NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Christiana, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Christiana, Tennessee since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Frederic in 1979. Since 1950, 107 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 107
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
26 deaths in all
What the records show for Christiana
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Christiana; the strongest was Frederic in 1979, a tropical storm with 45 mph winds when its centre passed 2 miles away. The record near Christiana begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Frederic in 1979. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site, 81% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Christiana. The strongest of the 107 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 24 miles, and it killed 16 people. Of the 107, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 66 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 35. The most recent tornado was on May 20, 2025. Christiana has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 79% of the 339 Tennessee cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 61 times since 1976, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Christiana has more hail reports within 10 miles than 66% of the 339 Tennessee cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Christiana
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Christiana: 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 Christiana
By decade
- 2020s15
- 2010s25
- 2000s26(3 EF3+)
- 1990s14(1 EF3+)
- 1980s9
- 1970s9(4 EF3+)
- 1960s4
- 1950s5
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 24 mi | 83.3 mi | 16 / 190 |
| Apr 10, 2009 | EF4 | 13 mi | 23.25 mi | 2 / 58 |
| Jan 24, 1997 | F4 | 9 mi | 6.5 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 23 mi | 14.6 mi | 1 / 23 |
| May 11, 2003 | F3 | 17 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 3 mi | 3.2 mi | 0 / 31 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 10 mi | 15.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 27, 1971 | F3 | 20 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 16 mi | 12.3 mi | 2 / 24 |
| Nov 6, 2018 | EF2 | 1 mi | 10.49 mi | 1 / 3 |
| May 31, 2001 | F2 | 17 mi | 6.3 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Apr 1, 2023 | EF2 | 4 mi | 18.45 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 107, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Christiana
The Storm Prediction Center has 61 hail reports within 10 miles of Christiana since 1976, made on 42 separate days. Of these, 37 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on October 18, 2011. The most recent report is from May 20, 2025. April has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Christiana
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wartrace 6E, TN, 13 miles southeast of Christiana at 1,014 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 46°F and 28°F. December is the wettest at 6.5 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.6 inches; the year adds up to 60.3 inches over 87 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 6 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 76 nights a year. That 60.3 inches is more than at 107 of the 122 Tennessee stations used on this site (88%). Bell Buckle, 6 miles southwest, has its own station (Shelbyville Water Dept, TN): 59.5 inches a year, 0.8 less than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 46 | 28 | 5.7 | 7 |
| Feb | 50 | 30 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Mar | 59 | 38 | 6.1 | 9 |
| Apr | 67 | 47 | 5.2 | 7 |
| May | 73 | 55 | 5.1 | 8 |
| Jun | 79 | 63 | 5.6 | 7 |
| Jul | 82 | 67 | 4.6 | 9 |
| Aug | 82 | 66 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Sep | 77 | 60 | 4.2 | 6 |
| Oct | 68 | 48 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Nov | 58 | 38 | 4.3 | 6 |
| Dec | 49 | 32 | 6.5 | 9 |
| Year | 66 | 48 | 60.3 | 87 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Wartrace 6E, TN (1,014 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 Christiana
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 127 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Christiana: 113 thunderstorm wind reports, 5 flash floods, 5 floods, 3 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $1.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on March 21, 2017. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 18 have had fewer than Christiana.
May 5, 1999: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Christiana — 3 injured, $5,000 damage.
September 17, 2009: flood 4 miles from the centre of Christiana — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Water was over the roads and flooding of at least 50 homes in Christiana area was reported. Type of water damage to homes was unknown.”
November 6, 2018: lightning strike 4 miles from the centre of Christiana — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck a house on Barley Drive causing a large fire in the attic and severe damage to the home.”
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 Christiana's ZIP code 37037 have filed 18 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2002, and were paid $113,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 39% 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, 42 have fewer than Christiana.
Rutherford County, which includes Christiana, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 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 Rutherford County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $134.9 million a year, the 4th highest of 95 Tennessee counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $70.5 million (52%), 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.
Cities near Christiana
- Bell Buckle, TN6 mi
- Murfreesboro, TN10 mi
- Readyville, TN11 mi
- Beechgrove, TN11 mi
- Rockvale, TN12 mi
- Bradyville, TN14 mi
- Wartrace, TN14 mi
- Unionville, TN14 mi
- Eagleville, TN17 mi
- Shelbyville, TN17 mi
- Lascassas, TN17 mi
- Woodbury, TN18 mi
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