Tornadoes · United States · Alabama

Tornadoes in Pike County, Alabama

54 tornadoes have crossed Pike County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 18th of the 67 counties in Alabama with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.4 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 18. None was rated F4 or 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
54
Deaths
0
Injuries
18
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, December 19, 1974

The strongest

  1. F3, Pike and Barbour counties, AlabamaMarch 2, 1971F3, 23.8 mi (38 km)
  2. F3, Pike County, AlabamaDecember 19, 1974F3, 11.3 mi (18 km)
  3. F3, Pike County, AlabamaMarch 3, 1971F3, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  4. F3, Pike County, AlabamaDecember 19, 1974F3, 0.5 mi (1 km)
  5. EF2, Pike and Bullock counties, AlabamaMarch 15, 2025EF2, 21.3 mi (34 km)
  6. F2, Pike, Coffee and Barbour counties, AlabamaNovember 15, 2006F2, 19.8 mi (32 km)
  7. EF2, Pike County, AlabamaDecember 25, 2012EF2, 15.7 mi (25 km)
  8. EF2, Pike and Montgomery counties, AlabamaApril 5, 2022EF2, 12.7 mi (20 km)
  9. F2, Pike County, AlabamaFebruary 6, 1958F2, 11.3 mi (18 km)
  10. F2, Pike County, AlabamaNovember 26, 1986F2, 8.0 mi (13 km)

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
202513EF2
20225EF2
20211EF0
20203EF0
20194EF1
20172EF1
20161EF1
201517EF1
20141EF1
201232EF2
20083EF1
20061F2
20042F0
20012F1
20001F1
19983F1
19892F1
198611F2
19811F1
197431F3
19731F1
19721F2
19713F3
19692F1
19621F2
196122F2
19581F2
195412F1

Every tornado that crossed Pike County

54 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
March 12, 20263:03 AM CDTEF0Pike0.3100
March 15, 202511:02 PM CDTEF2Pike21.31,4003
November 30, 20225:45 AM CSTEF0Pike0.8150
November 30, 20225:42 AM CSTEF0Pike1.4150
April 5, 202211:34 AM CDTEF1Pike7.6550
April 5, 202211:03 AM CDTEF2Pike12.71,100
January 9, 20224:37 PM CSTEF0Pike0.4100
August 30, 20212:02 PM CDTEF0Pike3.275
March 31, 202010:51 AM CDTEF0Pike0.8180
March 31, 202010:34 AM CDTEF0Pike1.680
March 31, 202010:33 AM CDTEF0Pike0.180
November 27, 20199:05 AM CSTEF0Pike0.565
April 14, 20197:10 AM CDTEF1Pike2.8300
April 14, 20196:53 AM CDTEF0Crenshaw2.670$20,000
April 14, 20196:50 AM CDTEF0Pike1.0150
April 27, 201711:25 AM CDTEF1Pike4.9150
January 21, 20178:55 AM CSTEF1Pike37.3400
February 15, 20166:20 PM CSTEF1Pike5.0400
August 6, 201510:35 PM CDTEF1Pike0.4507
November 17, 20144:25 AM CSTEF1Crenshaw40.7500$285,000
December 25, 201210:24 PM CSTEF2Pike15.76002
December 25, 20125:27 PM CSTEF1Dale5.4300
March 23, 20129:26 AM CDTEF1Pike1.7700
August 25, 20085:58 PM CDTEF0Pike0.020$2,000
August 25, 20088:18 AM CDTEF0Pike0.575$50,000
February 17, 20082:23 PM CSTEF1Pike8.4250$60,000
November 15, 200612:12 PM CSTF2Pike19.8650$507,000
September 16, 20043:05 AM CDTF0Pike0.130$2,000
September 16, 20042:25 AM CDTF0Pike0.130$2,000
November 24, 20019:27 PM CSTF1Pike11.875$50,000
November 24, 20018:42 PM CSTF0Pike0.250$2,000
November 9, 20007:19 AM CSTF1Pike1.970$100,000
September 28, 19982:18 PM CDTF0Pike6.050$4,000
September 28, 19982:06 PM CDTF0Pike5.050$4,000
September 28, 19981:57 PM CDTF1Crenshaw2.630$70,000
July 16, 19895:45 PM CDTF1Pike1.050$50,000 to $500,000
March 5, 19897:30 PM CSTF1Pike5.0200$500,000 to $5 million
November 26, 19861:20 AM CSTF2Pike8.01501$50,000 to $500,000
March 4, 19815:20 PM CSTF1Pike0.350$50 to $500
December 19, 19744:30 PM CSTF3Pike11.3300$50,000 to $500,000
December 19, 19742:04 PM CSTF3Pike0.51001$500 to $5,000
January 20, 19742:25 PM CDTF2Pike0.130$5,000 to $50,000
May 25, 19731:25 PM CDTF1Pike0.110$5,000 to $50,000
July 3, 197211:30 PM CDTF2Pike0.3200$50,000 to $500,000
April 23, 197111:15 AM CSTF1Pike1.0200$50 to $500
March 3, 19714:00 AM CSTF3Pike2.010$5,000 to $50,000
March 2, 197110:00 AM CSTF3Pike23.810$5,000 to $50,000
May 17, 19697:10 PM GMT-5F1Pike7.110$500 to $5,000
April 18, 196912:30 AM GMT-6F1Pike2.510$50,000 to $500,000
January 5, 19625:30 PM GMT-6F2Pike2.010$5,000 to $50,000
April 27, 19619:00 AM GMT-6F2Pike0.1102$5,000 to $50,000
April 9, 19619:30 AM GMT-6F1Coffee54.110$50,000 to $500,000
February 6, 19582:05 PM GMT-6F2Pike11.3200$5,000 to $50,000
December 5, 19544:00 PM GMT-6F1Pike1.5832$500 to $5,000

Nearby

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