Loudon County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Loudon 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 5, 2003Flash Flood$3.9 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous roads flooded and closed countywide. Also, mudslides occurred.

2. Aug 7, 2023Thunderstorm Wind$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Loudon County High sustained significant roof damage to the gymnasium. The roof decking was ripped off the building. The only other structural damage on site was to the ticket booth, which also had the roof lifted off and destroyed.

3. Apr 17, 1998Flash Flood$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The News-Herald newspaper office in Lenoir City had 44 inches deep in the basement, destroying several computers, company records and turned a refrigerator on its side. Radio station WLIL was almost swept off its foundation by waters rising from adjacent Town Creek. A number of families in the Highland Park area were evacuated when homes in low-lying areas were flooded by runoff. Numerous complaints of residential flooding and vehicles stalled on Highway 11 north of Lenoir City.

4. Apr 25, 2010Thunderstorm Wind$120,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Daily Times newspaper in Maryville reported a home was destroyed and several trees and powerlines downed by thunderstorm winds near Greenback.

5. May 30, 2025Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An EF0 tornado touched down in southern Loudon County in the early morning hours with max winds of 85 mph. Tornado was in Loudon County for roughly 1 mile before exiting into northern Monroe County east of Holt Road. Several injuries occurred when either the tornado itself or the rear flank downdraft winds rolled a camper RV several times up and over a wooden service post. In addition to the RV on the south side of the damage swath, several trees suffered damage, there was roof damage to small structures and a barn, and the tornado left cycloidal markings in the field beyond the RV and houses. When the tornado reached the tree line at the edge of Loudon, several trees had large…

6. Aug 28, 2006Lightning$60,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lightning struck and barn in Greenback. The barn was destroyed by fire as well as the hay and farm equipment inside.

7. Feb 14, 2003Flood, Loudon$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Four day rainfall totals of two to eight inches fell across east Tennessee, with the highest amounts occurring across the Cumberland Plateau and adjacent valleys areas. This rainfall combined with a melting snowpack (reports of up to a foot in the higher elevations) to produce widespread flooding of rivers and streams with numerous mudslides also reported (one notable mudslide pushed an apartment complex off its foundation in Knox County). The Powell, Clinch and Holston rivers measured the most significant rises with Claiborne, Rhea and Knox counties reporting the most significant damage.

8. Aug 20, 2014Thunderstorm Wind$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Law enforcement personnel reported multiple trees downed by thunderstorm wind in Philadelphia. At least barn was also damaged or destroyed.

9. Jul 27, 2005Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were reported down across the county.

10. Aug 2, 2002Thunderstorm Wind$30,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Trees and power lines were reported down across the county.

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

106°F2 times, most recently Jul 1, 2012

All-time low

−14°FJan 21, 1985

Warmest night

78°FAug 3, 2010

Coldest day

−2°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

6.12 inSep 18, 2012

Snowiest day

10.3 inJan 16, 2024

Hottest year

2012mean 62.3°F

Coldest year

1976mean 55.4°F

Wettest year

197370.95 in

Driest year

200732.46 in

Snowiest season

24.6 in1963-64

Station Lenoir City (USC00405158), 785 ft elevation, 2.2 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1962 to October 20, 2026; 94.6% 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 USC00405158.
• 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.