Shelby County tornado history

56 tornadoes touched Shelby County, Tennessee between 1950 and 2025 — about 0.7 a year. The strongest was rated F3 (Dec 14, 1987). Tornadoes here killed 16 and injured 264 people.

56tornadoes since 1950

F3strongest rating

16killed · 264 injured

28.8 milongest path · 1968

(E)F0(E)F1(E)F2(E)F3(E)F4(E)F5· dots = start point only

By rating

(E)F08

(E)F130

(E)F211

(E)F37

(E)F40

(E)F50

By month

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: April.

By decade

’50’60’70’80’90’00’10’20

Strongest tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
Dec 14, 1987	F3	25 mi	200 yd	121	6
Apr 3, 1968	F3	28.8 mi	1,760 yd	32	4
Nov 27, 1994	F3	16 mi	200 yd	25	3
Apr 24, 1970	F3	17 mi	50 yd	5	0
Apr 24, 1970	F3	12.3 mi	50 yd	18	0
Apr 24, 1970	F3	10.4 mi	50 yd	3	0
Apr 21, 1984	F3	3 mi	20 yd	3	0
Feb 5, 2008	EF2	10.2 mi	440 yd	13	3
Feb 5, 2008	EF2	8.1 mi	150 yd	1	0
Mar 4, 1964	F2	7.6 mi	200 yd	3	0
Jun 4, 1989	F2	7 mi	100 yd	0	0
May 27, 1973	F2	2 mi	100 yd	0	0

Most recent tornadoes

Date	Rating	Path	Width	Injured	Killed
Oct 21, 2019	EF1	7.4 mi	250 yd	0	0
Apr 28, 2014	EF0	1.5 mi	75 yd	0	0
May 1, 2010	EF1	0.6 mi	100 yd	0	0
Jul 30, 2009	EF1	2 mi	250 yd	0	0
Jun 12, 2009	EF1	0.1 mi	30 yd	0	0
Feb 5, 2008	EF2	8.1 mi	150 yd	1	0
Feb 5, 2008	EF2	10.2 mi	440 yd	13	3
Feb 5, 2008	EF0	4.9 mi	50 yd	0	0
Jun 17, 2006	F1	0.3 mi	50 yd	0	0
Apr 22, 2004	F0	0.1 mi	100 yd	0	0
Jan 22, 1999	F1	3.5 mi	100 yd	0	0
May 15, 1995	F0	0.5 mi	23 yd	0	0

Deadliest: Dec 14, 1987, F3, 6 killed.

Nearby counties

DeSoto County, MS31 Crittenden County, AR19 Tipton County, TN25 Fayette County, TN25 Marshall County, MS24 Tate County, MS16 Mississippi County, AR56 Lauderdale County, TN29

Questions

How many tornadoes has Shelby County, Tennessee had?

56 tornadoes touched Shelby County, Tennessee between 1950 and 2025 in the NOAA Storm Prediction Center database — about 0.7 per year.

What was the strongest tornado in Shelby County?

The strongest rating recorded was F3 on Dec 14, 1987, with a 25-mile path and 6 deaths.

When is tornado season in Shelby County?

Most of its tornadoes happened in April (13 of 56). Tornadoes can occur in any month, so keep alerts on year-round.

Right now: live tornado warnings map · alerts for your location. Dates link to that day’s full storm reports where available (2004 onward).