NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Athens, TN
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Athens, Tennessee since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 72 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 72
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
42 deaths in all
What the records show for Athens
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Athens; the strongest was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 43 miles away. The record near Athens begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 33 miles away. The busiest decade was the 2020s, with 2 systems. Of the 5 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site, 55% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Athens. The highest rating among the 72 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2011, came within 5 miles. Of the 72, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 44 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 38. The most recent tornado was on May 30, 2025. Of the 339 Tennessee cities, 61% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Athens. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 88 times since 1962, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Athens has more hail reports within 10 miles than 83% of the 339 Tennessee cities.
Compare Athens's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Athens
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 24 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Athens: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Athens
By decade
- 2020s6
- 2010s33(4 EF3+)
- 2000s5
- 1990s8(2 EF3+)
- 1980s5(1 EF3+)
- 1970s9(3 EF3+)
- 1960s4(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 5 mi | 48 mi | 20 / 335 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 22 mi | 40.16 mi | 4 / 12 |
| May 2, 1953 | F4 | 8 mi | 4.2 mi | 4 / 8 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 9 mi | 21.2 mi | 3 / 50 |
| Nov 30, 2016 | EF3 | 20 mi | 4.6 mi | 2 / 0 |
| Apr 15, 1994 | F3 | 3 mi | 15 mi | 1 / 9 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 14 mi | 18.1 mi | 1 / 100 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 11 mi | 41 mi | 0 / 44 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 7 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 17 |
| Feb 6, 1986 | F3 | 11 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 8, 1974 | F3 | in town | 2 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 15, 1965 | F3 | 12 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 50 |
The strongest 12 of 72, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Athens
The Storm Prediction Center has 88 hail reports within 10 miles of Athens since 1962, made on 65 separate days. Of these, 53 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on June 7, 1985. The most recent report is from March 15, 2025. April has the most reports, 25.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Athens
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Athens, TN, 2 miles east of Athens at 940 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 28°F. December is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.6 inches; the year adds up to 60.4 inches over 91 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 39 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 85 nights a year. Snowfall averages 3.6 inches a year, most of it in February. That 60.4 inches is more than at 109 of the 122 Tennessee stations used on this site (89%). Niota, 8 miles north, has its own station (Decatur 7NE, TN): 57.6 inches a year, 2.8 less than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 28 | 5.6 | 9 | 1.0 |
| Feb | 53 | 31 | 5.1 | 8 | 1.3 |
| Mar | 62 | 37 | 5.5 | 9 | 0.8 |
| Apr | 71 | 45 | 5.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 79 | 55 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 68 | 5.5 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 66 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 83 | 60 | 5.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 47 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 61 | 36 | 4.9 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Dec | 52 | 31 | 5.9 | 9 | 0.4 |
| Year | 70 | 47 | 60.4 | 91 | 3.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Athens, TN (940 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Athens
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 260 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Athens: 237 thunderstorm wind reports, 15 flash floods, 6 floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $2.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 84 mph, on April 25, 2010. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 15. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 183 have had fewer than Athens.
April 10, 2009: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Athens — 1 injured, $25,000 damage.
NWS: “An individual reported a tree fell on a home and vehicle from thunderstorm winds in Athens. One person in the home was hospitalized with a neck injury.”
June 11, 2003: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Athens — 1 injured, $20,000 damage.
July 10, 2003: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Athens — 1 injured.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Athens's ZIP code 37303 have filed 33 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1984, and were paid $328,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Heavy rains in 2003: 11 claims (33% of all) and $233,000. The year with the most claims was 1994, with 16. 33% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 155 Tennessee cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 80 have fewer than Athens.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy rains2003 | 11 | $233,000 |
McMinn County, which includes Athens, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 winter storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm, on February 6, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives McMinn County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hail and inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.2 million a year, the 41st highest of 95 Tennessee counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.4 million (46%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 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).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets 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).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.