NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Okolona, 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
19 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Okolona, Mississippi since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 116 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 13 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 19
- Tornadoes
- 116
- EF3 or stronger
- 13
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
54 deaths in all
What the records show for Okolona
None of the 19 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Okolona; the strongest was Frederic in 1979, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Okolona begins with an unnamed storm in 1855; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 50 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1910s, with 4 systems. Of the 19 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site, 59% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Okolona. The strongest of the 116 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF5 on April 27, 2011; its path came within 19 miles, and it killed 23 people. Of the 116, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 61 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 27. The most recent tornado was on June 7, 2025. Of the 232 Mississippi cities, 57% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Okolona. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 33 times since 1992, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 232 Mississippi cities, 86% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Okolona.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Okolona
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2005 | KatrinaAug 30 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 13 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1969 | CamilleAug 18 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1950 | BakerAug 31 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 17 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 18 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormOct 19 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 7 | 17 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 30 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormSep 15 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 28 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormAug 16 | 68 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormSep 9 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 29 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormSep 2 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormOct 3 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1855 | Unnamed 1855 stormSep 17 | 72 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 Okolona: 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 Okolona
By decade
- 2020s27(1 EF3+)
- 2010s20(4 EF3+)
- 2000s14(1 EF3+)
- 1990s13
- 1980s16(3 EF3+)
- 1970s8(2 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s11(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF5 | 19 mi | 37.3 mi | 23 / 137 |
| Apr 29, 1963 | F4 | 10 mi | 4.7 mi | 3 / 20 |
| Apr 21, 1984 | F3 | 25 mi | 71 mi | 15 / 76 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 3 mi | 51.45 mi | 4 / 25 |
| Mar 24, 2023 | EF3 | 7 mi | 36.56 mi | 2 / 55 |
| Nov 19, 1988 | F3 | 12 mi | 12.5 mi | 2 / 11 |
| Mar 20, 1976 | F3 | 11 mi | 49.4 mi | 1 / 9 |
| Feb 16, 1956 | F3 | 13 mi | 8 mi | 1 / 55 |
| Apr 28, 2014 | EF3 | 18 mi | 30.97 mi | 0 / 32 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF3 | 5 mi | 58.74 mi | 0 / 25 |
| May 8, 2008 | EF3 | 20 mi | 7.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 19, 1988 | F3 | 15 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 116, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Okolona
The Storm Prediction Center has 33 hail reports within 10 miles of Okolona since 1992, made on 29 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on April 27, 2011. The most recent report is from May 20, 2025. April has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Okolona
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Verona Exp Stn, MS, 13 miles north of Okolona at 325 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 53°F and 33°F. December is the wettest at 6.1 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.8 inches; the year adds up to 59.3 inches over 79 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 44% of the year's precipitation (26.3 of 59.3 inches); the other six months are wetter. September has brought the most of the 19 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (7); a normal September there has highs of 88°F and 3.8 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 76 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 62 nights a year. That 59.3 inches is more than at 47 of the 87 Mississippi stations used on this site (54%). Houston, 13 miles southwest, has its own station (Houston, MS): 59.4 inches a year, the same as here, and a July average high of 90°F against 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 33 | 5.2 | 7 |
| Feb | 57 | 35 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Mar | 66 | 43 | 5.6 | 8 |
| Apr | 75 | 51 | 5.5 | 7 |
| May | 83 | 60 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Jun | 90 | 68 | 4.8 | 8 |
| Jul | 92 | 72 | 4.7 | 7 |
| Aug | 92 | 70 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 88 | 64 | 3.8 | 5 |
| Oct | 77 | 51 | 4.4 | 5 |
| Nov | 65 | 41 | 4.6 | 6 |
| Dec | 56 | 35 | 6.1 | 8 |
| Year | 74 | 52 | 59.3 | 79 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Verona Exp Stn, MS (325 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 Okolona
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 77 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Okolona: 68 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods and 1 flood. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $707,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 83 mph, on February 15, 2025. July has had the most flash floods, 3 of 8. Of the 232 Mississippi cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 26 have had fewer than Okolona.
October 26, 2019: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Okolona — 1 injured.
April 28, 2026: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Okolona — 1 injured.
July 1, 2020: flash flood 2 miles from the centre of Okolona — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Homes were flooded in Okolona.”
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
Chickasaw County, which includes Okolona, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 18 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 5 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 Chickasaw County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.6 million a year, the 50th highest of 82 Mississippi counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.1 million (22%), 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 Okolona
- Shannon, MS10 mi
- Nettleton, MS12 mi
- Houston, MS13 mi
- Aberdeen, MS15 mi
- Plantersville, MS16 mi
- Houlka, MS16 mi
- Amory, MS17 mi
- Tupelo, MS19 mi
- Pontotoc, MS23 mi
- Belden, MS23 mi
- Smithville, MS23 mi
- Mooreville, MS23 mi
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