Tornadoes · United States · Mississippi

Tornadoes in DeSoto County, Mississippi

32 tornadoes have crossed DeSoto County since 1950, 48th of the 82 counties in Mississippi with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.4 years. They have killed 5 people and injured 139. 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
32
Deaths
5
Injuries
139
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, April 24, 1970

The deadliest in DeSoto County

  1. EF2, DeSoto and Shelby counties, Mississippi and TennesseeFebruary 5, 20083 killed, 13 injured
  2. F2, DeSoto County, MississippiNovember 27, 19731 killed, 50 injured
  3. F2, Tunica and DeSoto counties, MississippiApril 28, 19621 killed, 6 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, DeSoto and Shelby counties, Mississippi and TennesseeApril 24, 1970F3, 12.3 mi (20 km)
  2. F2, Tunica and DeSoto counties, MississippiApril 28, 1962F2, 34.6 mi (56 km)
  3. EF2, Tunica and DeSoto counties, MississippiMarch 31, 2023EF2, 22.7 mi (37 km)
  4. F2, DeSoto and Crittenden counties, Arkansas and MississippiFebruary 11, 1965F2, 19.6 mi (32 km)
  5. F2, DeSoto County, MississippiApril 3, 1968F2, 15.2 mi (24 km)
  6. EF2, DeSoto and Shelby counties, Mississippi and TennesseeFebruary 5, 2008EF2, 10.2 mi (16 km)
  7. F2, DeSoto County, MississippiJanuary 19, 1988F2, 9.5 mi (15 km)
  8. EF2, DeSoto County, MississippiJanuary 11, 2020EF2, 8.2 mi (13 km)
  9. F2, DeSoto County, MississippiNovember 24, 2001F2, 6.0 mi (10 km)
  10. EF2, DeSoto County, MississippiJuly 30, 2009EF2, 5.8 mi (9 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 20 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in DeSoto County. Each year links to every tornado in Mississippi that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20251EF1
20232EF2
20202EF2
20101EF0
200921EF2
20083313EF2
200521F1
200119F2
19991F0
19943F0
19931F0
198811F2
19861F1
19733175F2
1970118F3
19691F1
1968211F2
19672F1
196514F2
1962116F2

Every tornado that crossed DeSoto County

32 tornadoes, newest first. 2 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Mississippi.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 18, 202510:26 PM CDTEF1DeSoto0.450$800,000
March 31, 20237:31 PM CDTEF2Tunica22.71,200$2.3 million
January 3, 20236:05 AM CSTEF0DeSoto1.4100$25,000
January 11, 20204:53 AM CSTEF2DeSoto8.2300$2.6 million
January 11, 20204:42 AM CSTEF1Tate11.3200$610,000
May 2, 20101:10 AM CDTEF0DeSoto1.1100$10,000
July 30, 20095:00 PM CDTEF2DeSoto5.8440$6.0 million
June 12, 20094:58 PM CDTEF2DeSoto2.9751$4.0 million
February 5, 20085:32 PM CSTEF1Tipton to MS0.350$50,000
February 5, 20085:32 PM CSTEF2DeSoto to TN10.2440313$128 million
February 5, 20085:18 PM CSTEF0DeSoto2.6100$50,000
March 22, 20055:13 PM CSTF1DeSoto0.1501$150,000
March 22, 20055:10 PM CSTF0DeSoto1.075$50,000
November 24, 20014:10 AM CSTF2DeSoto6.03009$1.9 million
January 22, 19995:10 AM CSTF0DeSoto2.00$50,000
June 9, 199412:00 PM CDTF0DeSoto2.050$500 to $5,000
April 26, 19947:05 PM CDTF0DeSoto1.050$50 to $500
April 26, 19946:03 PM CDTF0DeSoto3.050$500 to $5,000
August 5, 19935:30 PM CDTF0DeSoto2.0100$500 to $5,000
January 19, 198810:12 AM CSTF2DeSoto9.5701$500,000 to $5 million
March 12, 19861:30 AM CSTF1DeSoto1.030$50,000 to $500,000
November 27, 197312:45 PM CSTF2DeSoto4.110150$50,000 to $500,000
November 27, 197312:40 PM CSTF1DeSoto8.41015$50,000 to $500,000
November 27, 197312:35 PM CSTF1DeSoto4.51010$50,000 to $500,000
April 24, 19703:28 AM CSTF3DeSoto to TN12.35018$500,000 to $5 million
June 24, 19692:50 AM GMT-5F1DeSoto0.110
May 16, 19681:20 AM GMT-5F2DeSoto5.21007$50,000 to $500,000
April 3, 19687:15 PM GMT-6F2DeSoto15.2104
July 5, 19672:25 PM GMT-5F1Tate11.410
June 30, 19676:00 PM GMT-5F1DeSoto0.110
February 11, 19652:15 PM GMT-6F2DeSoto to MS19.62504$50,000 to $500,000
April 28, 19629:30 PM GMT-6F2Tunica34.61,76016$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in DeSoto CountyThe forecast for DeSoto CountyThe live radar over DeSoto CountyEvery county in Mississippi

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.