NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kiln, 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
73 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Kiln, Mississippi since 1851, 20 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Francine in 2024. Since 1950, 184 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 20
- Tropical storms
- 53
- Tornadoes
- 184
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
6 deaths in all
What the records show for Kiln
The strongest storm to pass near Kiln was Camille in 1969, a Category 5 hurricane with 161 mph winds when its centre passed 2 miles away. The record near Kiln begins with an unnamed storm in 1852; the most recent system was Francine in 2024, a tropical storm 52 miles away. The busiest decade was the 2000s, with 8 systems, one of them at hurricane strength. Of the 73 systems, 16 have come since 2000. Kiln has more hurricanes within 75 miles than 92% of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site. The highest rating among the 184 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 7 times; the most recent, on December 25, 2012, came within 21 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on October 30, 1967, killed 4 people. Of the 184, 17 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 95 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 41. The most recent tornado was on December 27, 2024. Kiln has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 80% of the 232 Mississippi cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 46 times since 1971, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 232 Mississippi cities, 63% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Kiln.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Kiln
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | FrancineSep 12 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 2021 | ClaudetteJun 19 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 12 mi | Category 1 (94 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2020 | CristobalJun 8 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2018 | GordonSep 5 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2017 | NateOct 8 | 26 mi | Category 1 (75 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2011 | LeeSep 5 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2009 | IdaNov 10 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 2 |
| 2005 | KatrinaAug 29 | 10 mi | Category 3 (114 mph) | Category 5 |
| 2005 | CindyJul 6 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 2003 | BillJul 1 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2002 | IsidoreSep 26 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 3 |
| 2002 | HannaSep 14 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2002 | BerthaAug 5 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2001 | AllisonJun 11 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1998 | GeorgesSep 29 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1997 | DannyJul 18 | 57 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1988 | FlorenceSep 10 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1988 | BerylAug 9 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1985 | JuanOct 31 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1985 | ElenaSep 2 | 5 mi | Category 2 (108 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 13 | 61 mi | Category 3 (110 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | BobJul 11 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1969 | CamilleAug 18 | 2 mi | Category 5 (161 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1964 | HildaOct 4 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1960 | EthelSep 15 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (67 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1956 | Unnamed 1956 stormJun 13 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | Unnamed 1955 stormAug 27 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1955 | BrendaAug 1 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1948 | Unnamed 1948 stormSep 4 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 19 | 53 mi | Category 2 (105 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1947 | Unnamed 1947 stormSep 8 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1944 | Unnamed 1944 stormSep 10 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (60 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1939 | Unnamed 1939 stormSep 26 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1936 | Unnamed 1936 stormJul 28 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 16 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 1 | 64 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormSep 21 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 18 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormJun 26 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 6 | 55 mi | Category 1 (89 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 30 | 42 mi | Category 1 (76 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1914 | Unnamed 1914 stormSep 18 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormSep 14 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (66 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 13 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1911 | Unnamed 1911 stormAug 12 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 21 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 27 | 42 mi | Category 2 (104 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1905 | Unnamed 1905 stormOct 10 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormAug 15 | 36 mi | Category 1 (86 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 13 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1895 | Unnamed 1895 stormAug 16 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1894 | Unnamed 1894 stormAug 8 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 2 | 30 mi | Category 2 (109 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormSep 7 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 12 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1890 | Unnamed 1890 stormAug 27 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 23 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormOct 19 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJun 14 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1885 | Unnamed 1885 stormSep 26 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (69 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 3 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormOct 7 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1877 | Unnamed 1877 stormSep 19 | 56 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1872 | Unnamed 1872 stormJul 11 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1869 | Unnamed 1869 stormSep 5 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1863 | Unnamed 1863 stormOct 1 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormSep 15 | 10 mi | Category 1 (94 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormAug 12 | 19 mi | Category 3 (115 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 15 | 72 mi | Category 1 (81 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1855 | Unnamed 1855 stormSep 16 | 7 mi | Category 2 (107 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 26 | 52 mi | Category 3 (113 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Kiln: 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 Kiln
By decade
- 2020s35
- 2010s29(1 EF3+)
- 2000s31
- 1990s22
- 1980s26(4 EF3+)
- 1970s26
- 1960s10(2 EF3+)
- 1950s5
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 30, 1967 | F3 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 4 / 17 |
| Dec 25, 2012 | EF3 | 21 mi | 24.05 mi | 0 / 8 |
| May 19, 1980 | F3 | 16 mi | 10.6 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 19, 1980 | F3 | 8 mi | 13.1 mi | 0 / 8 |
| May 16, 1980 | F3 | 17 mi | 11.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 13, 1980 | F3 | 20 mi | 15.9 mi | 0 / 25 |
| Nov 3, 1968 | F3 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 12, 1994 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 2 / 16 |
| Apr 10, 2024 | EF2 | 12 mi | 7.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 10, 2024 | EF2 | 15 mi | 10.98 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 9, 2011 | EF2 | 19 mi | 1.86 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 24, 2004 | F2 | 21 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 184, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kiln
The Storm Prediction Center has 46 hail reports within 10 miles of Kiln since 1971, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 35 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 11 days, most recently March 12, 2023. The most recent report is from April 10, 2024. March has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kiln
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Waveland, MS, 10 miles south of Kiln at 8 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 74°F; January is the coolest, at 59°F and 42°F. July is the wettest at 7.7 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.5 inches; the year adds up to 65.0 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 51% of the year's precipitation (33.4 of 65.0 inches); the other six months are drier. September has brought the most of the 73 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (32); a normal September there has highs of 86°F and 5.7 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 47 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 17 nights a year. That 65.0 inches is more than at 79 of the 87 Mississippi stations used on this site (91%). Picayune, 15 miles northwest, has its own station (Picayune, MS): 66.8 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and an August average high of 91°F against 89°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Bay Waveland Yacht Club, MS, 10 miles southeast, averaged 87°F in July and August and 54°F in January over 2021–2025. It averaged 80°F or warmer from June to September. Sea level at the Bay Waveland tide gauge, 10 miles from Kiln, has risen 1.81 ± 0.13 inches per decade from 1978 to 2025, NOAA's linear trend; at that pace it is 18.1 inches in a hundred years. That is faster than at 112 of the 144 U.S. gauges with a NOAA trend.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 59 | 42 | 5.8 | 7 | 54 |
| Feb | 63 | 44 | 4.7 | 6 | 59 |
| Mar | 69 | 51 | 5.3 | 5 | 66 |
| Apr | 75 | 58 | 5.6 | 5 | 72 |
| May | 82 | 66 | 5.8 | 5 | 79 |
| Jun | 87 | 72 | 6.5 | 9 | 84 |
| Jul | 89 | 74 | 7.7 | 10 | 87 |
| Aug | 89 | 74 | 5.9 | 8 | 87 |
| Sep | 86 | 70 | 5.7 | 6 | 83 |
| Oct | 78 | 59 | 3.5 | 4 | 75 |
| Nov | 68 | 49 | 4.1 | 5 | 67 |
| Dec | 61 | 43 | 4.4 | 6 | 59 |
| Year | 75 | 59 | 65.0 | 76 | 73 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Waveland, MS (8 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Bay Waveland Yacht Club, MS, from NOAA Tides & Currents. 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 Kiln
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 90 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kiln: 63 thunderstorm wind reports, 22 flash floods, 2 floods, 2 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $319,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on April 19, 2020. June has had the most flash floods, 10 of 22. Of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 145 have had fewer than Kiln.
June 24, 2024: lightning strike 3 miles from the centre of Kiln — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck and damaged to 2 homes on Red Bud Drive. Time estimated by radar and lightning data network.”
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 Kiln's ZIP code 39556 have filed 747 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $36.0 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Hurricane Katrina in 2005: 260 claims (35% of all) and $31.1 million, then Hurricane Isaac in 2012 with 80 and Tropical Storm Isidore in 2002 with 73. 80% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 133 Mississippi cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 116 have fewer than Kiln.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Katrina2005 | 260 | $31.1 million |
| Hurricane Isaac2012 | 80 | $780,000 |
| Tropical Storm Isidore2002 | 73 | $235,000 |
| 2026-06-Arthur-TS2026 | 61 | $652,000 |
| Hurricane Gustav2008 | 48 | $658,000 |
| Hurricane Ida2021 | 23 | $200,000 |
Hancock County, which includes Kiln, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 20 of them major disasters (by incident: 21 hurricanes, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 winter storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Tropical Storm Arthur, on August 3, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hancock County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hurricanes, coastal flooding and lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $38.2 million a year, the 10th highest of 82 Mississippi counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $18.1 million (47%), is from hurricanes.
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 Kiln
- Diamondhead, MS5 mi
- Bay St Louis, MS9 mi
- Waveland, MS10 mi
- Pass Christian, MS11 mi
- Picayune, MS15 mi
- Long Beach, MS17 mi
- Carriere, MS20 mi
- Pearl River, LA20 mi
- Gulfport, MS21 mi
- Saucier, MS22 mi
- Slidell, LA23 mi
- Mc Henry, MS25 mi
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