Tennessee, 1988

Tornado and Damaging Winds in Tennessee, December 24, 1988

December 24, 1988 · NWS MEM · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 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
7
Property damage
$25 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

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Madison

When
December 24, 2:15 AM CST
Where
Madison County
Coordinates
35.630, -88.820

Thunderstorm Wind, Shelby

When
December 24, 4:45 AM CST
Where
Shelby County
Coordinates
35.130, -90.020

Tornado, Williamson

When
December 24, 6:04 AM CST
Where
Williamson County
Rating
F4
Path length
6 mi
Path width
150 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
7 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25 million
Coordinates
35.920, -86.900

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, Williamson1988-12-24Direct

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
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 Tennessee in 1988Every state in 1988This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Tennessee, 1988Warnings in Tennessee, December 1988

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: 10122744, 10122745, 10122746.