Mississippi County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

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. May 2, 2011Flash Flood$150 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers activated the New Madrid Floodway by detonating a levee at Birds Point. The intentional levee breach relieved pressure on levees along the lower Ohio River and portions of the Mississippi River. The blast that opened the 11,000-foot gap in the levee shattered windows in Mississippi County and rattled windows as far away as Paducah, Kentucky. The flash flood caused by the levee breach was anticipated for days, and evacuations had been completed beforehand. Over 130,000 acres of prime farmland were submerged. About 100 homes were flooded, forcing the evacuation of 300 residents. The tiny community of Pinhook was inundated, and no decision had been…

2. Jan 26, 2009Winter Storm, Mississippi$20.7 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   This prolonged, major winter storm was termed the worst in decades for southeast Missouri. The storm dumped 6 to 10 inches of sleet and snow along and north of a line from Van Buren through Greenville to Cape Girardeau. This resulted in very difficult driving conditions along with at least two dozen roof collapses. South of that line, at least one inch of ice accumulated. Locally 1.5 to 2 inches of ice accumulated south of a line from Poplar Bluff to Dexter to Benton. This resulted in catastrophic damage to trees, power lines, and utility poles in places such as Dexter, Sikeston, Charleston, and New Madrid. A utility company serving much of the region reported this was the most…

3. Sep 14, 2008High Wind, Mississippi$4.9 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Frequent wind gusts from 60 to 75 mph caused widespread damage in parts of southeast Missouri. The low pressure center that was the remnant of Hurricane Ike raced northeast at 40 to 50 mph across Missouri and Illinois. The center passed between Carbondale and St. Louis on its way toward the northeastern states. The rapid speed of the low pressure system contributed to this high wind event.||Extensive tree damage occurred. A very large number of trees were uprooted, and large limbs were broken. Some trees fell on homes, businesses, and public buildings. Downed trees and limbs landed on many vehicles. Numerous streets and highways were blocked. More than half the streets in some…

4. Mar 18, 2008Flood$900,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many streets were flooded in East Prairie. Almost one million dollars in damage occurred to public infrastructure such as roads. A rainfall total of 4.32 inches was measured at the airport near East Prairie.

5. Jan 18, 1996Tornado$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado cut through the eastern edge of the city. Three businesses, including a popcorn factory and a tax service office, were heavily damaged. A welding company was destroyed. Several homes received light to moderate damage, mainly to roofs and windows. Uprooted trees fell on cars and power lines. Residents of the affected area remained without power for 12 to 24 hours. One person sustained minor cuts to her legs when a picture window was blown in. Outside the city limits, a barn was destroyed on Highway 105. This tornado struck the same spot where a young girl was killed by a tornado in the spring of 1981.

6. Mar 9, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extensive damage occurred throughout the city of East Prairie, where a wind gust to 70 MPH was estimated by a spotter. The city hall was partially unroofed, and a communications tower was blown down onto the building. Bricks were blown off the wall of a nearby shop building. Parts of the roof were blown off an auto parts business. Another building lost a large front window. Minor roof damage occurred to numerous structures. Two baseball dugouts were demolished. Numerous tree limbs, power poles, and power lines were blown down. A trailer home was destroyed by a fallen tree off Highway 80 east of East Prairie. Close to Anniston, power poles were blown over on Highway 105 near the…

7. Apr 24, 2010Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A macroburst approximately eight miles long and three miles wide struck the East Prairie area with winds up to 120 mph. The origins of the macroburst were in New Madrid County, but the vast majority of the event occurred in Mississippi County. The highest concentration of damage was in East Prairie. On County Road 535 on the outskirts of East Prairie, two mobile homes were demolished. A single-wide mobile home was completely separated from the frame, which was blown 100 yards until it struck a brick house. The sole occupant of the mobile home was a young adult who received only numerous minor abrasions that did not require hospitalization. A second nearby single-wide mobile home…

8. May 25, 2006Hail$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many homes and vehicles sustained damage from baseball size hail.

9. Mar 1, 2017Thunderstorm Wind$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Eight grain bins were destroyed along County Road 407 north of East Prairie. Elsewhere in Mississippi County, there were numerous houses with shingle damage. This was part of a larger area of wind damage that surrounded the EF-1 tornado that tracked across western Mississippi County.

10. Mar 1, 2017Tornado$200,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    The tornado moved east from New Madrid County, passing across sparsely populated farmland before lifting about three miles north-northeast of Anniston. Significant roof damage occurred to a house, and its attached garage was destroyed. A barn was heavily damaged, and numerous irrigation systems were blown over. Dozens of trees were damaged or uprooted. Numerous power poles were snapped. Peak winds in the Mississippi County portion of the damage path were estimated near 100 mph.

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

110°FJun 30, 2012

All-time low

−12°F2 times, most recently Dec 22, 1989

Warmest night

83°FJul 28, 1955

Coldest day

5°F2 times, most recently Jan 19, 1994

Wettest day

6.75 inMar 5, 2015

Snowiest day

10.0 inFeb 17, 2015

Hottest year

2012mean 63.0°F

Coldest year

1996mean 54.7°F

Wettest year

195783.54 in

Driest year

198028.79 in

Snowiest season

35.0 in1959-60

Station Sikeston Pwr Station (USC00237772), 310 ft elevation, 14.2 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1950 to October 27, 2026; 91.4% 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 USC00237772.
• 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.