Dooly County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Dooly County: 1.
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.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 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 15, 1999Tornado$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An NWS Storm survey showed the tornado touched down along highway 27 at the Flint River near Drayton. The tornado hopped eastward along highway 27, demolishing pecan orchards and barns, before devastating the town of Vienna. It exited the town between 2 schools, with only minor damage to either. It later crossed I-75 between Georgia highways 27 and 215, blocking the Interstate with debris. The storm lifted a short distance east of there between Noble Gin Road and Smyrna Church Road. The EMA director said 25 percent of homes and businesses were destroyed or severely damaged. Of the 28 injuries the most serious was a broken leg. Newspaper accounts reported 69 houses, 15 mobile…

2. Apr 10, 2009Tornado$350,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City confirmed that the EF1 tornado, that originally touched down in far northeastern Sumter county three miles east-southeast of Methvins, continued on an east-southeastward track across far southern Dooly county and into extreme northwest Wilcox county, lifting approximately five miles north of Seville in Wilcox county. The tornado tracked around 21 miles within Dooly county. The maximum path width was determined to be 250 yards and the maximum winds were estimated at 110 mph. The tornado passed just north of Drayton and just south of Vienna in Dooly county. Several hundred trees were either…

3. Mar 27, 2005Flash Flood$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Dooly County Sheriff's Office reported that there was extensive flooding of roads throughout the county. Several roads were closed by the Department of Transportation as the roads were impassable. The News Observer of Vienna reported that at least 60 roads in the county sustained damage in varying degrees. Portions of Vienna were evacuated as a precaution because of potential dam breaks and flash flooding. Rainfall of five to six inches was common with the northwest portion of the county receiving six to eight inches of rain.

4. Sep 6, 2004High Wind, Dooly$250,000
   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…

5. Sep 11, 2017Tropical Storm, Dooly$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The news media reported numerous trees and power lines blown down across the county. The Welcome to Unadilla sign was blown down in Unadilla. A wind gust of 45 mph was measured near the Flint River Wildlife Management Area. Much of the county was without electricity for varying periods of time. Radar estimated between 1.5 and 3 inches of rain fell across the county with 2.87 inches measured near Byromville. No injuries were reported.

6. Dec 28, 2005Hail$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Georgia State Patrol reported a large swath of hail across the southern part of the county. The hail was as large as golf balls in the Vienna area.

7. Apr 5, 2017Tornado$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A National Weather Service survey team found that an EF1 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 105 MPH and a maximum path width of 200 yards touched down in far |western Dooly county south of Highway 27 between River Road and Franklin Road. The|most substantial damage occurred to a home along Franklin Road where the 2nd floor was completely destroyed. The portion of the home destroyed was still in the finishing stages of construction. Tree damage was noted in the area around the home and a large irrigation system was flipped over in a nearby field. The tornado continued northeast crossing Highway 27 just east of where Ayers Road intersects and several |trees were snapped and…

8. Dec 31, 2006Tornado$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, GA, concluded that a tornado touched down near the intersection of Snow Springs Road or Georgia Highway 230, just west-northwest of Unadilla, and traveled 1/2 mile to a point just east-northeast of Unadilla. While the tornado was initially determined to be an F0 tornado, it intensified to an F2 tornado before dissipating. The tornado first touched down in an open cotton field pushing over a 30-yard section of an irrigation system near Snow Springs Road and U.S. Highway 41. The tornado then moved east to northeast to the northeast side of Unadilla breaking trees, damaging signs, roofs, and…

9. Mar 28, 2009Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Dooly County Emergency Management Director confirmed that a brief EF0 tornado touched down along Pleasant Valley Road, between Steele Road and Truman Road, approximately four miles northwest of Vienna, and tracked northeast for about 1/4 mile or 500 yards. The maximum path width was determined to be 50 yards. At least 50 trees were uprooted or snapped in half along the path of the tornado. Several homes were damaged from the downed trees. Six homes sustained minor roof damage when shingles or guttering was blown off. Some metal carports were damaged and a few outbuildings were destroyed.

10. Jun 22, 2019Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The Dooly County Emergency Manager reported trees blown down across the county. Some locations include Slosheye Trail at Highway 41, Old National Highway at Pennahatchee Road, and Parnham Road between Shiloh Road and Highway 257 where significant damage occurred to a house and a barn. No injuries were reported.

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, 12.8 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.