Mississippi natural disasters

The state's storm and disaster record · population 2,953,138 · 82 counties and county equivalents

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 42,127 storm events in Mississippi since 1950, 35,448 of them since 1996 when every event type began to be recorded, and the Storm Prediction Center counts 2,883 tornadoes in the state since 1950. The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events (18,161). In NOAA's storm record since 1950, the deadliest storm in Mississippi is Hurricane Katrina (August 28, 2005): 181 deaths, 104 injuries and $22 billion in damage in 2025 dollars across 55 records filed by several offices. FEMA has made 99 declarations for Mississippi since 1953, 95 for natural hazards; 78 were major disasters.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm events recorded in Mississippi 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 $1 million
$1 million or more
$10 million or more
$100 million or more, or 10 deaths
$1 billion or more, or 100 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 events recorded: 42,1271950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded: 9287,911 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars: $50.4Bas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes (SPC): 2,8831950 to 2025
FEMA declarations: 9978 major disasters

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026 (file revision 20260918); tornado count: NOAA Storm Prediction Center, 1950-2025; damage in 2025 dollars (BLS CPI-U). Search the record at NCEI.

What natural disasters happen in Mississippi?

By NOAA's records, Mississippi's most frequent hazards are severe thunderstorm wind events (18,161), hail reports (8,457), floods and flash floods (3,812); the deadliest are tornadoes (537 deaths). Each hazard is counted over the years NOAA has recorded it everywhere: tornadoes since 1950, hail and thunderstorm wind since 1955, everything else since 1996. Open a hazard for its years, months, counties and worst events.

Mississippi: records by hazard to June 30, 2026
Hazard	Records	Last 10 years	Killed	Injured	Damage	Counties
Severe thunderstorm wind	18,161	5,050	45	347	$661M	82 of 82
Hail	8,457	1,213	0	19	$964M	82 of 82
Floods	3,812	1,502	26	22	$2.3B	82 of 82
Tornadoes	3,532	1,063	537	7,200	$7.0B	82 of 82
Heat	2,741	2,106	40	8	$112K	82 of 82
Winter storms	1,854	733	33	115	$142M	82 of 82
Drought	1,382	560	0	0	$1.2B	82 of 82
High wind and dust storms	670	243	9	12	$25M	77 of 82
Hurricanes and tropical storms	552	167	186	108	$38.0B	80 of 82
Lightning	393	84	21	53	$30M	77 of 82
Extreme cold	338	247	28	3	$27M	78 of 82
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds	141	18	1	21	$709K	45 of 82
Heavy rain	87	26	2	3	$407K	39 of 82
Wildfires	5	4	0	0	$29K	4 of 82
Rip currents and high surf	1	0	0	0	–	1 of 82
Landslides and avalanches	1	1	0	0	$27K	1 of 82

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: every record counted once in the state; "last 10 years" is 2017-2026 (2026 to June 30, 2026).

What were the deadliest disasters in Mississippi?

The storms with the most deaths since 1950, from the National Weather Service's own entries. NOAA files one storm as several records when it crosses forecast zones and counties or changes type, and groups them under one episode; each row here is an episode, with its totals and the narrative of its deadliest record. Before 1996 tornado records carry no episode and stand alone. The narrative says what happened: some deaths the National Weather Service files under a weather type had another cause beside the weather.

Mississippi: the 10 storm episodes with the most deaths
Date	Record	Character	Killed	Injured	Damage
2005-08-28	Hurricane Katrina · Hurricane (Typhoon)Harrison County · forecast zone Harrison One named storm filed by several offices: 55 records in 2 episodes, 2005-08-28 to 2005-08-29; the totals are the storm's. Hurricane Katrina was one of the strongest and most destructive hurricanes on record to impact the coast of the United States. It will likely be recorded as one the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States to date resulting in catastrophic damage and numerous casualties in southeast Louisiana and ...		181	104	$22.3B
1971-02-21	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Oxford, killed 58 (SPC) · TornadoHumphreys County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (23, in 15 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F4 17.8 mi x 33 yd	110	1,469	$239M
1966-03-03	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Jackson, killed 57 in the state (58 on its whole track, SPC) · TornadoHinds County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (3, in 3 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F5 27.8 mi x 33 yd	57	504	$25M step
1953-12-05	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Vicksburg, killed 38 (SPC) · TornadoWarren County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (2, in 2 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F5 9 mi x 500 yd	38	281	$25M step
2011-04-27	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Smithville, killed 16 in the state (23 on its whole track, SPC) · TornadoSmithville, Monroe County One named storm filed by several offices: 88 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. A stationary front remained draped across Southern Missouri into Western Kentucky from April 24th, 2011 into April 25th, 2011. A very warm and unstable atmosphere was in place across the Mid-South ahead of the front. A low pressure system developed along the front and interacted with the unstable environment which ...	EF5 6.05 mi x 1,320 yd	34	136	$48M
1969-01-23	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Hazlehurst to Puckett, killed 32 (SPC) · TornadoSimpson County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (6, in 6 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F4 23 mi x 200 yd	32	241	$250K step
2023-03-24	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Rolling Fork to Tchula, killed 17 (SPC) · TornadoEgremont, Sharkey County One named storm filed by several offices: 22 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. In the afternoon and evening of the 24th, clusters of strong to severe storms were stretched from southwest to northeast across southeastern Arkansas as robust instability and very strong wind shear served to produce a volatile severe weather environment. To the east in Mississippi, storm activity proved to be more ...	EF4 18.87 mi x 1,320 yd	22	226	$186M
1984-04-21	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, New Albany, killed 15 (SPC) · TornadoYalobusha County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (10, in 7 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F3 25 mi x 10 yd	15	76	$25M step
2020-04-12	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Bassfield to Pachuta, killed 7 (SPC) · TornadoHebron, Jones County One named storm filed by several offices: 29 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. An outbreak of severe weather occurred on Easter Sunday, 2020. This was a multifaceted event with a few different waves of activity, each of which brought their own unique hazardous weather to the residents of the region. This outbreak had a total of 20 tornadoes across the NWS Jackson service area. Of these, two ...	EF4 16.04 mi x 3,520 yd	13	107	$120M
1958-02-26	Tornadoes of the day; the deadliest, Jackson, killed 8 (SPC) · TornadoMadison County Every tornado record filed in the state that day (18, in 16 places; before 1996 NOAA filed no storm episodes); the totals are the day's.	F3 10 mi x 60 yd	13	90	$250K 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: deaths direct and indirect, as filed in this state, summed over the records of each episode (EPISODE_ID); a forecast-zone record counts the zone's deaths once. A tornado's whole-track deaths (SPC), on the state's tornado page, can be higher when the track crossed a state line. Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest records in Mississippi

Mississippi: the 8 records with the most damage since 1993, 2025 dollars
Date	Record	Killed	Damage
2005-08-29	Storm Surge/TideHarrison County · forecast zone Harrison	0	$8.5B
2005-08-29	Storm Surge/TideHancock County · forecast zone Hancock	0	$5.1B
2005-08-28	Hurricane (Typhoon)Harrison County · forecast zone Harrison	97	$4.4B
2005-08-29	Storm Surge/TideJackson County · forecast zone Jackson	0	$3.4B
2005-08-28	Hurricane (Typhoon)Hancock County · forecast zone Hancock	56	$2.2B
2005-08-28	Hurricane (Typhoon)Jackson County · forecast zone Jackson	13	$1.7B
2011-05-01	FloodJeffries, Tunica County	0	$1.3B
2005-08-29	Hurricane (Typhoon)Forrest County and Jones County · forecast zone Forrest	0	$1.3B

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: March 3, 1966 (tornado, Hinds County, 57 killed); December 5, 1953 (tornado, Warren County, 38 killed); November 21, 1992 (tornado, Rankin County, 10 killed); February 21, 1971 (tornado, Sharkey County, 9 killed); April 21, 1984 (tornado, Yalobusha County, 7 killed).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars with the BLS CPI-U. BLS consumer price index.

Which counties in Mississippi have the most records?

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950 attributed to each county (forecast-zone records count on every county the zone covers).

Every county in Mississippi

Billion-dollar disasters in Mississippi

NOAA counted 108 weather or climate disasters from 1980-2024 that cost at least $1 billion (adjusted for inflation) and affected Mississippi, led by severe storm (50). The most recent: Hurricane Francine (2024); Central, Southern, Southeastern Tornado Outbreak (2024); Southern and Eastern Severe Weather (2024).

Mississippi: billion-dollar disasters by type, 1980-2024
Type	Events	Total cost (NOAA's range)
Severe Storm	50	$5.0B-$10.0B
Tropical Cyclone	22	$50.0B-$100.0B
Drought	17	$5.0B-$10.0B
Winter Storm	10	$2.0B-$5.0B
Flooding	5	$2.0B-$5.0B
Freeze	3	$100M-$250M
Wildfire	1	$5M-$100M

Every one of the 108, newest first

Hurricane Francine2024
Central, Southern, Southeastern Tornado Outbreak2024
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2024
Central, Southern, Northeastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2024
Southern Tornado Outbreak and East Coast Storm2024
Southern/Eastern/Northwestern Drought and Heat Wave2024
Central and Southern Severe Weather2023
Southern Severe Weather2023
Southern/Midwestern Drought and Heatwave2023
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Southern and Eastern Severe Weather2023
Central and Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2022
Southern Severe Weather2022
Southeast Tornado Outbreak2022
Southern Tornado Outbreak2022
Western/Central Drought and Heat Wave2022
Hurricane Ida2021
Southern Tornadoes and Southeast Severe Weather2021
Eastern Severe Weather2021
Southeast Tornadoes and Severe Weather2021
Northwest, Central, Eastern Winter Storm and Cold Wave2021
Hurricane Zeta2020
Hurricane Delta2020
Hurricane Sally2020
Hurricane Laura2020
Southern Severe Weather2020
Southeast and Eastern Tornado Outbreak2020
Tennessee Tornadoes and Southeast Severe Weather2020
South, East and Northeast Severe Weather2020
Southeast Tornadoes and Northern Storms and Flooding2020
South and Southeast Severe Weather2019
Southern and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather2019
Mississippi River, Midwest and Southern Flooding2019
Southeast, Ohio Valley and Northeast Severe Weather2019
Southern and Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Weather2018
Hurricane Harvey2017
Missouri and Arkansas Flooding and Central Severe Weather2017
South/Southeast Severe Weather2017
Southeast Freeze2017
Southern Tornado Outbreak and Western Storms2017
Southern Severe Weather2016
Southeast and Eastern Tornadoes2016
West/Northeast/Southeast Drought2016
Texas Tornadoes and Midwest Flooding2015
South and Southeast Severe Weather2015
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Tornadoes and Flooding2014
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Winter Storm2014
Southeast Severe Weather2013
Hurricane Isaac2012
U.S. Drought/Heat Wave2012
Tropical Storm Lee2011
Southeast/Ohio Valley/Midwest Tornadoes2011
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes2011
Mississippi River flooding2011
Southern Plains/Southwest Drought and Heat Wave2011
Midwest, South and East Severe Weather2009
Midwest/Southeast Tornadoes2009
Hurricane Gustav2008
Southeast Tornadoes and Severe Weather2008
U.S. Drought2008
Western/Eastern Drought/Heat Wave2007
East/South Severe Weather and Flooding2007
Spring Freeze2007
Severe Storms and Tornadoes2006
Midwest/Plains/Southeast Drought2006
Numerous Wildfires2006
Hurricane Rita2005
Hurricane Katrina2005
Hurricane Dennis2005
Southeast Severe Weather2005
Hurricane Ivan2004
Southern Derecho and Eastern Severe Weather2003
Severe Storms/Tornadoes2003
Severe Storms/Hail2003
Eastern Tornadoes and Severe Storms2002
Tropical Storm Isidore2002
Hurricane Lili2002
Severe Storms and Tornadoes2002
Tropical Storm Allison2001
Western/Central/Southeast Drought/Heat Wave2000
Eastern Drought/Heat Wave1999
Oklahoma and Kansas Tornadoes1999
Central and Eastern Winter Storm1999
Hurricane Georges1998
Southern Drought and Heat Wave1998
Western/Eastern Severe Weather and Flooding1997
Mississippi and Ohio Valley Severe Weather and Flooding1997
Hurricane Erin1995
Central, Southern and Northeast Drought/Heat Wave1995
South Plains Severe Weather1995
Southeast Ice Storm1994
East Coast Blizzard and Severe Weather1993
Southeast Severe Weather1992
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1989
Tropical Storm Allison1989
Southern Derecho and Severe Storms1989
U.S. Drought/Heat Wave1988
Southeast Drought/Heat Wave1986
Hurricane Juan1985
Hurricane Elena1985
Winter Storm, Cold Wave1985
Freeze/Cold Wave1983
Southeast Drought1983
Gulf States Storms and Flooding1982
Midwest/Plains/Southeast Tornadoes1982
Midwest/Southeast/Northeast Winter Storm, Cold Wave1982
Central/Eastern Drought/Heat Wave1980
Southern Severe Storms and Flooding1980

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters, state summary for Mississippi, 1980-2024 (NCEI's last update; the product is archived). A disaster that affected several states counts in each. NCEI billion-dollar disasters.

Federal disaster declarations in Mississippi

FEMA has made 99 declarations for Mississippi since 1953: 78 major disasters, 21 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. The most common incident types are severe storm (43), hurricane (24), tornado (12).

1950s 1
1960s 4
1970s 13
1980s 8
1990s 13
2000s 17
2010s 20
2020s 23

The 15 most recent declarations in Mississippi
Declared	Number	Type	Title	Areas named
2026-08-03	DR-4930	Tropical Storm	Tropical Storm Arthur	9
2026-06-30	DR-4922	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding	5
2026-02-06	DR-4899	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	83
2026-01-24	EM-3640	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	83
2025-05-21	DR-4874	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding	18
2024-06-10	DR-4790	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding	6
2023-08-12	DR-4727	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes.	30
2023-03-26	DR-4697	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes	7
2022-08-30	EM-3582	Other	Water Crisis	1
2021-10-22	DR-4626	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	82
2021-08-28	EM-3569	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	83
2021-05-04	DR-4598	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms	37
2020-12-31	DR-4576	Hurricane	Hurricane Zeta	8
2020-10-28	EM-3550	Hurricane	Hurricane Zeta	13
2020-10-08	EM-3548	Hurricane	Hurricane Delta	29

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.

Flood insurance claims in Mississippi

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $3.1 billion on 62,876 claims in 80 Mississippi counties. Claims count insured losses only.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk across Mississippi's counties

How FEMA's National Risk Index rates Mississippi's counties overall: a model of expected future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of events.

Relatively High 1
Relatively Moderate 11
Relatively Low 39
Very Low 31

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