NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Decatur, MS
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
29 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Decatur, Mississippi since 1851, 3 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 187 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 25 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 3
- Tropical storms
- 26
- Tornadoes
- 187
- EF3 or stronger
- 25
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
117 deaths in all
What the records show for Decatur
The strongest storm to pass near Decatur was Camille in 1969, a Category 1 hurricane with 79 mph winds when its centre passed 49 miles away. The closest pass by a hurricane was Frederic in 1979, whose centre came within 28 miles. The record near Decatur begins with an unnamed storm in 1855; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a Category 1 hurricane 59 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1910s, with 4 systems. Of the 29 systems, 5 have come since 2000. Decatur has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 61% of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site. The highest rating among the 187 tornadoes within 25 miles is F5 or EF5, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2011, came within 25 miles. The deadliest, an F5 on March 3, 1966, killed 58 people. Of the 187, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 120 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 49. The most recent tornado was on May 26, 2025. Decatur has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 81% of the 232 Mississippi cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 106 times since 1960, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Decatur has more hail reports within 10 miles than 87% of the 232 Mississippi cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Decatur
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 59 mi | Category 1 (78 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2017 | NateOct 8 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2005 | KatrinaAug 29 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2002 | IsidoreSep 26 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | ErinAug 4 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 13 | 28 mi | Category 1 (74 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1971 | EdithSep 17 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1969 | CamilleAug 18 | 49 mi | Category 1 (79 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1950 | BakerAug 31 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1948 | Unnamed 1948 stormSep 5 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 16 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 1 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 18 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 6 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 30 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormSep 14 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 13 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 28 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormAug 16 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormSep 8 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 12 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1880 | Unnamed 1880 stormSep 1 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormOct 7 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormSep 2 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormJul 12 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormOct 3 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormSep 16 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1855 | Unnamed 1855 stormSep 17 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Decatur: 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 Decatur
By decade
- 2020s30(2 EF3+)
- 2010s52(8 EF3+)
- 2000s38
- 1990s14(3 EF3+)
- 1980s16(4 EF3+)
- 1970s14(2 EF3+)
- 1960s8(3 EF3+)
- 1950s15(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 3, 1966 | F5 | 18 mi | 202.5 mi | 58 / 518 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF5 | 25 mi | 28.28 mi | 3 / 6 |
| Jan 23, 1969 | F4 | 11 mi | 117.8 mi | 32 / 241 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 22 mi | 122.04 mi | 7 / 17 |
| Dec 2, 1967 | F4 | 15 mi | 7.6 mi | 2 / 10 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F4 | 9 mi | 40 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Mar 12, 1986 | F4 | 20 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Mar 29, 1976 | F4 | 11 mi | 126.5 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Mar 10, 1992 | F3 | 24 mi | 20 mi | 3 / 57 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F3 | 18 mi | 42 mi | 3 / 40 |
| Nov 27, 1994 | F3 | 16 mi | 40 mi | 2 / 0 |
| Apr 21, 1951 | F3 | 20 mi | 33.5 mi | 2 / 16 |
The strongest 12 of 187, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Decatur
The Storm Prediction Center has 106 hail reports within 10 miles of Decatur since 1960, made on 90 separate days. Of these, 36 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on July 31, 2018. The most recent report is from April 2, 2024. April has the most reports, 30.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Decatur
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Newton Exp Stn, MS, 8 miles south of Decatur at 349 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 58°F and 33°F. April is the wettest at 6.1 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 58.3 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 44% of the year's precipitation (25.9 of 58.3 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 29 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (14); a normal September there has highs of 89°F and 3.2 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 86 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 64 nights a year. That 58.3 inches is more than at 36 of the 87 Mississippi stations used on this site (41%). Hickory, 11 miles southeast, has its own station (Newton 5 ENE, MS): 58.2 inches a year, 0.1 less than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58 | 33 | 5.8 | 8 |
| Feb | 63 | 36 | 5.5 | 7 |
| Mar | 70 | 43 | 5.4 | 7 |
| Apr | 77 | 50 | 6.1 | 6 |
| May | 84 | 59 | 4.1 | 6 |
| Jun | 91 | 67 | 4.9 | 8 |
| Jul | 93 | 69 | 4.8 | 8 |
| Aug | 93 | 68 | 4.6 | 7 |
| Sep | 89 | 62 | 3.2 | 4 |
| Oct | 80 | 50 | 3.8 | 4 |
| Nov | 68 | 40 | 4.6 | 6 |
| Dec | 61 | 36 | 5.5 | 7 |
| Year | 77 | 51 | 58.3 | 76 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Newton Exp Stn, MS (349 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 Decatur
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 207 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Decatur: 173 thunderstorm wind reports, 33 flash floods and 1 flood. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $5.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on April 4, 2008. March has had the most flash floods, 10 of 33. Of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 185 have had fewer than Decatur.
April 4, 2008: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Decatur — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “A swath of widespread and significant straight line winds moved across a large portion of central Newton county. Hundreds of trees were blown down along with many power lines.”
February 12, 2008: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Decatur — $500,000 damage.
August 29, 2005: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Decatur — $400,000 damage.
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
Newton County, which includes Decatur, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 severe storms, 7 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 2 winter storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm, on February 6, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Newton County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.7 million a year, the 45th highest of 82 Mississippi counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.0 million (28%), is from tornadoes.
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 Decatur
- Newton, MS9 mi
- Union, MS10 mi
- Conehatta, MS10 mi
- Hickory, MS11 mi
- Lake, MS15 mi
- Collinsville, MS16 mi
- Walnut Grove, MS21 mi
- Forest, MS21 mi
- Philadelphia, MS23 mi
- Bailey, MS24 mi
- Louin, MS24 mi
- Meridian, MS25 mi
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