The January 17, 1999 tornado

F4Madison County, Tennessee

An F4 tornado on a 16.0-mile path that killed 6 and injured 106. It was one of 22 tornadoes recorded in the U.S. that day, 3 of them rated F3/EF3 or stronger.

Watch how it happened

F4 tornado · January 17, 1999

How it happened

Follow the tornado’s path, minute by minute.

About this replay

Local time (CST)—Historical replay — logged times

Distance—of 16.0 miles

Now in—

RatingF4

The tornado

Rating: F4; Fujita scale
Path length: 16.0 mi; Width up to 500 yards
Killed: 6; Along the whole path
Injured: 106; Along the whole path
Date and time: Sunday, January 17, 1999; 6:25 PM CST
That day: 22; tornadoes in the U.S.; more on this date

The National Weather Service account

Written by the local Weather Service office after its damage survey.

The tornado developed just east of Bemis and tracked northeast across the southern part of the city of Jackson. A shopping center suffered severe damage while a nearby funeral home was demolished except for the interior rooms. More than 200 homes were obliterated or heavily damaged while 300 other homes sustained lesser damage. The building housing the school buses for the county was destroyed and 55 school buses were damaged. A high-school baseball stadium was destroyed and the football stadium was damaged.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

Counties on its path

Madison CountyTN

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database. Path drawn as a straight line from the recorded start to end point.