Sequatchie County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

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.

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 5, 2003Flash Flood$5.6 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread flooding, road closures, damage, evacuations.

2. Apr 27, 2011Tornado$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   New Harmony Tornado. A NWS storm survey reported an EF2 tornado initially developed near Dunlap. It tracked northeast across Sequatchie, Bledsoe and into Rhea County. It had a path length of 7.9 miles in Sequatchie county and a 1/2 mile path width. Numerous trees and powerlines were downed and a few homes suffered some damage. The tornado intensified to an EF4 in Bledsoe County. While in Sequatchie County...the tornado initially started on a more northerly track then turned to almost straight northeast at about 35.377N/85.380W.

3. Apr 27, 2011Tornado$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   E Dunlap Tornado. A NWS storm survey reported an EF2 tornado touched down near Dunlap. It formed near Hill Drive and Highpoint then moved to near East Valley Road where it dissipated. It had a path width of 250 yards and a path length of 4.5 miles. The 115 mph wind blew a roof of a building off and damaged a few other homes. Many trees were snapped and uprooted with powerlines downed.

4. Feb 14, 2003Flood, Sequatchie$190,000
   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.

5. Mar 28, 1997Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado started in the Savage Gulf State Natural area and went about 6 miles. It damaged 5 structures...including a grocery store in the Savage Gulf State Natural Area. The Tennessee Nitrate Technologies were completely destroyed near the junction of RT 111 and RT 8. The tornado dissipated on Mc Carver Loop Road. Tornado path length and width are approximations.

6. Apr 10, 2009Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An F2 tornado with maximum wind speeds of 120 mph occurred around 2 miles south of Dunlap. The tornado initially touched down along Frank Tate Road with a maximum wind speed of 90 mph (EF-1) and a width of 100 yards. The tornado continued in a northeast path and increased in size to an EF-2 with a maximum wind speed of 120 mph and a width of 175 yards. Several large hardwood trees were snapped off near the trunk base with extensive damage occurring in a concentrated path. The tornado continued its northeast movement and finally weakened to a EF-1 with a maximum wind speed of 100 mph as it dissipated at the foothill of Signal Mountain. A school and several homes suffered minor to…

7. Feb 23, 2019Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Low-lying areas of northern Dunlap were flooded. Relayed to media by fire department.

8. Apr 27, 2011Tornado$75,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   N Dunlap Tornado. A NWS storm survey reported an EF1 tornado touched down just north of Dunlap. It formed just east of Highway 111/127 and tracked to near Highway 603 and then moved into Bledsoe county just northeast of Mount Airy, Tennessee. It had a path width of 80 yards and a path length of 3.4 miles. The 100 mph wind damaged several roofs and downed numerous trees.

9. Jun 27, 2025Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Couple dozen medium to large trees were blown down along Kell Loop Road outside of Dunlap, TN. A small trailer was blown onto its side, off of the hitch. Another small trailer was dragged in the mud a couple feet. Two porch chairs were blown and dropped on a fence. A couple of chickens were killed. Several trees fell on power lines, resulting in a few power outages. One mailbox was separated from its post and blown into a ditch, underneath the powerlines.

10. Mar 19, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Some homes and vehicles were damaged from downed trees in the Brush Creek area.

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 1, 2012

All-time low

−13°FJan 26, 1940

Warmest night

81°FJul 11, 1980

Coldest day

12°FDec 12, 1962

Wettest day

9.49 inSep 5, 2011

Snowiest day

18.5 inMar 13, 1993

Hottest year

2024mean 64.6°F

Coldest year

1969mean 57.2°F

Wettest year

199473.70 in

Driest year

196835.09 in

Snowiest season

22.7 in1992-93

Station Chattanooga Airport (USW00013882), 669 ft elevation, 24.7 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1938 to October 26, 2026; 100.0% 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 USW00013882.
• 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.