NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Molena, GA
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
23 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Molena, Georgia since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Michael in 2018. Since 1950, 115 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 23
- Tornadoes
- 115
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
32 deaths in all
What the records show for Molena
None of the 23 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Molena; the strongest was Michael in 2018, a tropical storm with 68 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. The record near Molena begins with an unnamed storm in 1852; the most recent system was Michael in 2018. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 6 systems. Of the 23 systems, one has come since 2000. Molena has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 50% of the 405 Georgia cities on this site. The strongest of the 115 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF4 on March 3, 2019; its path came within 19 miles, and it killed 23 people. Of the 115, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 71 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on June 25, 2025. Molena has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 86% of the 405 Georgia cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 48 times since 1988, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 405 Georgia cities, 56% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Molena.
Compare Molena's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Molena
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | MichaelOct 11 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (68 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 15 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1940 | Unnamed 1940 stormAug 12 | 63 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormJul 29 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 4 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 13 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 18 | 61 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 1 | 18 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormJul 8 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 3 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 23 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 28 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 10 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 28 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 27 | 9 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Molena: 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 Molena
By decade
- 2020s25(3 EF3+)
- 2010s33(3 EF3+)
- 2000s13(1 EF3+)
- 1990s10
- 1980s14
- 1970s8
- 1960s4
- 1950s8(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 3, 2019 | EF4 | 19 mi | 68.04 mi | 23 / 90 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 9 mi | 30.82 mi | 2 / 22 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 13 mi | 21.68 mi | 2 / 0 |
| Mar 26, 2023 | EF3 | 21 mi | 21.54 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF3 | 12 mi | 31.16 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Apr 13, 2020 | EF3 | 13 mi | 16.63 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 2, 2006 | F3 | 11 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Dec 5, 1954 | F3 | 12 mi | 51 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 125.76 mi | 4 / 40 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F2 | 5 mi | 8 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 14 mi | 21.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 11 mi | 23.39 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 115, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Molena
The Storm Prediction Center has 48 hail reports within 10 miles of Molena since 1988, made on 40 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on January 2, 2006. The most recent report is from November 8, 2025. March has the most reports, 12.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Molena
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Thomaston 4SE, GA, 15 miles southeast of Molena at 620 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 58°F and 33°F. July is the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and May and October the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 50.4 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 49% of the year's precipitation (24.7 of 50.4 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 23 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (10); a normal September there has highs of 86°F and 3.9 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 62 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 50 nights a year. That 50.4 inches is more than at 45 of the 108 Georgia stations used on this site (42%). Concord, 8 miles north, has its own station (Experiment, GA): 54.2 inches a year, 3.8 more than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58 | 33 | 4.4 | 7 |
| Feb | 61 | 36 | 4.5 | 6 |
| Mar | 69 | 42 | 5.0 | 6 |
| Apr | 77 | 49 | 4.0 | 5 |
| May | 83 | 58 | 2.9 | 4 |
| Jun | 88 | 66 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Jul | 91 | 69 | 5.4 | 8 |
| Aug | 90 | 69 | 4.2 | 5 |
| Sep | 86 | 63 | 3.9 | 5 |
| Oct | 78 | 52 | 2.9 | 4 |
| Nov | 68 | 41 | 4.0 | 5 |
| Dec | 60 | 36 | 4.9 | 6 |
| Year | 76 | 51 | 50.4 | 69 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Thomaston 4SE, GA (620 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 Molena
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 151 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Molena: 113 thunderstorm wind reports, 29 flash floods, 7 lightning strikes, 1 flood and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $1.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on June 15, 2022. March has had the most flash floods, 17 of 29. Of the 392 Georgia cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 345 have had fewer than Molena.
May 27, 1997: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Molena — 2 injured, $15,000 damage.
July 6, 2005: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Molena — $250,000 damage.
June 17, 2008: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Molena — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “The Upson County 911 Center reported that a thunderstorm downburst resulted in one to two dozen trees being blown down in the Sunset Village area just north of Georgia Highway 74 along and west of Sunnyside Road. One home sustained considerable damage when several trees fell on the structure.”
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
Pike County, which includes Molena, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 hurricanes, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms). The latest major disaster declaration was Hurricane Helene, on September 30, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pike County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $3.7 million a year, the 132nd highest of 159 Georgia counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.2 million (59%), 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.