 21, 2025

Hottest year

1990mean 68.9°F

Coldest year

1966mean 63.7°F

Wettest year

196468.82 in

Driest year

195423.25 in

Snowiest season

5.0 in2024-25

Station Tifton (USC00098703), 380 ft elevation, 23.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1911 to September 30, 2026; 94.6% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00098703.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.