Tornadoes · United States · Alabama

Tornadoes in Coffee County, Alabama

42 tornadoes have crossed Coffee County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 39th of the 67 counties in Alabama with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.8 years. They have killed 13 people and injured 183. 1 was rated F4 or EF4 and above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Now

Tornadoes
42
Deaths
13
Injuries
183
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, March 1, 2007

The deadliest in Coffee County

  1. EF4 Enterprise tornado, AlabamaMarch 1, 20079 killed, 50 injured
  2. F2, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaJanuary 13, 19724 killed, 88 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Enterprise tornado, AlabamaMarch 1, 2007EF4, 10.3 mi (17 km)
  2. F3, Coffee, Dale and Barbour counties, AlabamaNovember 25, 1986F3, 44.0 mi (71 km)
  3. F3, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaDecember 29, 1973F3, 11.6 mi (19 km)
  4. F3, Coffee County, AlabamaMay 16, 1983F3, 1.5 mi (2 km)
  5. F3, Coffee County, AlabamaSeptember 17, 1971F3, 0.3 mi (0 km)
  6. F2, Pike, Coffee and Barbour counties, AlabamaNovember 15, 2006F2, 19.8 mi (32 km)
  7. F2, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaOctober 16, 1955F2, 17.3 mi (28 km)
  8. F2, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaApril 16, 1954F2, 17.3 mi (28 km)
  9. F2, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaOctober 16, 1955F2, 16.4 mi (26 km)
  10. F2, Coffee and Dale counties, AlabamaJanuary 13, 1972F2, 6.3 mi (10 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 29 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Coffee County. Each year links to every tornado in Alabama that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
20231EF0
20201EF0
20125EF1
20101EF0
20091EF0
20082EF1
20071950EF4
200622F2
20001F0
19983F1
19961F1
199511F0
19941F2
198626F3
198414F2
198311F3
19801F1
19781F0
19762F1
19751F0
1973225F3
19721488F2
19711F3
19631F1
19611F1
19591F2
195535F2
195411F2

Every tornado that crossed Coffee County

42 tornadoes, newest first. The 1 at the top is this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and its rating is marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 17, 20264:12 PM CDTEF0Coffee0.550
April 3, 202310:36 AM CDTEF0Coffee0.350$25,000
April 19, 202011:03 PM CDTEF0Coffee4.450$50,000
December 25, 20126:05 PM CSTEF0Coffee13.925$5,000
December 25, 20123:31 PM CSTEF0Coffee0.010$2,000
August 30, 20122:44 AM CDTEF1Coffee3.035$25,000
June 10, 201211:11 AM CDTEF1Geneva9.9440$100,000
March 2, 20125:01 PM CSTEF0Coffee0.525
April 8, 201012:10 PM CDTEF0Coffee3.075
December 14, 20094:20 PM CSTEF0Coffee0.130
October 8, 200811:54 AM CDTEF1Coffee1.9150$4.0 million
February 17, 20082:17 PM CSTEF1Coffee1.2100$25,000
March 1, 20071:08 PM CSTEF4Enterprise tornado10.3500950$250 million
November 15, 200612:12 PM CSTF2Pike19.8650$507,000
November 15, 200611:53 AM CSTF0Coffee3.01502$350,000
April 3, 20008:30 PM CDTF0Coffee0.00
September 29, 19982:45 AM CDTF1Coffee1.050$500,000
September 29, 19982:40 AM CDTF1Coffee1.080$1.5 million
May 3, 19985:30 PM CDTF0Coffee0.330$10,000
January 11, 19966:35 PM CSTF1Coffee1.075$100,000
December 6, 199510:30 PM CSTF0Coffee0.4501$5,000 to $50,000
March 9, 19945:55 PM CSTF2Coffee3.0100$50,000 to $500,000
November 26, 19861:40 AM CSTF1Coffee21.01502$50,000 to $500,000
November 25, 19869:20 PM CSTF3Coffee44.02004$500,000 to $5 million
March 5, 198412:45 PM CSTF2Coffee0.9504$50,000 to $500,000
May 16, 19834:10 AM CDTF3Coffee1.51501$50,000 to $500,000
May 20, 19803:15 AM CDTF1Covington19.730$5,000 to $50,000
April 18, 19788:32 PM CSTF0Coffee0.2100$5,000 to $50,000
March 21, 19765:30 AM CSTF1Coffee0.110$50,000 to $500,000
March 16, 19767:25 AM CSTF0Coffee0.550$500 to $5,000
October 17, 19756:30 AM CDTF0Coffee0.110
December 29, 19734:25 PM CSTF3Coffee11.66711$500,000 to $5 million
April 18, 19735:00 PM CSTF2Coffee1.010014$500,000 to $5 million
January 13, 19721:00 AM CSTF2Coffee6.3100488$50,000 to $500,000
September 17, 19711:35 AM CDTF3Coffee0.3100$5,000 to $50,000
January 20, 19633:00 PM GMT-6F1Coffee14.110$50,000 to $500,000
April 9, 19619:30 AM GMT-6F1Coffee54.110$50,000 to $500,000
March 21, 19598:00 PM GMT-6F2Coffee2.7150$5,000 to $50,000
October 16, 19557:40 PM GMT-5F2Coffee16.41005$500,000 to $5 million
October 16, 19557:15 PM GMT-5F1Coffee14.0167$5,000 to $50,000
October 16, 19557:05 PM GMT-5F2Coffee17.3167$500 to $5,000
April 16, 19548:00 AM GMT-6F2Coffee17.31001$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Coffee CountyThe forecast for Coffee CountyThe live radar over Coffee CountyEvery county in Alabama

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.