Attala County, Mississippi

County storm and disaster record · FIPS 28007 · population 17,868 · 735 sq mi

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 516 records for Attala County, Mississippi from 1950 through June 30, 2026, on 342 days; the most frequent are severe thunderstorm wind events (240 records). The deadliest single record is the June 3, 1950 tornado: 2 deaths and 1 injury. FEMA has issued 23 declarations naming the county since 1977, 21 of them for natural hazards; the latest for a natural hazard was “Severe Winter Storm” on February 6, 2026.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm records filed for the county each year (2026 to June 30, 2026). Before 1996 NOAA recorded only tornadoes (from 1950), thunderstorm wind and hail (from 1955).

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $100,000
  • $100,000 or more
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more, or a death
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
  • 1955: wind and hail recorded from 1955
  • 1996: all 48 event types from 1996
Storm records
516on 342 days, 1950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded
230 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$289Mas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes
53strongest F4
FEMA declarations
23latest 2026

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026 (file revision 20260918); damage converted to 2025 dollars with the BLS CPI-U. Search the record at NCEI. BLS consumer price index.

What hazards hit Attala County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 240 since 1959. The rank column places the county among Mississippi's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Attala County: records by hazard, 1950 to June 30, 2026
HazardRecordsDaysFirst, lastKilledInjuredDamageRank in state
Severe thunderstorm wind 240 186 1959-2026 0 0 $6.4M 45 of 82
Hail 131 85 1971-2026 0 0 $1.1M 49 of 82
Tornadoes 53 40 1950-2022 2 29 $161M 41 of 82
Floods 30 26 1996-2023 0 0 $4.2M 62 of 82
Winter storms 24 24 1996-2026 0 0 $2.2M 49 of 82
Drought 17 17 2006-2026 0 0 $7.1M 51 of 82
High wind and dust storms 7 7 2000-2025 0 0 $403K 49 of 82
Heat 5 5 2005-2010 0 0 – 74 of 82
Hurricanes and tropical storms 3 3 2002-2021 0 0 $106M 66 of 82
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds 3 2 2005-2022 0 0 – 26 of 82
Extreme cold 2 2 2010-2026 0 0 $203K 71 of 82
Lightning 1 1 2006-2006 0 1 $117K 77 of 82

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Attala County had?

NOAA records 53 tornadoes in Attala County from 1950 to 2022, the strongest rated F4, with 2 deaths and 29 injuries recorded in the county. That is 41st of 82 Mississippi counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 51 tornadoes whose track touched Attala County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 53: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 14 people, 2 of them in Attala County.

The deadliest and strongest tornadoes that touched Attala County, whole tracks
DateTornadoRatingPathKilled
2014-04-28 14:51, as SPC files itLouisvilleEF433.39 mi10
1963-03-11 17:25, as SPC files itFrench CampF445.2 mi2
1950-06-03 01:00, as SPC files itKosciuskoF32 mi2
1988-01-19 11:20, as SPC files itWeirF413 mi0
2011-01-01 00:02, as SPC files itSallisEF323.45 mi0
2010-11-29 21:38, as SPC files itKosciuskoEF39.6 mi0
2008-01-10 11:51, as SPC files itPickens to GoodmanEF39.73 mi0
2008-01-10 12:28, as SPC files itMcCoolEF323.59 mi0
1977-02-23 15:15, as SPC files itEthelF310.5 mi0
1967-12-02 08:30, as SPC files itFloraF382.3 mi0

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Mississippi.

Every tornado record filed for Attala County (53)
Every tornado recorded in Attala County, newest first
DatePlaceCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2022-03-30 Williamsville, Attala County EF1 5.71 mi x 700 yd 0 0 $151K
2022-03-22 Weeks, Attala County EF1 3.35 mi x 200 yd 0 0 $25K
2022-03-22 Sallis, Attala County EF1 1.53 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $15K
2022-03-22 Boyette, Attala County EF1 4.06 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $15K
2021-05-02 Possumneck, Attala County EF1 7.46 mi x 110 yd 0 0 $22K
2021-04-09 Kosciusko, Attala County EF1 0.92 mi x 250 yd 0 0 $163K
2020-04-12 Boyette, Attala County EF1 2.46 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $40K
2020-02-05 Ethel, Attala County EF2 3.89 mi x 800 yd 0 0 $285K
2020-02-05 Kosciusko Airport, Attala County EF1 1.66 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $57K
2020-02-05 Newport, Attala County EF2 9.87 mi x 900 yd 0 0 $29K
2019-12-29 Ethel, Attala County EF1 7.7 mi x 900 yd 0 0 $87K
2019-12-29 Kosciusko Airport, Attala County EF1 6.6 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $12K
2019-12-29 Bolatushu, Attala County EF0 1.22 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $2K
2019-12-29 Newport, Attala County EF1 4.76 mi x 400 yd 0 0 $29K
2019-04-13 Newport, Attala County EF0 0.28 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $23K
2019-04-13 Hesterville, Attala County EF1 0.51 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $23K
2018-03-28 Possumneck, Attala County EF1 1.87 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $35K
2017-04-30 Possumneck, Attala County EF1 3.85 mi x 600 yd 0 0 $72K
2014-04-28 Ethel, Attala County EF2 0.46 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $125K
2011-04-27 Ethel, Attala County EF1 0.49 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $33K
2011-04-27 Sallis, Attala County EF2 22.47 mi x 860 yd 0 0 $1.0M
2011-04-15 Hesterville, Attala County EF0 4.48 mi x 75 yd 0 0 $1K
2011-04-15 Possumneck, Attala County EF2 3.7 mi x 200 yd 0 2 $46K
2011-01-01 Boyette, Attala County EF3 23.45 mi x 1,300 yd 0 2 $6.6M
2010-11-29 Newport, Attala County EF3 7.65 mi x 400 yd 0 6 $1.5M
2010-04-24 Boyette, Attala County EF2 30.1 mi x 1,920 yd 0 0 $87M
2008-12-09 Boyette, Attala County EF1 2.3 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $411K
2008-01-10 Ethel, Attala County EF3 13.17 mi x 880 yd 0 0 $2.1M
2008-01-10 Boyette, Attala County EF1 2.16 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $233K
2005-09-25 Kosciusko, Attala County F0 2 mi x 75 yd 0 0 $98K
2004-12-07 Ethel, Attala County F0 4 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $31K
2002-11-10 Kosciusko, Attala County F2 3 mi x 1,000 yd 0 0 $33K
2002-11-10 Boyette, Attala County F2 3 mi x 1,000 yd 0 0 $25K
2001-10-11 Sallis, Attala County F0 1 mi x 40 yd 0 0 $2K
1997-05-14 Mc Adams, Attala County F1 1.5 mi x 70 yd 0 0 $37K
1997-05-02 Hesterville, Attala County F1 2 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $7K
1992-11-22 Attala County F4 20 mi x 880 yd 0 12 $25M step
1992-08-26 Attala County F0 2 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $3K step
1988-11-26 Attala County F1 2.5 mi x 63 yd 0 0 –
1988-01-19 Attala County F4 13 mi x 700 yd 0 1 $2.5M step
1988-01-19 Attala County F1 1.5 mi x 40 yd 0 0 $250K step
1987-11-16 Attala County F1 2 mi x 80 yd 0 0 $25K step
1977-03-28 Attala County F1 3.3 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $25K step
1977-02-23 Attala County F3 10.5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $250K step
1974-06-05 Attala County F0 0 0 $30 step
1972-06-29 Attala County F1 0.5 mi x 33 yd 0 3 $25K step
1972-03-08 Attala County F1 0.2 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $3K step
1971-09-16 Attala County F1 0.1 mi x 17 yd 0 0 –
1969-03-23 Attala County F1 0.1 mi x 3 yd 0 0 $3K step
1965-07-26 Attala County F1 0 0 –
1963-03-11 Attala County F4 14.3 mi x 440 yd 0 2 $25K step
1950-06-03 Attala County F3 2 mi x 50 yd 2 1 –
1950-03-27 Attala County F2 11.9 mi x 33 yd 0 0 –

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Attala County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the March 23, 2025 hail ($10,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

The 12 most recent records kept for Attala County
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-22 Thunderstorm WindWilliamsville, Attala County 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-22 Thunderstorm WindKosciusko, Attala County 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 –
2026-05-01 DroughtAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 –
2026-04-28 Thunderstorm WindEthel, Attala County 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailEthel, Attala County 0.88 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailWilliamsville, Attala County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-01-25 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 –
2026-01-24 Ice StormAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 –
2025-08-20 Thunderstorm WindWamba, Attala County 55 kt wind 0 0 –
2025-05-25 Thunderstorm WindKosciusko Airport, Attala County 65 kt wind 0 0 –
2025-05-24 Thunderstorm WindEthel, Attala County 50 kt wind 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Records with deaths or injuries in Attala County, most deaths first
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1950-06-03 TornadoAttala County F3 2 mi x 50 yd 2 1 –
1992-11-22 TornadoAttala County F4 20 mi x 880 yd 0 12 $25M step
2010-11-29 TornadoNewport, Attala County The initial damage where the tornado developed was limited to some minor tree damage along Buddy Odom Road. The tornado tracked north northeast and rapidly became strong, with EF2 and low end EF3 damage occurring along the rest of the path. The tornado affected Shiloh and Buddy Odom Roads as well as State Highway 429 ... EF3 7.65 mi x 400 yd 0 6 $1.5M
1972-06-29 TornadoAttala County F1 0.5 mi x 33 yd 0 3 $25K step
2011-04-15 TornadoPossumneck, Attala County This strong tornado touched down along County Road 4101 in the Possumneck community and immediately produced significant damage. Along County Road 3011, a mobile home was completely obliterated with the remains of the structure scattered for 150 yards. Two men were seriously injured at this location with each thrown ... EF2 3.7 mi x 200 yd 0 2 $46K
2011-01-01 TornadoBoyette, Attala County The tornado began in the vicinity of State Highway 12, east southeast of Durant. The tornado moved roughly east-northeast, initially producing damage of EF1 intensity to trees, and damaging the roof of at least one home. As the tornado approached State Highway 19, it intensified and began causing extensive tree ... EF3 23.45 mi x 1,300 yd 0 2 $6.6M
1963-03-11 TornadoAttala County F4 14.3 mi x 440 yd 0 2 $25K step
2006-04-05 LightningKosciusko, Attala County Lighting struck a home in the Springdale Community and caused the water heater to explode. This explosion nearly destroyed the home and injured the owner who was asleep inside. 0 1 $117K

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

The costliest records in Attala County since 1993, damage in 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2005-08-29 Hurricane (Typhoon)Attala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 $106M
2011-01-01 TornadoBoyette, Attala County EF3 23.45 mi x 1,300 yd 0 2 $6.6M
2007-06-01 DroughtAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 $2.4M
2006-10-01 DroughtAttala County · forecast zone Attala 0 0 $2.2M
2008-01-10 TornadoEthel, Attala County EF3 13.17 mi x 880 yd 0 0 $2.1M
2001-02-16 Thunderstorm WindCountywide, Attala County 0 0 $2.0M
2001-04-04 Flash FloodCountywide, Attala County 0 0 $1.8M
2010-11-29 TornadoNewport, Attala County EF3 7.65 mi x 400 yd 0 6 $1.5M

Before 1993 NOAA filed damage by category, not amount, so the list above starts in 1993. The highest category filed here before then (entered as $25M, in the dollars of the day) holds: November 22, 1992 (tornado, Attala County).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Attala County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Attala County: records per decade (the 2020s to June 30, 2026)
Hazard1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020-26
Severe thunderstorm wind156930716058
Hail003421563710
Tornadoes2364481610
Floods––––211125
Winter storms––––34107
Drought––––0665

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

Records by month in Attala County. The two busiest months are in violet.

The values, month by month

Jan 33 · Feb 43 · Mar 53 · Apr 100 · May 60 · Jun 57 · Jul 35 · Aug 35 · Sep 18 · Oct 20 · Nov 32 · Dec 30 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Attala County

FEMA's register lists 23 declarations that include Attala County: 17 major disasters, 6 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (8) and hurricane (7).

Declarations including Attala County, newest first
DeclaredNumberTypeTitle
2026-02-06DR-4899Winter StormSevere Winter Storm
2026-01-24EM-3640Winter StormSevere Winter Storm
2023-08-12DR-4727Severe StormSevere Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes.
2021-10-22DR-4626HurricaneHurricane Ida
2021-08-28EM-3569HurricaneHurricane Ida
2021-05-04DR-4598Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2020-04-23DR-4538Severe StormSevere Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides
2020-04-05DR-4528BiologicalCovid-19 Pandemic
2020-03-13EM-3474BiologicalCovid-19
2012-08-29DR-4081HurricaneHurricane Isaac
2012-08-28EM-3348HurricaneTropical Storm Isaac
2011-04-29DR-1972Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Associated Flooding
2010-04-29DR-1906Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2008-08-30EM-3291HurricaneHurricane Gustav
2005-08-29DR-1604HurricaneHurricane Katrina
2005-07-10DR-1594HurricaneHurricane Dennis
2003-04-24DR-1459Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Floods
2001-04-17DR-1365Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2001-02-23DR-1360Severe StormSevere Storms and Tornadoes
1999-01-25DR-1265Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms, Ice and Freezing Rain
1992-11-25DR-968TornadoSevere Storms, High Winds & Tornadoes
1979-04-16DR-577Severe StormStorms, Tornadoes, Floods
1977-02-22EM-3032SnowstormDrought & Freezing

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Attala County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 30 flood or flash flood records for Attala County from 1996 to 2023, on 26 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Attala County ranks 1976th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

Named storms on Attala County's flood and tropical record
StormBeganRecordsDeaths in the county
Hurricane Katrina2005-08-2920

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $455,000 on 26 claims filed in Attala County; the most in one year was 10 in 2001. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

The values, year by year

1979: 1 · 1982: 1 · 1983: 1 · 1995: 1 · 1997: 1 · 2001: 10 · 2002: 1 · 2005: 2 · 2006: 2 · 2014: 1 · 2017: 2 · 2020: 1 · 2023: 2; the other years: 0.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Attala County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Attala County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $7.9 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

National Risk Index ratings for Attala County (December 2025 release), by FEMA's rating, then score
HazardRisk ratingExpected annual lossModeled frequency
TornadoRelatively Moderate$2.0Mabout once a year (modeled)
Strong WindRelatively Moderate$524K3 a year (modeled)
EarthquakeRelatively Low$569Konce in about 412 years (modeled)
HailRelatively Low$387K3.7 a year (modeled)
HurricaneRelatively Low$368Konce in about 13 years (modeled)
LandslideRelatively Low$2Kabout once a year (modeled)
DroughtRelatively Low$213K15 modeled event-days a year
Heat WaveRelatively Low$429K13 modeled event-days a year

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Attala County

  1. Madison County 909
  2. Neshoba County 680
  3. Yazoo County 674
  4. Leake County 610
  5. Attala County 516
  6. Holmes County 464
  7. Winston County 448
  8. Carroll County 404
  9. Montgomery County 331
  10. Choctaw County 289

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

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