NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Valley, 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
23 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Valley, Alabama since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 117 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 23
- Tornadoes
- 117
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
49 deaths in all
What the records show for Valley
None of the 23 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Valley; the strongest was Eloise in 1975, a tropical storm with 72 mph winds when its centre passed 33 miles away. The record near Valley begins with an unnamed storm in 1852; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 64 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 6 systems. None of the 23 systems has come since 2000. Valley has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 61% of the 323 Alabama cities on this site. The highest rating among the 117 tornadoes within 25 miles is EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 3, 2019, came within 16 miles. Of the 117, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 66 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 31. The most recent tornado was on May 3, 2025. Of the 323 Alabama cities, 60% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Valley. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 58 times since 1965, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Valley has more hail reports within 10 miles than 50% of the 323 Alabama cities.
Compare Valley's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Valley
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1975 | EloiseSep 23 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (72 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1965 | Unnamed 1965 stormJun 15 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1928 | Unnamed 1928 stormAug 15 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1926 | Unnamed 1926 stormJul 29 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormSep 4 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1912 | Unnamed 1912 stormJun 14 | 32 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1907 | Unnamed 1907 stormSep 22 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormJun 13 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1903 | Unnamed 1903 stormSep 15 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormOct 11 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 28 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1901 | Unnamed 1901 stormSep 18 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormOct 3 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1898 | Unnamed 1898 stormSep 1 | overhead | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1896 | Unnamed 1896 stormJul 8 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1893 | Unnamed 1893 stormOct 3 | 4 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1889 | Unnamed 1889 stormSep 23 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1887 | Unnamed 1887 stormJul 28 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1882 | Unnamed 1882 stormSep 10 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1881 | Unnamed 1881 stormAug 28 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1859 | Unnamed 1859 stormSep 16 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1852 | Unnamed 1852 stormAug 27 | 7 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 Valley: 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 Valley
By decade
- 2020s13(2 EF3+)
- 2010s37(3 EF3+)
- 2000s16
- 1990s14
- 1980s11
- 1970s14(1 EF3+)
- 1960s6
- 1950s6(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 3, 2019 | EF4 | 16 mi | 68.04 mi | 23 / 90 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | EF4 | 22 mi | 44.18 mi | 7 / 30 |
| Apr 18, 1953 | F3 | 17 mi | 39.8 mi | 8 / 495 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF3 | 23 mi | 82.31 mi | 7 / 16 |
| Mar 19, 1970 | F3 | 4 mi | 2 mi | 2 / 14 |
| Mar 26, 2023 | EF3 | 8 mi | 21.54 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 29, 2014 | EF3 | 16 mi | 11.45 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Dec 5, 1954 | F3 | 3 mi | 51 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 21 mi | 34.04 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Mar 5, 1989 | F2 | 20 mi | 45.5 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 16 mi | 35.82 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Jan 12, 2023 | EF2 | 19 mi | 20.74 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 117, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Valley
The Storm Prediction Center has 58 hail reports within 10 miles of Valley since 1965, made on 46 separate days. Of these, 36 were 1 inch across or larger, and 5 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently April 15, 2011. The most recent report is from August 18, 2024. April has the most reports, 20.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Valley
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is W Pt, GA, 8 miles north of Valley at 575 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 56°F and 32°F. December is the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 52.6 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. June to November, the hurricane season months, bring 45% of the year's precipitation (23.8 of 52.6 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 84°F and 3.7 inches of precipitation. Highs reach 90°F on about 57 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 56 nights a year. That 52.6 inches is more than at 8 of the 107 Alabama stations used on this site (7%). Salem, 13 miles south, has its own station (Columbus Metro Airport, GA): 48.8 inches a year, 3.8 less than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56 | 32 | 4.9 | 7 |
| Feb | 60 | 35 | 4.7 | 7 |
| Mar | 67 | 41 | 5.3 | 6 |
| Apr | 75 | 48 | 4.6 | 5 |
| May | 82 | 57 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Jun | 88 | 65 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Jul | 90 | 69 | 4.7 | 7 |
| Aug | 89 | 68 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 84 | 63 | 3.7 | 5 |
| Oct | 75 | 50 | 3.1 | 4 |
| Nov | 66 | 40 | 4.4 | 5 |
| Dec | 58 | 35 | 5.4 | 7 |
| Year | 74 | 50 | 52.6 | 71 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at W Pt, GA (575 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 Valley
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 103 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Valley: 88 thunderstorm wind reports, 9 flash floods, 5 lightning strikes and 1 flood. They killed 2 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $650,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on March 18, 2013. October has had the most flash floods, 3 of 9. Of the 321 Alabama cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 105 have had fewer than Valley.
June 17, 2016: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Valley — 1 killed, $100,000 damage.
July 21, 2017: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Valley — 1 killed.
June 19, 2010: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Valley — 1 injured.
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
Chambers County, which includes Valley, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1970, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 8 hurricanes, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes, on May 5, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Chambers County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.9 million a year, the 42nd highest of 67 Alabama counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.0 million (55%), 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.