The Super Severe Weather Outbreak on Feb. 5, 2008 produced supercelluar thunderstorms, well in advance of a multicell line of thunderstorms.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS OHX wrote it up.
The Super Severe Weather Outbreak on Feb. 5, 2008 produced supercelluar thunderstorms, well in advance of a multicell line of thunderstorms. The whole episode lasted about 6 hours. This occurred ironically while many states, including Tennessee, were participating in the Super Tuesday Primary Election. Fortunately, polls had already closed in the mid state when these tornadoes struck.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Nashville, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 5, 2:32 PM CST, 5 hours 33 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 232 PM CST TUE FEB 5 2008 .SHORT TERM...(THRU THU NITE) CURRENT...SOME -SHRA MOVED ACROSS CNTRL PORTIONS OF CWA THIS AFTERNOON. SOME BREAKS IN CLOUDS. TEMPS 65 TO 70 FOR MOST PART. FOR TONITE...HI RISK SEVERE TO OUR W...AND MODERATE RISK CONTINUES ALL BUT PLATEAU AND ADJACENT AREAS. ACTION STARTING TO CRANK UP OVER SW MO TO ERN TX...WITH A FEW LIGHTNING STRIKES SHOWING UP OVER N MS. STILL EXPECT ACTIVE WEATHER TONITE...ALTHO AGAIN THE MAIN SHOW HAS BEEN DELAYED...SO THAT NOW THE SQUALL LINE (DAMAGIN WIND MAIN THREAT) WILL NOT MOVE INTO W PRTIONS OF CWA TIL AFTER MIDNITE...AROUND 09Z BNA...AND 12Z CSV. HELICITY VALUES AHEAD OF FRONT HI ENUF TO SUPPORT ISOLD SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT B4 SQUALL LINE ARRIVES. ACTIVITY WILL CONTINUE EARLY MORNING MAINLY EAST...AND DRY SLOT WILL MOVE ACROSS DURING DAY...BUT H925 MOISTURE WRAPS AROUND SYSTEM BACK OVER CWA DURING DAY. WED NITE INTO THU NITE COOLER AND QUIET. .LONG TERM... A WEAK TROF MOVES ACROSS FRI NITE BUT VERY LITTLE PRECIP WITH IT. HI PRES RULES ON SAT. 1040 ARCTIC HI CENTER OVER IA SUN WILL BUILD S. RETURN FLOW SUN NITE AND MON. SOME WAA CONVECTION POSSIBLE AROUND TUE. GFS HAS BEEN FLIP-FLOPPING ON TEMPS FOR SAT- TUE TIME FRAME...AND LEANED TOWARD HPC NUMBERS. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... NASHVILLE 54 56 31 48 / 100 60 10 10 CLARKSVILLE 51 51 28 47 / 100 30 10 10 CROSSVILLE 57 59 30 44 / 100 80 10 10 COLUMBIA 55 57 31 49 / 100 60 10 10 LAWRENCEBURG 55 57 30 51 / 100 30 10 10 WAVERLY 52 53 30 48 / 100 30 10 10 && .OHX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 17/MAG
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...COR EXPIRATION TIME NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 510 AM CST TUE FEB 5 2008 TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-061130- STEWART-MONTGOMERY-ROBERTSON-SUMNER-MACON-CLAY-PICKETT-BENTON-HOUSTON- HUMPHREYS-DICKSON-CHEATHAM-DAVIDSON-WILSON-TROUSDALE-SMITH-JACKSON- PUTNAM-OVERTON-FENTRESS-PERRY-HICKMAN-LEWIS-WILLIAMSON-MAURY-MARSHALL -RUTHERFORD-CANNON-DEKALB-WHITE-CUMBERLAND-BEDFORD-COFFEE-WARREN- GRUNDY-VAN BUREN-WAYNE-LAWRENCE-GILES- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...DOVER...CLARKSVILLE...SPRINGFIELD... GALLATIN...LAFAYETTE...CELINA...BYRDSTOWN...CAMDEN...ERIN... WAVERLY...DICKSON...ASHLAND CITY...KINGSTON SPRINGS...NASHVILLE... LEBANON...MOUNT JULIET...HARTSVILLE...CARTHAGE...GAINESBORO... COOKEVILLE...LIVINGSTON...JAMESTOWN...ALLARDT...LINDEN... LOBELVILLE...CENTERVILLE...HOHENWALD...FRANKLIN...BRENTWOOD... COLUMBIA...LEWISBURG...MURFREESBORO...WOODBURY...SMITHVILLE... SPARTA...CROSSVILLE...FAIRFIELD GLADE...SHELBYVILLE...TULLAHOMA... MANCHESTER...MCMINNVILLE...TRACY CITY...ALTAMONT...COALMONT... SPENCER...WAYNESBORO...LAWRENCEBURG...PULASKI 506 AM CST TUE FEB 5 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THERE IS A MODERATE RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN WEST MIDDLE TENNESSEE TONIGHT. WARM MOIST AIR WILL BE IN PLACE AS A STRONG COLD FRONT MOVES INTO MIDDLE TENNESSEE TONIGHT. THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BE SUFFICIENTLY UNSTABLE FOR SEVERE WEATHER TO DEVELOP. STORMS WILL LIKELY PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS...HEAVY RAINFALL AND ISOLATED TORNADOES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY ISOLATED STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE CUMBERLAND PLATEAU REGION WEDNESDAY MORNING...AS THE STRONG COLD FRONT PUSHES EAST. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS EVENING. 04
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED THE TIME NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 636 PM CST TUE FEB 5 2008 TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-060834- STEWART-MONTGOMERY-ROBERTSON-SUMNER-MACON-CLAY-PICKETT-BENTON- HOUSTON-HUMPHREYS-DICKSON-CHEATHAM-DAVIDSON-WILSON-TROUSDALE- SMITH-JACKSON-PUTNAM-OVERTON-FENTRESS-PERRY-HICKMAN-LEWIS- WILLIAMSON-MAURY-MARSHALL-RUTHERFORD-CANNON-DEKALB-WHITE- CUMBERLAND-BEDFORD-COFFEE-WARREN-GRUNDY-VAN BUREN-WAYNE-LAWRENCE- GILES- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...DOVER...CLARKSVILLE...SPRINGFIELD... GALLATIN...LAFAYETTE...CELINA...BYRDSTOWN...CAMDEN...ERIN... WAVERLY...DICKSON...ASHLAND CITY...KINGSTON SPRINGS...NASHVILLE... LEBANON...MOUNT JULIET...HARTSVILLE...CARTHAGE...GAINESBORO... COOKEVILLE...LIVINGSTON...JAMESTOWN...ALLARDT...LINDEN... LOBELVILLE...CENTERVILLE...HOHENWALD...FRANKLIN...BRENTWOOD... COLUMBIA...LEWISBURG...MURFREESBORO...WOODBURY...SMITHVILLE... SPARTA...CROSSVILLE...FAIRFIELD GLADE...SHELBYVILLE...TULLAHOMA... MANCHESTER...MCMINNVILLE...TRACY CITY...ALTAMONT...COALMONT... SPENCER...WAYNESBORO...LAWRENCEBURG...PULASKI 636 PM CST TUE FEB 5 2008 ...SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL CONTINUES THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING... THE COMBINATION OF AN UNSEASONABLY WARM AND MOIST AIRMASS...AND AN APPROACHING POWERFUL COLD FRONT...WILL BRING THE THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...AND POSSIBLE TORNADOES...TO MIDDLE TENNESSEE TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING. DUE TO A WARM LAYER ALOFT...IT MAY BE DIFFICULT FOR STORMS TO FORM DURING THE EVENING. HOWEVER...IF THEY DO...THEY COULD QUICKLY BECOME SEVERE...WITH DAMAGING WINDS. THEN...AS THE SLOWLY MOVING COLD FRONT APPROACHES OVERNIGHT...A SQUALL LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS THE MID STATE FROM WEST TO EAST. THE PRIMARY THREAT WITH THE OVERNIGHT SQUALL LINE...WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. HOWEVER...ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. COMPUTER MODELS HAVE BEEN SLOWING THE SYSTEM DOWN WITH EACH RUN...SO NEWER MODEL RUNS MAY YIELD A LITTLE BETTER TIMING. AS OF RIGHT NOW...IT STILL LOOKS AS THOUGH THE BEST CHANCE FOR SEVERE WEATHER WILL BE FROM MIDNIGHT THROUGH 6 AM. HOWEVER...SCATTERED SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT THE EVENING...PARTICULARLY ACROSS WESTERN MIDDLE TN. ALREADY THIS EVENING...SOME TORNADOES HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN WESTERN TN AND NORTHERN MS. IF YOU LIVE IN MIDDLE TENNESSEE...NOW IS THE TIME TO PREPARE FOR THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT...BY DECIDING WHERE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY WILL SEEK SHELTER. IN A HOME OR BUILDING...MOVE TO A PRE-DESIGNATED SHELTER...SUCH AS A BASEMENT. IF AN UNDERGROUND SHELTER IS NOT AVAILABLE...MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM OR HALLWAY ON THE LOWEST FLOOR AND GET UNDER A STURDY PIECE OF FURNITURE. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS...AND GET OUT OF AUTOMOBILES. MOBILE HOMES...EVEN IF TIED DOWN...OFFER LITTLE PROTECTION FROM TORNADOES AND SHOULD BE ABANDONED. STAY ALERT...BY LISTENING TO COMMERCIAL RADIO OR TELEVISION...AND KEEP A NOAA RADIO...WITH AN ALARM...NEARBY WHILE SLEEPING TONIGHT. IT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE. 21
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
20 tornado, 16 hail, 14 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Minor tree damage.
The tornado came out of northern Benton County and caused damage in Houston County. Trees were uprooted and snapped, and homes were damaged along Highway 147 from the Tennessee River to just west-northwest of McKinnon. There were 20 power poles down on Danville Rd. Worst damage was from Big Sandy to Faxon to Grannys Branch.
Fourteen homes were destroyed, and one other had major damage. About half of these homes were mobile homes.
Several homes damaged. The tornado continued into Perry County.
Numerous trees were blown down in Perry County. Across extreme northwest Lewis County, trailers were destroyed. Roofs were damaged. Barns and outbuildings were flattened along McCord Hollow Road and Cane Creek Rd. This tornado continued into Lewis and Hickman Counties.
TEMA reported this tornado destroyed 4 homes, and one mobile home in Perry County.
The hail was covering the ground.
Across extreme northwest Lewis County, trailers were destroyed. Roofs were damaged. Barns and outbuildings were flattened along McCord Hollow Road and Cane Creek Rd.
TEMA reported 6 homes had major damage, one mobile home was destroyed in Lewis County.
Some trees were down.
Some trees were down.
Trees were down. Homes were damaged. TEMA reported 10 homes had major damage, 2 mobile homes were destroyed and 20 mobile homes had major damage.
Nickel size hail was observed.
Three trees were blown down in the county.
Cocorahs observer reported quarter size hail.
Extensive damage in the Brushy Community. Trees were down, and homes were damaged. One person was injured.
TEMA reported 7 homes were destroyed, and 38 homes had major damage.
A few trees were blown down.
There were downed trees in Indian Mound. One home had roof damage and another home lost part of its vinyl siding and a swing set. One man was injured and treated on the scene for an eye injury.
Homes damaged in Leaper Fork area. One house collapsed and another hit on Cold Water Rd.
Hail the size of quarters were observed.
Golf ball size hail reported by Cocorahs observer.
Nickel size hail was observed at Vanderbilt University.
A tree was down on White Bluff Rd.
A few trees were blown down.
Golf ball size hail reported in Madison.
Five houses were destroyed, and 8 mobile homes were damaged.
Quarter size hail was covering the ground.
Cars were overturned and numerous trees were down.
Trees were down near Zeiglers Fort and Cairo Rd.
The Castalian Springs Post Office was completely destroyed. There were 85 homes destroyed in Sumner County.
Also in Castalian Springs, a 180 year-old structure called Wynnewood, lost the top of its structure due to the tornado. The historic log structure served as a stagecoach stop. The structure had 3 chimneys and was 142 feet long, making it the longest log structure in Tennessee.
Officials say it would take 2 years and $6 million to restore Wynnewood. It is Sumner County's sole historic landmark.
Also, 102 trees were lost in the area by the tornado.
The 11-month-old son of Kerri Stowell survived the storm and was found miraculously unharmed in a field across the street from their home in Castalian Springs. Unfortunately, Kerri Stowell was killed in the tornado.
The tornado directly killed 7 people in Sumner County, and there was one indirect fatality when Mr. Lampkin, age 63, died of a heart attack while seeking shelter in his home. There were 14 people injured in Sumner County.
This tornado continued into Trousdale and Macon Counties, and also into Kentucky.
Tornado ripped a gas plant and caused a gas leak and fire at the Columbia Gulf Transmission Company at 5422 Green Grove Road in Hartsville, TN. The fire eventually burned itself out. Two people were killed, and 5 people were injured. Ten homes were destroyed, and 23 homes had major damage.
Cocorahs observer reported quarter size hail.
Thirteen people were killed, and 44 folks were injured. Most of the fatalities occurred in Williams, just northwest of Lafayette. Also, 170 homes were destroyed, and 9 homes had major damage.
There was one indirect fatality, a male 48 years of age, due to carbon monoxide poisoning in his home from a generator on Feb. 6, 2008.
Pres. George W. Bush toured Macon County destruction on February 8th and promised relief to individuals.
The logging industry in Macon County was hit hard. About a million dollars worth of trees were destroyed, which will take decades to replenish. It was estimated that the tornado outbreak did 10 million dollars worth of damage to trees in the state of Tennessee.
One large brick home worth about 350 thousand dollars was poorly built. The bricks rested on cinder blocks that were not cemented. This was noticed on a storm survey.
Schools were closed for over a week, and classes did not start again until Tuesday, February 19.
FEMA spent 4.1 million dollars for housing displaced residents in trailers.
Minor tree damage.
Minor tree damage.
Minor tree damage.
Trees were blown down.
Some minor tree damage.
Some tree damage.
Minor tree damage.
Trees and power lines were down around the county. |TEMA reported 11 injuries around the county.
A barn was destroyed on Sanderson Branch Road in the Pleasant Shade Community.
Trees were blown down.
Trees were down.
Trees were blown down.
Trees and power lines were down. Business signs damaged. Trees fell on 4 homes.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 52 | Female | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 57 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 33 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-16 | 26 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 49 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 63 | Male | Permanent Home | Indirect |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 72 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Sumner | 2008-02-05 | 23 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Trousdale | 2008-02-05 | 86 | Female | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Trousdale | 2008-02-05 | 84 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 79 | Female | Church | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-08 | 29 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 19 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 42 | Female | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 35 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 59 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 90 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 74 | Male | Mobile/Trailer Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-06 | 48 | Male | Permanent Home | Indirect |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 49 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 4 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 54 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-03-12 | 58 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Macon | 2008-02-05 | 54 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Tennessee, 2008Warnings in Tennessee, February 2008
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: 79136, 79137, 79125, 79130, 79298, 80992, 80987, 80995, 84851, 79299, 79317, 79324, 79131, 79321, 85128, 84831, 79300, 79301, 79322, 79302, 79319, 79318, 79303, 79304, 79320, 79305, 79316, 79315, 79306, 79307, 79308, 79138, 79650, 79323, 79653, 79309, 79152, 79153, 79310, 79157, and more.