Hamblen County

Every recorded tornado

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

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. Sep 28, 2024Flood$11.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding on the Hamblen County side from the massive flood wave on the Nolichucky River near Lowland. The Lowland river gauge was above its previous record crest for nearly 20 hours, cresting at 35.16 feet at 10:15 am EST on the 28th, 9 feet above its previous record. Damaging flooding occurred, but in mostly rural and agricultural areas.

2. Feb 23, 2019Flood$1.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Hwy 11E closed at Russellville Elementary School due to flooding. All told, Emergency Management estimated that individual and public flood damages for Hamblen County together combined for $1.23 million for the overall event.

3. May 7, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Barn and trees down on Chucky River Road. Roof damage and power poles and lines down.

4. Jul 25, 2004Thunderstorm Wind$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Columns were blown through windows at Mayes Mortuary. Also, numerous trees were reported down in the area.

5. Apr 3, 2007Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were reported down on Buffalo Trail road and Springs road. |Also, two power poles two feet in diameter snapped in the eastern part of Morristown.

6. Jun 30, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees and powerlines down in Morristown and countywide. A roof was blown off a home on Kidwell Ridge Road.

7. Aug 4, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Newspaper reporters reported numerous trees and powerlines downed by thunderstorm winds on Beth Drive in Russellville. A tree fell on a vehicle. The winds also damaged a roofs on a few homes.

8. Jun 20, 2011Flash Flood$30,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Law enforcement personnel reported heavy rain from thunderstorms produced flooding near Morristown. Bethesda Road and portions of east 11E Highway were closed by officers for flooding.

9. Apr 22, 2005Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A roof was blown off a house on Kidwells Ridge Road.

10. Aug 10, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Numerous trees and powerlines down countywide. 5000 homes and businesses lost power. One tree fell on a vehicle on West Fourth North Street in Morristown.

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°F2 times, most recently Jul 29, 1952

All-time low

−23°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

80°F3 times, most recently Jul 20, 1913

Coldest day

4°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

5.00 inMar 27, 1994

Snowiest day

14.0 inApr 20, 1901

Hottest year

2019mean 60.8°F

Coldest year

1976mean 54.5°F

Wettest year

195761.24 in

Driest year

200725.01 in

Snowiest season

40.0 in1935-36

Station Newport 1 Nw (USC00406534), 1,036 ft elevation, 16.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 22, 2026; 99.3% 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 USC00406534.
• 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.