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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rossville, 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

10 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Rossville, Tennessee since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 88 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
10

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
88

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
9

41 deaths in all

What the records show for Rossville

None of the 10 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Rossville; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 62 mph winds when its centre passed 7 miles away. The record near Rossville begins with an unnamed storm in 1860; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 3 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1950s, with 2 systems. Of the 10 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Rossville has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 96% of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site. The highest rating among the 88 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on December 23, 2015, came within 24 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on March 21, 1952, killed 16 people. Of the 88, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 18. The most recent tornado was on April 3, 2025. Rossville has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 54% of the 339 Tennessee cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 47 times since 1956, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 339 Tennessee cities, 58% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Rossville.

Compare Rossville's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rossville

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Rossville, Tennessee, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
2019OlgaOct 263 miTropical storm (47 mph)Tropical storm
2005KatrinaAug 3071 miTropical storm (41 mph)Category 5
1969CamilleAug 1937 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 5
1957AudreyJun 2839 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 3
1950BakerAug 3151 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1934Unnamed 1934 stormJun 1751 miTropical storm (40 mph)Category 2
1923Unnamed 1923 stormOct 1820 miTropical storm (41 mph)Tropical storm
1906Unnamed 1906 stormSep 2827 miTropical storm (44 mph)Category 3
1888Unnamed 1888 stormAug 217 miTropical storm (62 mph)Category 3
1860Unnamed 1860 stormOct 336 miTropical storm (46 mph)Category 2

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Rossville: 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 Rossville

By decade

  • 2020s8(1 EF3+)
  • 2010s7(1 EF3+)
  • 2000s19(1 EF3+)
  • 1990s19(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s8(1 EF3+)
  • 1970s12(3 EF3+)
  • 1960s11
  • 1950s4(1 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Rossville, Tennessee
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Mar 21, 1952F46 mi29.6 mi16 / 74
Dec 23, 2015EF424 mi75.09 mi9 / 36
Feb 5, 2008EF322 mi31.13 mi3 / 14
Nov 27, 1994F314 mi16 mi3 / 25
Jan 19, 1988F35 mi22 mi3 / 24
Apr 3, 2025EF312 mi39.55 mi2 / 3
Apr 24, 1970F315 mi10.4 mi0 / 3
Apr 24, 1970F318 mi12.3 mi0 / 18
Apr 24, 1970F311 mi17 mi0 / 5
Feb 5, 2008EF218 mi10.24 mi3 / 13
Mar 31, 2023EF224 mi12.78 mi0 / 0
Jan 11, 2020EF218 mi8.21 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 88, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Rossville

The Storm Prediction Center has 47 hail reports within 10 miles of Rossville since 1956, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 7, 2006. The most recent report is from May 2, 2025. April has the most reports, 14.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Rossville

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Moscow, TN, 7 miles east of Rossville at 335 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 51°F and 30°F. May is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.8 inches; the year adds up to 54.9 inches over 62 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 46% of the year's precipitation (25.1 of 54.9 inches); the other six months are wetter. August has brought the most of the 10 tropical systems that passed within 75 miles (4); a normal August there has highs of 90°F and 4.6 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 55 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 66 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.9 inches a year, most of it in February. That 54.9 inches is more than at 48 of the 122 Tennessee stations used on this site (39%). Collierville, 8 miles west, has its own station (Collierville, TN): 57.0 inches a year, 2.1 more than here, and a July average high of 91°F against 90°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Moscow, TN
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Snow in
Jan51304.050.6
Feb55334.451.0
Mar64405.560.2
Apr73505.060.1
May80605.660.0
Jun87674.350.0
Jul90714.160.0
Aug90704.640.0
Sep85623.850.0
Oct75494.450.0
Nov64393.950.0
Dec53335.350.0
Year725054.9621.9

Averages for 1991–2020 at Moscow, TN (335 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.

Tennessee weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Rossville

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 84 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rossville: 65 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 4 floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 8, and the NWS estimated $2.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on March 31, 2023. July has had the most flash floods, 4 of 14. Of the 339 Tennessee cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 172 have had fewer than Rossville.

  • March 31, 2007: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Rossville — 6 injured, $500,000 damage.

  • November 8, 2000: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Rossville — 1 injured, $40,000 damage.

  • July 20, 2000: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Rossville — 1 injured, $5,000 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 Rossville's ZIP code 38066 have filed 11 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1984, and were paid $77,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 55% 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, 7 have fewer than Rossville.

Fayette County, which includes Rossville, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1994, 17 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 winter storms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm, on February 6, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Fayette County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $29.7 million a year, the 21st highest of 95 Tennessee counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.8 million (20%), 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 Rossville