Grundy County

Every recorded tornado

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

Every large fire

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

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.

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Feb 20, 2015Winter Storm, Grundy$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Snow and sleet accumulations up to 1.0 fell during the late afternoon on February 20, followed by freezing rain with ice accumulations ranging from 0.50 to 0.75 from the evening on February 20 into the early morning hours on February 21. Numerous trees and power lines were knocked down throughout Grundy County. A CoCoRaHS observer 3.9 miles NW of Altamont reported extensive tree damage. Grundy County was declared a Presidential disaster area on April 2, 2015.

2. Nov 6, 2018Tornado$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Although a NWS storm survey originally determined the damage path across Franklin, Coffee, and Grundy Counties to be one long-track tornado, high-resolution satellite imagery from NASA Sport and Google Earth in May 2019 clearly showed that the original track was actually two separate tornadoes. This major EF-2 tornado, which began in Franklin County near Tims Ford Lake, weakened considerably to EF-0 as it entered the extreme southeastern portion of Coffee County, with just a few trees blown down along Rutledge Hill Road. The worst damage was along Coker Road where a barn was destroyed, another barn suffered roof damage, and the front porch of a home was ripped off causing minor…

3. Mar 3, 2023High Wind, Grundy$700,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Several hours of severe non-thunderstorm winds led to numerous reports of downed and uprooted trees, downed powerlines, and roof and property damage across all of Grundy County. Damages are estimated.

4. May 8, 2024Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain caused flash flooding in Grundy County. Near Palmer, a section of Barker Cove Road was washed away. Near Beersheba Springs, Highway 56 was flooded and impassable. Damages are a rough estimate.

5. Mar 15, 2025Thunderstorm Wind$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A NWS survey team determined that the damage near Palmer was caused by straight-line winds with maximum wind speeds of 95 mph. The width of the damage path was determined to be over a mile wide. These very strong downsloping microburst winds blew straight into Palmer, causing many trees to be uprooted and snapped along with some structural damage in the area. All trees fell in generally the same direction with no narrow tornado path found. Damages are a rough estimate.

6. Apr 5, 2025Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An EF-1 tornado formed over northern Monteagle, first producing damage along Wrens Nest Road. The tornado moved east into Summerfield and continued along Highway 41 into Tracy City. The tornado then strengthened as it entered into Tracy City with significant tree damage observed along the path as well as some damage to structures noted at the tornado's peak. The stands of a ball field in Tracy City had its metal roofing completely removed and blown into various areas of the park. Other structure damage noted was a roof blown completely off of a home as well as numerous homes with roof damage caused by fallen trees. There was also damage to several farm outbuildings, some of which…

7. Nov 6, 2018Tornado$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Although a NWS storm survey originally determined the damage path across Franklin, Coffee, and Grundy Counties to be one long-track tornado, high-resolution satellite imagery from NASA Sport and Google Earth in May 2019 clearly showed that the original track was actually made up of two separate tornadoes. This large, strong EF-1 tornado touched down in a forested area with no road access about 1 mile northeast of the Highway 108 and Highway 50 intersection, which was also around 1 mile north of the previous tornado as it was weakening and occluding. Satellite imagery showed thousands of trees were blown down in large convergent swaths along a trochoidal loop-type track as the…

8. Nov 6, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   High resolution satellite imagery from Google Earth in May 2019 determined a severe downburst struck the Savage Gulf State Natural Area near the Sequatchie County line, then continued eastward into Sequatchie County. Hundreds of trees were blown down along a 2 mile long by 500 yards wide path in this forested area with no road access. Based on the damage, this may have been a third tornado developing north of the previous tornado as it dissipated in extreme eastern Grundy County. Winds were estimated up to 100 mph.

9. May 3, 2020Thunderstorm Wind$53,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees and power lines were blown down across Grundy County, including trees that were blown down in front of the courthouse in Altamont.

10. May 9, 2024Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A tSpotter reported a few trees were blown down across Grundy County. Damages are a rough estimate.

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

101°FJul 28, 1952

All-time low

−20°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

78°FJul 14, 1966

Coldest day

−8°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

7.66 inDec 23, 1990

Snowiest day

15.0 inJan 29, 1966

Hottest year

1990mean 58.7°F

Coldest year

2004mean 53.7°F

Wettest year

202092.72 in

Driest year

200734.23 in

Snowiest season

49.2 in1959-60

Station Monteagle (USC00406162), 1,850 ft elevation, 10.6 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1938 to October 20, 2026; 98.6% 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 USC00406162.
• 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.