Tennessee lightning
Every recorded lightning record since 1996 · 82 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 489 lightning records in Tennessee from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 16 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the May 9, 2024 lightning in Lawrence County: 3 deaths and $470,000 in damage in 2025 dollars. Tennessee ranks 13th of 52 states and territories by count and 18th of 51 per square mile.
Lightning in Tennessee, 1996 to 2026
Lightning records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- 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
- Records
- 4891996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 16average
- Deaths
- 24106 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $51Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 200638 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are lightning records common in Tennessee?
Tennessee averages about 16 lightning records a year since 2000, 13th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2006 (38). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Tennessee records 119 lightning records since 1996, 18th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Tennessee have the most lightning records?
Per square mile, Davidson County leads Tennessee: 43 days with a lightning record since 1996, 85.4 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Davidson County has the most lightning records (47 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is the lightning season in Tennessee?
44% of its lightning records since 1996 fell in June and July. The busiest month is July (139 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 5 · Feb 18 · Mar 25 · Apr 44 · May 63 · Jun 74 · Jul 139 · Aug 65 · Sep 23 · Oct 16 · Nov 8 · Dec 9 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest lightning records in Tennessee?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-05-09 | LightningLawrenceburg Airport, Lawrence County A lightning strike was likely to blame for a house fire along Morgan Road in Lawrenceburg. Unfortunately, the house became engulfed in flames which led to the death of three individuals, including one pregnant woman. | 3 | 0 | $470K | |
| 2002-08-23 | LightningDyer, Gibson County Two persons will killed when lightning struck their farm. | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2005-07-01 | LightningAllardt, Fentress County Mr. Terry Binion, a 38-year-old Hartsville resident, was struck and killed by lightning while riding a horse at the East Fork Stables in Allardt. He was riding with his wife, son, and 2 friends. The lightning bolt struck a tree, then bounced off the tree hitting the man and hitting his 2 friends, Kelly Overton and ... | 1 | 3 | $15K | |
| 1998-08-11 | LightningNortheast Portion, Overton County Lightning struck a man while working in his tobacco field in the Wirmingham community. A bolt of lightning struck him in the back of his head. The lightning bolt also knocked down 2 others nearby. | 1 | 2 | – | |
| 2018-07-06 | LightningKingston, Roane County One storm episode: 2 records; the totals are the episode's. Showers and thunderstorms formed along a cool front sliding south across East Tennessee during the late afternoon and evening hours. The storms produced damaging winds, flash flooding and frequent lightning. The lightning resulted in a fatality in Roane County. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2006-05-30 | LightningNewbern, Dyer County A 37 year old man was killed when lightning struck a tree he was using for a shelter at the Oakview Links Golf Course. A 33 year old man was injured in the same strike and was transported to a hospital in Memphis. | 1 | 1 | $15 | |
| 2005-08-13 | LightningJamestown, Fentress County A husband and wife were mule riding. A thunderstorm developed so they took cover underneath a 200 foot tree. The lightning struck the tree, went down through the tree, hit the ground and hit a 67-year-old female standing underneath the tree. The lightning bolt killed the 2 mules and injured her husband. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2007-06-23 | LightningWaterloo, Overton County A man was struck by lightning while attending an outdoor festival on June 23, 2007. The 47-year-old Indiana man was among a crowd watching a stage show. A bolt of lightning struck the man, knocking him unconscious. No one else was injured. He was leaning against a motorcycle when the bolt hit his right shoulder and ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2009-09-22 | LightningChapel Hill, Marshall County Lightning from a thunderstorm struck a utility pole at the end of a 83 year old man's driveway. The lightning's charge went to the man's house and started a fire, that destroyed most of the home, and also killed the man. | 1 | 0 | $206K | |
| 1999-06-26 | LightningCleveland, Bradley County A farmer working in a wooded area clearing trees. He was struck around 5 p.m. but not found until later. | 1 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest lightning records in Tennessee
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-05-23 | LightningMaryville, Blount County | 0 | 0 | $11M | |
| 2023-04-28 | LightningCookeville, Putnam County | 0 | 0 | $4.8M | |
| 2010-10-24 | LightningMallorys, Williamson County | 0 | 0 | $2.4M | |
| 1999-06-10 | LightningEast Ridge, Hamilton County | 0 | 0 | $1.8M | |
| 2000-06-21 | LightningCookeville, Putnam County | 0 | 0 | $1.7M | |
| 2023-08-12 | LightningMt Juliet, Wilson County | 0 | 1 | $969K | |
| 1996-04-20 | LightningTullahoma, Coffee County | 0 | 0 | $941K | |
| 2016-07-07 | LightningAshland City, Cheatham County One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $922K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are lightning records becoming more frequent in Tennessee?
Tennessee's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Tennessee | United States | Tennessee's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 68 | 3,521 | 1.9% |
| 2000s | 198 | 8,052 | 2.5% |
| 2010s | 165 | 5,103 | 3.2% |
| 2020-26 | 58 | 1,544 | 3.8% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent lightning records in Tennessee
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-09-03 | LightningMt Juliet, Wilson County | 0 | 0 | $100K | |
| 2025-08-20 | LightningHixon, Hamilton County | 0 | 0 | $250K | |
| 2025-08-19 | LightningFlatwoods, Lawrence County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-07-16 | LightningJoelton, Davidson County | 0 | 0 | $25K | |
| 2025-06-30 | LightningMillington, Shelby County | 0 | 0 | $10K | |
| 2025-06-18 | LightningOakland, Henry County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-05-12 | LightningShady Grove, Hamilton County | 0 | 0 | $5K | |
| 2025-05-02 | LightningCalfkiller, Putnam County | 0 | 0 | $100K | |
| 2025-04-03 | LightningOak Hill, Davidson County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2025-03-15 | LightningDecatur, Meigs County | 0 | 0 | $2K | |
| 2024-09-01 | LightningUna, Davidson County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2024-08-30 | LightningIsoline, Cumberland County | 0 | 1 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Next
- Davidson County: the county's whole recordThe Tennessee county with the most lightning records per square mile
- Lightning across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in TennesseeTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Tennessee20,119 records
- Hail in Tennessee7,175 records
- Winter storms in Tennessee5,914 records