Lee County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Lee County: 5.
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.

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.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by NASA (1).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Apr 1, 2023Tornado$105 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   NWS meteorologists surveyed the damage in southern Tupelo and confirmed a relatively brief but strong EF1 tornado. The damage began along Nixon Drive, with minor roof and tree damage. Several roofs sustained damage along Chickasaw Trail, several trees were downed and a privacy fence was blown over near the North Mississippi Medical Center Women's Hospital. Several vehicles in this area were damaged as well. The damage intensified dramatically at the Legget and Platt warehouse, with likely failure of west-facing garage doors leading to roof uplift and collapse of most exterior walls. Damage here was rated high-end EF1, with winds estimated at 110 mph. Several semi-trailers were…

2. Apr 28, 2014Tornado$15.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down near the Pontotoc County line west of Tupelo. The tornado strengthened as it moved into Tupelo reaching a peak intensity along Clayton Avenue and Country Club Road and in the commercial area along North Gloster from Hillcrest Drive to North Green Street. The Joyner Elementary School and Maintenance Shop suffered major damage. Maximum winds were estimated at 150 mph. A woman was killed when her vehicle hydroplaned and hit a tree during the storm. The tornado continued northeast and caused significant damage near Elvis Presley Lake including toppling a 400 foot communication tower. 84 homes were destroyed in Lee County while 169 homes suffered major damage.…

3. Nov 5, 2018Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado developed in far eastern Pontotoc County along Lee Line Road. The tornado then caused EF-0 and EF-1 damage to homes and trees just west and north of the Tupelo Airport. As it approached Colonial Estates Road the tornado intensified and damaged numerous homes. Two homes had roofs completely removed and non-brick exterior walls collapsed on one of them. Several homes saw partial roof damage. As the tornado crossed McCullough Blvd., several businesses were damaged including one which had the roof partially removed. The tornado weakened and continued on snapping trees and causing some slight structural damage as it crossed I-22 where it hit buildings just south of Barnes…

4. May 8, 2008Tornado$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The initial tornado touchdown occurred 1.5 miles west of the Tupelo Regional Airport. The tornado traveled northeast across Northern Lee County moving just north of the Tupelo Regional Airport. The tornado reached its maximum intensity as it hit the Furniture Market Mississippi building on Coley Road and Chesterville Road. The tornado continued to produce significant damage on North Gloster Road near the Barnes Crossing Mall. The tornado continued moving northeast and crossed U.S. Highway 45 where it struck a farm supply store. Several cars were damaged by flying debris, tractor trailers were overturned and part of the supply store roof was torn off. Next to the farm supply store,…

5. Mar 31, 2023Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   This tornado crossed from Union County into Lee County along County Road 2700 around 12:00 a.m. CST on April 1. A poorly anchored home sustained roof removal and collapse of several walls, consistent with a high-end EF1 rating. A church had significant roof damage along County Road 231, and other structures were damaged along County Roads 341 and 2726. In particular, a mobile home/camper trailer was flipped and destroyed in this area. The intensity of the damage picked up along County Road 417, where a vacant double-wide mobile home was swept away and a couple of other homes sustained minor damage. Tree damage here was significant as well. The tornado attained EF2 intensity along…

6. Feb 24, 2001Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The continued into Lee county from Union county and tracked northeast producing damage in Baldwyn. The tornado then moved out of Lee county into Prentiss county. In Guntown, eight homes and 1 business were heavily damaged while 13 other structures were damaged. In Saltillo, a mobile homes overturned. The tornado did significant damage in Baldwyn, which is located on the Lee/Prentiss county line. Nearly 100 homes were damaged or destroyed including the Baldwyn High School which lost the roof to its gymnasium.

7. May 2, 2021Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The first observed damage was near south Thomas Street in southwest Tupelo. The tornado���s damage path was intermittent through the first part of its track. It caused minor damage to trees and a church roof along Thomas Street and Lawndale Drive. The damage became more continuous as the tornado approached Main Street. Numerous trees were uprooted, with some trunks snapped. Several trees fell onto homes, causing substantial damage. The tornado reached its peak intensity near Veterans Memorial Parkway and Elvis Presley Drive. The tornado damaged several commercial buildings and residences. Two residences suffered partial roof removal. The tornado crossed Interstate 22, and…

8. Dec 16, 2019Tornado$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The first damage was observed to trees along Euclatubba Road, south of Highway 348. The tornado crossed Highway 348, damaging additional trees. The first structural damage occurred to homes along County Road 833. The tornado then moved into a residential area. Numerous homes suffered roof and window damage, and a few had garage doors blown out. Two homes suffered nearly complete roof removal. The tornado destroyed a church of metal construction along Mitchell St. then crossed Highway 45 and caused additional tree damage. The tornado then crossed Pratts Road about 3 miles east of Highway 45. The tornado damaged a silo, a home and a storage shed along Highway 370, and caused…

9. Sep 16, 1996Tornado$600,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   One building lost an entire wall. Some roofs were blown off several factories. Several trailers were damaged. A truck was blown over injuring the driver. Two cars were destroyed. Several trees and power lines were knocked down.

10. Oct 25, 1997Hail$600,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Numerous homes suffered roof and window damage from the baseball size hail.

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

107°FAug 15, 2007

All-time low

−12°FJan 30, 1966

Warmest night

80°F3 times, most recently Jul 3, 2024

Coldest day

10°FDec 22, 1989

Wettest day

7.89 inMay 26, 1991

Snowiest day

8.0 inMar 22, 1968

Hottest year

2023mean 65.9°F

Coldest year

1976mean 59.2°F

Wettest year

199181.05 in

Driest year

198130.98 in

Snowiest season

11.0 in1967-68

Station Tupelo Regional Airport (USW00093862), 340 ft elevation, 4.0 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1962 to October 26, 2026; 99.9% 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 USW00093862.
• 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.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• 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.