Tornadoes · United States · Alabama

Tornadoes in Crenshaw County, Alabama

31 tornadoes have crossed Crenshaw County since 1950, 55th of the 67 counties in Alabama with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.5 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 44. 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
31
Deaths
2
Injuries
44
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 18, 1969

The deadliest in Crenshaw County

  1. F4, Butler, Crenshaw, Montgomery and Bullock counties, AlabamaApril 18, 19692 killed, 14 injured

The strongest

  1. F4, Butler, Crenshaw, Montgomery and Bullock counties, AlabamaApril 18, 1969F4, 52.4 mi (84 km)
  2. EF2, Crenshaw County, AlabamaJanuary 4, 2015EF2, 14.3 mi (23 km)
  3. F2, Crenshaw County, AlabamaMay 18, 1969F2, 6.4 mi (10 km)
  4. EF2, Crenshaw County, AlabamaApril 5, 2022EF2, 1.3 mi (2 km)
  5. F2, Crenshaw County, AlabamaNovember 20, 1973F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  6. F2, Crenshaw County, AlabamaSeptember 29, 1965F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 21 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Crenshaw County. Each year links to every tornado in Alabama that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20231EF1
20222EF2
20211EF1
20192EF1
20182EF1
20171EF0
20151EF2
20141EF1
20122EF0
20071EF0
20052F0
20031F1
19984F1
19961F1
19952F0
1990128F1
19801F1
19731F2
19692214F4
196512F2
19571F0

Every tornado that crossed Crenshaw County

31 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
January 12, 20232:46 PM CSTEF1Crenshaw0.380
April 5, 202211:20 AM CDTUnratedCrenshaw0.425
April 5, 202210:56 AM CDTEF2Crenshaw1.3250
March 18, 20214:08 AM CDTEF1Crenshaw0.5150
April 14, 20196:53 AM CDTEF0Crenshaw2.670$20,000
March 3, 20192:38 PM CSTEF1Crenshaw2.650$15,000
April 22, 20182:11 PM CDTEF1Crenshaw2.2175$100,000
April 22, 20181:43 PM CDTEF1Crenshaw3.7150$100,000
April 3, 20178:54 AM CDTEF0Crenshaw0.125$2,000
January 4, 20153:11 AM CSTEF2Crenshaw14.3100$200,000
November 17, 20144:25 AM CSTEF1Crenshaw40.7500$285,000
December 25, 20124:28 PM CSTEF0Crenshaw0.120
December 25, 20124:21 PM CSTEF0Crenshaw0.250
April 14, 20074:00 PM CDTEF0Crenshaw0.540$100,000
May 31, 20056:30 PM CDTF0Crenshaw0.220$10,000
April 30, 20057:20 AM CDTF0Crenshaw4.0200$150,000
July 1, 20034:42 AM CDTF1Crenshaw3.0600$200,000
September 28, 19982:10 PM CDTF1Crenshaw0.550$50,000
September 28, 19982:10 PM CDTF1Crenshaw0.550$50,000
September 28, 19982:05 PM CDTF1Crenshaw0.550$100,000
September 28, 19981:57 PM CDTF1Crenshaw2.630$70,000
November 7, 19969:15 PM CSTF1Crenshaw2.6200$70,000
October 4, 19959:00 PM CDTF0Crenshaw0.123$5,000 to $50,000
October 4, 19958:30 PM CDTF0Crenshaw0.123$5,000 to $50,000
January 25, 19905:50 AM CSTF1Crenshaw8.07328$500,000 to $5 million
May 20, 19802:15 AM CDTF1Covington17.550$5,000 to $50,000
November 20, 19733:00 PM CSTF2Crenshaw0.110$5,000 to $50,000
May 18, 19698:30 AM GMT-5F2Crenshaw6.410$5,000 to $50,000
April 18, 19692:30 AM GMT-6F4Butler52.4500214$50,000 to $500,000
September 29, 196510:30 PM GMT-5F2Crenshaw0.1102$5,000 to $50,000
June 28, 195712:50 PM GMT-5F0Crenshaw0.110

Nearby

Warnings in force in Crenshaw CountyThe forecast for Crenshaw CountyThe live radar over Crenshaw 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.