Pontotoc County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Pontotoc County: 8.
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.

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. Feb 24, 2001Tornado$28.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado continued in Pontotoc moving in near Robbs and tracking northeast through the county. The tornado moved through the entire county eventually moving into extreme southeast Union county near the town of Blue Springs. The tornado produced much of its damage between Algona and Pontotoc. At least 360 homes, 15 businesses and 2 churches were damaged or destroyed in Pontotoc. Among the homes destroyed was a restored antebellum plantation home listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Numerous trees and power lines were blown down.

2. Mar 31, 2023Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A storm survey of Pontotoc County confirmed an EF-2 tornado moved across the area around 12:00 a.m. CST on April 1. The tornado began in far western Pontotoc County, around Antioch Road, with a few trees downed and tree limbs snapped. Along Highway 9 and Houpt Road, tree damage became more significant, and a few homes and outbuildings sustained damage. A brick home on Highway 9 sustained heavy damage to the front side, mostly caused by a large uprooted tree. Damage in this area was rated EF-1. Weaker damage continued south of the Springville community before|another area of EF-1 damage was noted along Highway 341 at Foster Lane. Here a brick home sustained significant roof loss,…

3. Mar 1, 1997Tornado$650,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A second tornado developed in Calhoun county near Banner. This tornado also tracked northeast through extreme southeast Lafayette county, through the northwest part of Pontotoc county and through the middle of Union county. While damage occurred in all four counties, the most damage took place in Union county near the town of Martintown. All told 17 persons were injured. Ninety-one homes were damaged with forty-nine of these homes deemed uninhabitable.

4. Apr 7, 2006Hail$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous vehicles were severely damaged as the result of baseball hail in the communities of Thaxton, Hurricane, and Ecru.

5. Jan 23, 2026Ice Storm, Pontotoc$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Sleet accumulation up to 1/2 inch, followed by 1/4 to 1/2 inch of ice.

6. Apr 5, 2025Tornado$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado crossed into northwest Pontotoc County, causing significant damage to trees and utility poles northwest of Thaxton, especially along Highway 336 and Carter Road. As the tornado moved northeast toward Hurricane, it produced substantial damage to several farm outbuildings and removed part of a roof from a home on Wells Road. Additional tree and utility pole damage was noted along Todd Road and Highways 346 and 355. The storm also had a substantial rear flank downdraft, resulting in straight-line wind damage in the Hurricane community east of the tornado track. The tornado then moved over forested bottomland around Mud Creek before crossing into Union County. Estimated…

7. Jul 1, 2020Flash Flood$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flash flooding occurred in Ecru. A woman was rescued from a residence while another woman was stuck in her residence due to a flooded driveway. Several cars were stranded in the water. Water was over the hood of vehicles in some areas.

8. Apr 30, 2002Hail$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous cars were damaged by the hail. Five homes and three businesses were also damaged.

9. Apr 20, 2003Lightning$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Three buildings at a furniture plant were destroyed by a fire started by lightning.

10. Apr 30, 2017Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Several trees down in the southwest portion of the county. Four structures were also damaged.

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, 13.9 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.
• 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.