Alabama, 1993

Tornado and Hail in Alabama, February 21, 1993

February 21, 1993 · 6 events in 4 counties and zones

4 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
0
Injuries
5
Property damage
$500,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

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

4 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Choctaw

When
February 21, 11:50 AM CST
Where
Choctaw County
Coordinates
32.020, -88.263 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Several trees were blown down 2 miles south of Butler.

Hail, Blount

When
February 21, 5:23 PM CST
Where
Blount County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.981, -86.567 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dime-size hail fell at Oneonta.

Hail, Etowah

When
February 21, 5:32 PM CST
Where
Etowah County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.045, -86.035 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 1732 CST dime-size hail fell at Gadsden. At 1759 CST, golf ball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff. At 1803 CST, softball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff.

Hail, Etowah

When
February 21, 5:59 PM CST
Where
Etowah County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.045, -86.035 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 1732 CST dime-size hail fell at Gadsden. At 1759 CST, golf ball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff. At 1803 CST, softball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff.

Tornado, Cherokee

When
February 21, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Cherokee County
Rating
F3
Path length
19 mi
Path width
100 yd
Injuries
5 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$500,000
Coordinates
34.176, -85.604 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A tornado moved west to east through a 19-mile-path in southern Cherokee County. The tornado first touched down in the Gnatville Community around 1800 CST, about 3 miles southeast of Pine Grove, then moved east. The tornado crossed a road then moved through the Spring Garden Community, then through the Tecumseh area to the Alabama line. Five injuries occurred in mobile homes. Thirteen mobile homes and two houses were completely destroyed. One mobile home and four houses had major damage. One mobile home and ten homes received minor damage. Damage was estimated at approximately $400,000.

Hail, Etowah

When
February 21, 6:03 PM CST
Where
Etowah County
Measured
4.5 in hail
Coordinates
34.045, -86.035 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 1732 CST dime-size hail fell at Gadsden. At 1759 CST, golf ball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff. At 1803 CST, softball-size hail fell at Hokes Bluff.

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.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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 1993Every state in 1993This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Alabama, 1993Warnings in Alabama, February 1993

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: 10314136, 10314506, 10314555, 10314556, 10314703, 10314557.