NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Ranburne, AL
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
17 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Ranburne, Alabama since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Zeta in 2020. Since 1950, 87 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 17
- Tornadoes
- 87
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
11 deaths in all
What the records show for Ranburne
None of the 17 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Ranburne; the strongest was Eloise in 1975, a tropical storm with 63 mph winds when its centre passed 2 miles away. The record near Ranburne begins with an unnamed storm in 1852; the most recent system was Zeta in 2020, a tropical storm 35 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 4 systems. Of the 17 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 323 Alabama cities on this site, 54% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Ranburne. The highest rating among the 87 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 25, 2021, came within 22 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on May 27, 1973, killed 7 people. Of the 87, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on May 27, 2025. Of the 323 Alabama cities, 87% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Ranburne. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 34 times since 1989, with stones up to 4.25 inches. Of the 323 Alabama cities, 76% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Ranburne.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Ranburne
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ZetaOct 29 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 17 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1916 | Unnamed 1916 stormJul 8 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 4 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 13 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 19 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 1 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 3 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 28 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 27 | 59 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 Ranburne: 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 Ranburne
By decade
- 2020s10(1 EF3+)
- 2010s11(2 EF3+)
- 2000s21(1 EF3+)
- 1990s8
- 1980s15
- 1970s9(2 EF3+)
- 1960s11(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 1973 | F4 | 22 mi | 139.1 mi | 7 / 199 |
| Mar 25, 2021 | EF4 | 22 mi | 38.56 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 26, 1974 | F3 | 11 mi | 21.3 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Mar 19, 2018 | EF3 | 17 mi | 35.22 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 23 mi | 29.02 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Feb 26, 2008 | EF3 | 5 mi | 7.21 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 28, 1964 | F3 | 13 mi | 15.7 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Aug 29, 2005 | F2 | 16 mi | 5.5 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Mar 5, 1989 | F2 | 25 mi | 45.5 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 5 mi | 65.9 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Mar 25, 2021 | EF2 | 22 mi | 31.29 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 25, 2008 | EF2 | 18 mi | 0.36 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 87, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Ranburne
The Storm Prediction Center has 34 hail reports within 10 miles of Ranburne since 1989, made on 29 separate days. Of these, 16 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.25 inches, fell on February 18, 2009. The most recent report is from July 25, 2020. May has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Ranburne
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Heflin, AL, 16 miles northwest of Ranburne at 1,000 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 53°F and 30°F. February is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.3 inches; the year adds up to 57.6 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 44% of the year's precipitation (25.6 of 57.6 inches); the other six months are wetter. Highs reach 90°F on about 37 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 72 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.2 inches a year, most of it in March. That 57.6 inches is more than at 56 of the 107 Alabama stations used on this site (52%). Bowdon, GA, 6 miles east, has its own station (Carrollton, GA): 53.6 inches a year, 4.0 less than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 30 | 5.6 | 8 | 0.4 |
| Feb | 58 | 33 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Mar | 66 | 39 | 5.6 | 8 | 0.5 |
| Apr | 73 | 46 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 80 | 55 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 89 | 67 | 5.4 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 88 | 66 | 4.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 60 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 75 | 48 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 64 | 37 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 56 | 33 | 5.4 | 8 | 0.2 |
| Year | 72 | 48 | 57.6 | 83 | 1.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Heflin, AL (1,000 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 Ranburne
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 68 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Ranburne: 61 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods, 2 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $5.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 70 mph, on May 11, 2008.
August 3, 2025: flash flood 3 miles from the centre of Ranburne — 1 killed, 1 injured.
NWS: “Heavy rain fell over Cleburne County for several hours during the early morning of August 3. Rainfall totals across the southern part of the county between Ranburne and Heflin were generally up to 5-8, with as high as 8-10 estimated by radar in the area of Turkey Heaven Mountain and corroborated by local reports.”
May 11, 2008: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Ranburne — $5.0 million damage.
May 3, 2010: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Ranburne — $100,000 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
Cleburne County, which includes Ranburne, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 hurricanes, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 29, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cleburne County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Relatively Low for hurricanes, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hail and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $6.0 million a year, the 60th highest of 67 Alabama counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.9 million (48%), 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 Ranburne
- Bowdon, GA6 mi
- Waco, GA11 mi
- Woodland, AL12 mi
- Heflin, AL12 mi
- Roopville, GA13 mi
- Tallapoosa, GA15 mi
- Wedowee, AL16 mi
- Carrollton, GA17 mi
- Bremen, GA18 mi
- Franklin, GA21 mi
- Buchanan, GA23 mi
- Temple, GA25 mi
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