Crisp County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Crisp 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. Apr 2, 2009Flood$1.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Crisp County Emergency Management Director reported extensive flooding across Crisp county as a result of rainfall of five inches or more that had fallen on saturated ground from several prior weeks of wet conditions and above normal rainfall. Several roads within the county had to be closed as culverts were washed out and the roads were rendered impassable. Many roads in the Cordele area were inundated with high water during the height of the flooding and had to be closed. In addition, several homes in the Cordele area sustained significant flood damage.

2. Apr 10, 2009Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia confirmed that the third EF1 tornado to touch down in Sumter county the evening of April 10th, continued on a sporadic, but long path, across Crisp and into Wilcox county before lifting. The tornado crossed into Crisp county at Lake Blackshear, just south of the Georgia Veterans State Park. The tornado entered the county as an EF1 with a maximum path width of 200 yards. However, as the tornado crossed the lake into western Crisp county, it weakened to an EF0 with a maximum path width of 100 yards. Maximum winds were estimated at 100 mph as the tornado entered the county, but…

3. Sep 6, 2004High Wind, Crisp$350,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   High wind damage, associated with Tropical Storm Frances, is listed below, in alphabetical order by county for those counties that "high wind" criteria was either met or assumed to be met.Baldwin: The Georgia Emergency Management Agency reported that extensive and widespread wind damage was observed. Many trees and power lines were down throughout the county and many parts of the county were expected to be without power for up to four days as a result. In addition, four homes suffered major damage and five suffered minor damage. One man was injured and taken to a local hospital when a tree fell on his mobile home. Four to five inches of rain was also reported throughout the…

4. Mar 3, 2001Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Cordele Dispatch reported that trees and power lines were blown down across the county, but especially in the Cordele and Lake Blackshear areas. On Lakeshore Court at Lake Blackshear, a tree fell on a house and caved in the bedroom wall injuring a man and his wife who were sleeping. Three other homes on Lakeshore Court were also damaged when trees fell on them. In addition, a boat house was completely destroyed by the wind and a tree fell on a pickup truck causing considerable damage. At the Falcon Run Golf course, a shed which housed golf carts, was completely destroyed. Several of the golf carts inside were damaged or destroyed as well. In addition, the tops were snapped out…

5. Aug 15, 2013Lightning$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Crisp County Emergency Manager reported that a business was struck by lightning and burned for a total loss.

6. Sep 11, 2017Tropical Storm, Crisp$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Crisp County Emergency Manager reported numerous trees and power lines blown down across the county. The roof was blown off of a commercial building in Cordele. Much of the county was without electricity for varying periods of time. A wind gust of 53 mph was measured just east of Cordele. No injuries were reported.

7. Mar 26, 2011Hail$175,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The public observed quarter to golf ball-sized hail near Georgia Veterans Memorial State Park in the far western part of the county, then quarter-sized hail further east toward Cordele.

8. May 23, 2017Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service survey team found that an EF1 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 110 MPH and a maximum path width of 150 yards began just south of Highway 41 and Landfill Road. The tornado quickly intensified as it moved east-northeast and crossed I-75 where a tractor-trailer was blown over onto a car in the southbound lanes, resulting in two minor injuries. Numerous trees were snapped as it continued east-northeast. The tornado reached its maximum intensity in the 200 block of Allied Road where a house had most of its roof blown off and a mobile home across the street was blown off of its block foundation. The mobile home residents had sought shelter in the home…

9. Jun 17, 2016Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Crisp County Sheriff's Department and the county Emergency Manager reported numerous trees and power lines blown down in the Cordele area. A falling tree destroyed a mobile home near the corner of Crisp Street and Church Street. Power lines were down along Farmers Market Road between Highway 41 and I-75. Numerous trees and power lines were down in the vicinity of the Crisp Regional Hospital with several homes and vehicles damaged or destroyed by falling trees.

10. Apr 15, 2007Tornado$80,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, Georgia confirmed that a tornado, which originated in Worth county (covered by National Weather Service Tallahassee, Florida) tracked into Crisp county. The tornado entered Crisp county approximately 5.5 miles west of Arabi and traveled northeast lifting about three miles northeast of Arabi. The overall path length of the tornado, which inculdes both the Worth and Crisp county portions of the track, was 14 miles, approximately 7.5 miles of which occurred within Crisp county. The maximum path width was 200 yards. Maximum winds within the tornado were estimated at 100 mph. A mobile home was shifted off its…

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°FJun 5, 1985

All-time low

−3°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

88°FJul 4, 1970

Coldest day

22°FDec 25, 1983

Wettest day

9.28 inSep 3, 1998

Snowiest day

7.5 inJan 22, 2025

Hottest year

1990mean 69.7°F

Coldest year

2010mean 63.3°F

Wettest year

201570.85 in

Driest year

195422.70 in

Station Cordele (USC00092266), 308 ft elevation, 2.5 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1892 to October 18, 2026; 96.3% 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 USC00092266.
• 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.