PlainHazard

Winston County, Mississippi

County storm and disaster record · FIPS 28159 · population 17,714 · 607 sq mi

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 448 records for Winston County, Mississippi from 1950 through June 30, 2026, on 317 days; the most frequent are severe thunderstorm wind events (186 records). The deadliest single record is the April 28, 2014 tornado: 10 deaths, 81 injuries and $151 million in damage in 2025 dollars. FEMA has issued 18 declarations naming the county since 1977, 16 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
448on 317 days, 1950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded
1495 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$340Mas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes
36strongest EF5
FEMA declarations
18latest 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 Winston County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 186 since 1964. 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.

Winston County: records by hazard, 1950 to June 30, 2026
HazardRecordsDaysFirst, lastKilledInjuredDamageRank in state
Severe thunderstorm wind 186 143 1964-2026 0 0 $18M 51 of 82
Hail 131 94 1970-2026 0 1 $4.5M 25 of 82
Tornadoes 36 23 1951-2025 13 93 $166M 61 of 82
Floods 34 32 1997-2023 0 0 $4.4M 41 of 82
Winter storms 25 25 1996-2025 0 0 $2.6M 33 of 82
Drought 16 16 2006-2026 0 0 $6.8M 42 of 82
Heat 5 5 2005-2010 0 0 – 58 of 82
High wind and dust storms 5 5 2008-2024 0 0 $63K 54 of 82
Hurricanes and tropical storms 5 5 2004-2021 1 1 $136M 43 of 82
Extreme cold 2 2 2010-2026 0 0 $271K 61 of 82
Heavy rain 1 1 2015-2015 0 0 – 30 of 82
Lightning 1 1 2007-2007 0 0 $427K 72 of 82
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds 1 1 2005-2005 0 0 – 39 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 Winston County had?

NOAA records 36 tornadoes in Winston County from 1951 to 2025, the strongest rated EF5, with 13 deaths and 93 injuries recorded in the county. 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 36 tornadoes whose track touched Winston County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 36, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 17 people, 13 of them in Winston County.

The deadliest and strongest tornadoes that touched Winston County, whole tracks
DateTornadoRatingPathKilled
2014-04-28 14:51, as SPC files itLouisvilleEF433.39 mi10
2011-04-27 13:30, as SPC files itPrestonEF528.28 mi3
1977-02-23 16:00, as SPC files itLouisvilleF415 mi2
2004-11-24 02:25, as SPC files itUnnamedF321 mi1
2002-11-10 19:20, as SPC files itCrawfordCrossed AL, MSF151 mi1

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Mississippi.

Every tornado record filed for Winston County (36)
Every tornado recorded in Winston County, newest first
DatePlaceCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2025-01-05 Boon, Winston County EF1 4.26 mi x 250 yd 0 0 $40K
2022-11-29 High Pt, Winston County EF1 4.44 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $10K
2022-04-13 Winston County EF1 1.74 mi x 700 yd 0 0 $3K
2022-04-13 Loakfoma, Winston County EF1 3.62 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $2K
2022-04-13 Noxapater, Winston County EF1 15.77 mi x 1,500 yd 0 0 $126K
2019-04-18 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF1 0.13 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $1K
2019-04-18 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF0 1.35 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $2K
2019-04-18 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF1 2.91 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $17K
2019-04-18 Noxapater, Winston County EF0 6.08 mi x 800 yd 0 0 $6K
2019-04-18 Noxapater, Winston County EF0 9.25 mi x 1,000 yd 0 0 $12K
2019-04-18 Noxapater, Winston County EF1 1.34 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $35K
2019-04-13 Loakfoma, Winston County EF2 2.06 mi x 830 yd 0 0 $127K
2018-11-01 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF0 2.03 mi x 75 yd 0 0 $82K
2018-04-14 Noxapater, Winston County EF1 0.81 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $65K
2016-11-29 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF1 2.31 mi x 170 yd 0 0 $184K
2016-02-15 Hinze, Winston County EF1 2.51 mi x 200 yd 0 0 $55K
2015-11-18 Rural Hill, Winston County EF1 1.69 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $25K
2015-11-18 Hinze, Winston County EF1 2.21 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $10K
2015-11-18 Zama, Winston County EF1 2.47 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $5K
2015-05-25 High Pt, Winston County EF0 0.94 mi x 25 yd 0 0 $25K
2014-04-28 Zama, Winston County EF4 25.01 mi x 1,320 yd 10 81 $151M
2011-04-27 Louisvll Winston Arp, Winston County EF1 7.35 mi x 200 yd 0 0 $341K
2011-04-27 Rural Hill, Winston County EF1 4.2 mi x 150 yd 0 0 $308K
2011-04-27 Fearns Spgs, Winston County EF5 4.24 mi x 900 yd 0 0 $131K
2008-04-18 Louisville, Winston County EF1 8.87 mi x 500 yd 0 1 $4.2M
2008-04-18 Zama, Winston County EF1 3.67 mi x 75 yd 0 0 $274K
2004-11-24 Noxapater, Winston County F3 12 mi x 600 yd 1 2 $3.9M
2002-11-10 Louisville, Winston County F1 15 mi x 500 yd 0 0 $328K
2002-11-10 Louisville, Winston County F1 12.5 mi x 400 yd 0 0 $25K
1995-04-20 Louisville, Winston County F2 1 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $39K
1985-05-01 Winston County F2 1 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250K step
1977-02-23 Winston County F4 15 mi x 350 yd 2 5 $250K step
1973-01-18 Winston County F2 3.3 mi x 400 yd 0 0 $250K step
1957-11-07 Winston County F1 0 0 $25K step
1957-04-04 Winston County F2 40.7 mi x 200 yd 0 4 $25K step
1951-12-20 Winston County 0 0 $25K step

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 Winston County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the February 15, 2025 thunderstorm wind ($3,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

The 12 most recent records kept for Winston County
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-22 Thunderstorm WindNoxapater, Winston County 54 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtWinston County · forecast zone Winston 0 0 –
2026-05-01 DroughtWinston County · forecast zone Winston 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailFearns Spgs, Winston County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailJoseph, Winston County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailLouisville, Winston County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-04-28 HailRural Hill, Winston County 1.00 in hail 0 0 –
2026-01-25 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillWinston County · forecast zone Winston 0 0 –
2025-10-18 Thunderstorm WindNoxapater, Winston County 55 kt wind 0 0 –
2025-10-18 Thunderstorm WindLouisville, Winston County 55 kt wind 0 0 –
2025-05-25 Thunderstorm WindLouisville, Winston County 50 kt wind 0 0 –
2025-05-24 Thunderstorm WindLouisville, Winston County 55 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 Winston County, most deaths first
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2014-04-28 TornadoZama, Winston County This tornado first touched down in northeastern Leake County, where the damage was mostly downed trees. As the tornado approached the 4 corners intersection of Leake, Attala, Neshoba, and Winston Counties, it strengthened and began to impact structures. Several mobile homes, medal buildings and single family homes ... EF4 25.01 mi x 1,320 yd 10 81 $151M
1977-02-23 TornadoWinston County F4 15 mi x 350 yd 2 5 $250K step
2004-11-24 TornadoNoxapater, Winston County This strong tornado moved into Winston county from Neshoba county and tracked northeast for 12 miles before moving into Noxubee county. Just inside the Winston county line four large chicken houses were destroyed. As the tornado tracked northeast across State Route 393 and 397, a few hundred trees were uprooted and ... F3 12 mi x 600 yd 1 2 $3.9M
2004-09-16 Hurricane (Typhoon)Winston County · forecast zone Winston Hurricane Ivan made landfall at 2:02 AM, September 16, near Gulf Shores, Alabama as a upper Category 3 hurricane. The western side of Ivan effected a large portion of Eastern Mississippi as the center moved north through Alabama. Thousands of trees were blown down across Eastern Mississippi during the event as well as ... 1 0 $195K
1957-04-04 TornadoWinston County F2 40.7 mi x 200 yd 0 4 $25K step
2008-04-18 TornadoLouisville, Winston County This tornado touched down just on the southern side of Louisville and tracked northeast across the eastern side of the city and dissipated about 6 miles northeast of town. Numerous trees were snapped and uprooted along the path. Seven homes sustained significant damage as well as the Island Plaza apartments. The ... EF1 8.87 mi x 500 yd 0 1 $4.2M
2005-08-29 Hurricane (Typhoon)Winston County · forecast zone Winston Hurricane Katrina will likely go down as the worst and costliest natural disaster in United States history. The amount of destruction, the cost of damaged property/agriculture and the large loss of life across the affected region has been overwhelming. Catastrophic damage was widespread across a large portion of the ... 0 1 $136M
1986-07-30 HailWinston County 1.75 in hail 0 1 –

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 Winston County since 1993, damage in 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2014-04-28 TornadoZama, Winston County EF4 25.01 mi x 1,320 yd 10 81 $151M
2005-08-29 Hurricane (Typhoon)Winston County · forecast zone Winston 0 1 $136M
2006-03-09 Thunderstorm WindLouisville, Winston County 80 kt wind 0 0 $15M
2008-04-18 TornadoLouisville, Winston County EF1 8.87 mi x 500 yd 0 1 $4.2M
2004-11-24 TornadoNoxapater, Winston County F3 12 mi x 600 yd 1 2 $3.9M
2023-07-13 Flash FloodHigh Pt, Winston County 0 0 $2.4M
2014-04-28 HailRural Hill, Winston County 3.00 in hail 0 0 $1.9M
2023-06-14 HailLouisville, Winston County 2.00 in hail 0 0 $1.1M

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 $250K, in the dollars of the day) holds: February 23, 1977 (tornado, Winston County, 2 killed); January 18, 1973 (tornado, Winston County); May 1, 1985 (tornado, Winston 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 Winston 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).

Winston County: records per decade (the 2020s to June 30, 2026)
Hazard1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020-26
Severe thunderstorm wind025924475346
Hail001442343119
Tornadoes302115195
Floods––––171016
Winter storms––––33118
Drought––––0754

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 Winston County. The two busiest months are in violet.

The values, month by month

Jan 33 · Feb 34 · Mar 42 · Apr 105 · May 37 · Jun 42 · Jul 43 · Aug 34 · Sep 9 · Oct 23 · Nov 25 · Dec 21 (records).

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

Federal disaster declarations for Winston County

FEMA's register lists 18 declarations that include Winston County: 13 major disasters, 5 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for hurricane (7) and severe storm (4).

Declarations including Winston County, newest first
DeclaredNumberTypeTitle
2026-02-06DR-4899Winter StormSevere Winter Storm
2026-01-24EM-3640Winter StormSevere Winter Storm
2021-10-22DR-4626HurricaneHurricane Ida
2021-08-28EM-3569HurricaneHurricane Ida
2021-05-04DR-4598Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2020-04-05DR-4528BiologicalCovid-19 Pandemic
2020-03-13EM-3474BiologicalCovid-19
2014-04-30DR-4175Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding
2012-08-29DR-4081HurricaneHurricane Isaac
2011-04-29DR-1972Severe StormSevere Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Associated Flooding
2008-08-30EM-3291HurricaneHurricane Gustav
2005-08-29DR-1604HurricaneHurricane Katrina
2005-07-10DR-1594HurricaneHurricane Dennis
2004-09-15DR-1550HurricaneHurricane Ivan
2001-02-23DR-1360Severe StormSevere Storms and Tornadoes
1999-01-25DR-1265Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms, Ice and Freezing Rain
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 Winston County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 34 flood or flash flood records for Winston County from 1997 to 2023, on 32 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Winston County ranks 1944th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

Named storms on Winston County's flood and tropical record
StormBeganRecordsDeaths in the county
Hurricane Ivan2004-09-1611
Hurricane Katrina2005-08-2920
Hurricane Dennis2005-07-1010

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $545,000 on 28 claims filed in Winston County; the most in one year was 8 in 2023. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

The values, year by year

1979: 2 · 1980: 1 · 1982: 1 · 1983: 4 · 2001: 1 · 2004: 5 · 2005: 3 · 2006: 1 · 2009: 2 · 2023: 8; 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 Winston County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Winston County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $7.7 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 Winston County (December 2025 release), by FEMA's rating, then score
HazardRisk ratingExpected annual lossModeled frequency
TornadoRelatively Moderate$2.3Monce in about 2 years (modeled)
Strong WindRelatively Moderate$742K2.6 a year (modeled)
HurricaneRelatively Low$456Konce in about 14 years (modeled)
EarthquakeRelatively Low$447Konce in about 378 years (modeled)
HailRelatively Low$296K3.5 a year (modeled)
Heat WaveRelatively Low$421K12 modeled event-days a year
Cold WaveRelatively Low$889K1.1 a year (modeled)
Ice StormRelatively Low$82Kabout once a year (modeled)

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

Counties that share a border with Winston County

  1. Neshoba County 680
  2. Leake County 610
  3. Attala County 516
  4. Oktibbeha County 497
  5. Winston County 448
  6. Kemper County 398
  7. Noxubee County 391
  8. 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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