Alabama, 1968

Tornadoes in Alabama, November 17, 1968

November 17, 1968 · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

3 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
1
Injuries
26
Property damage
$5.0 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Choctaw

When
November 17, 11:30 AM CST
Where
Choctaw County
Rating
F2
Path length
11.5 mi
Path width
33 yd
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
31.970, -88.370

Tornado, Chilton

When
November 17, 12:45 PM CST
Where
Chilton County
Rating
F3
Path length
18.3 mi
Path width
400 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
24 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
32.900, -86.750

Tornado, Coosa

When
November 17, 12:45 PM CST
Where
Coosa County
Rating
F3
Path length
14 mi
Path width
400 yd
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
32.820, -86.450

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Chilton1968-11-17Direct

What these are

Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Alabama in 1968Every state in 1968This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Alabama, 1968

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 9978435, 9978436, 9978437.