NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Oliver Springs, 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
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Oliver Springs, Tennessee since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 43 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 43
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Oliver Springs
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Oliver Springs; the strongest was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 67 miles away. The record near Oliver Springs begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm directly overhead. The 1970s and the 2020s were the busiest decades, with 2 systems each. Of the 7 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Oliver Springs has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 71% of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site. The highest rating among the 43 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 4 times; the most recent, on November 10, 2002, came within 5 miles. Of the 43, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 26 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 11. The most recent tornado was on May 20, 2025. Of the 339 Tennessee cities, 76% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Oliver Springs. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 55 times since 1981, with stones up to 3.5 inches. Oliver Springs has more hail reports within 10 miles than 54% of the 339 Tennessee cities.
Compare Oliver Springs's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Oliver Springs
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | overhead | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 24 | 34 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Oliver Springs: 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 Oliver Springs
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s9
- 2000s7(1 EF3+)
- 1990s8(2 EF3+)
- 1980s2
- 1970s3(1 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 10, 2002 | F3 | 5 mi | 8.3 mi | 7 / 28 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 15 mi | 30 mi | 1 / 55 |
| Feb 21, 1993 | F3 | 7 mi | 16 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 22 mi | 12.2 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Feb 6, 2025 | EF2 | 19 mi | 21.92 mi | 2 / 3 |
| Aug 7, 2023 | EF2 | 14 mi | 3.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 2021 | EF2 | 22 mi | 1.84 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 8, 2021 | EF2 | 20 mi | 1.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 22 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 10, 2002 | F2 | 14 mi | 5.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 7, 1984 | F2 | 22 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 15, 1965 | F2 | 20 mi | 7.4 mi | 0 / 6 |
The strongest 12 of 43, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Oliver Springs
The Storm Prediction Center has 55 hail reports within 10 miles of Oliver Springs since 1981, made on 39 separate days. Of these, 33 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.5 inches, fell on February 21, 1993. The most recent report is from April 10, 2025. May has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Oliver Springs
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Oak Ridge Atdd, TN, 7 miles southeast of Oliver Springs at 905 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 47°F and 29°F. February and July are the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.3 inches; the year adds up to 59.7 inches over 91 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 39 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 75 nights a year. Snowfall averages 4.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 59.7 inches is more than at 104 of the 122 Tennessee stations used on this site (85%). Wartburg, 12 miles west, has its own station (Lancing 6 NW, TN): 56.4 inches a year, 3.3 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47 | 29 | 5.5 | 8 | 1.8 |
| Feb | 51 | 32 | 5.9 | 8 | 1.4 |
| Mar | 61 | 39 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.6 |
| Apr | 70 | 47 | 5.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 78 | 56 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 64 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 68 | 5.9 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 67 | 3.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 61 | 4.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 71 | 48 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 59 | 37 | 5.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 49 | 32 | 5.8 | 9 | 0.6 |
| Year | 69 | 48 | 59.7 | 91 | 4.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Oak Ridge Atdd, TN (905 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 Oliver Springs
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 115 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Oliver Springs: 102 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods and 5 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 26, 2004. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 57 have had fewer than Oliver Springs.
April 14, 2019: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Oliver Springs — 1 injured.
November 28, 2005: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Oliver Springs — $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
Flood insurance policyholders in Oliver Springs's ZIP code 37840 have filed 16 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1990, and were paid $107,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 6% 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, 38 have fewer than Oliver Springs.
Morgan County, which includes Oliver Springs, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 4 floods, 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 Morgan County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.5 million a year, the 77th highest of 95 Tennessee counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.7 million (42%), 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.