Tornadoes · United States · Mississippi

Tornadoes in Hancock County, Mississippi

66 tornadoes have crossed Hancock County since 1950, 2 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 14th of the 82 counties in Mississippi with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 14. 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
66
Deaths
0
Injuries
14
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, May 19, 1980

The strongest

  1. F3, Hancock County, MississippiMay 19, 1980F3, 13.1 mi (21 km)
  2. F2, Hancock and Harrison counties, MississippiApril 20, 1982F2, 18.0 mi (29 km)
  3. F2, Hancock County, MississippiApril 13, 1980F2, 15.1 mi (24 km)
  4. EF2, Saint Tammany and Hancock parishes, Louisiana and MississippiApril 10, 2024EF2, 7.8 mi (13 km)
  5. F2, Hancock and Harrison counties, MississippiMay 7, 1972F2, 7.6 mi (12 km)
  6. F2, Hancock County, MississippiMay 2, 1977F2, 5.4 mi (9 km)
  7. F2, Hancock County, MississippiMarch 2, 1972F2, 4.1 mi (7 km)
  8. F2, Hancock County, MississippiNovember 16, 1987F2, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  9. F2, Hancock County, MississippiApril 7, 1973F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 33 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Hancock County. Each year links to every tornado in Mississippi that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20262EF1
20249EF2
20215EF1
20202EF0
20192EF1
20181EF0
20161EF0
20121EF1
20111EF0
20101EF0
20093EF1
20052F1
20041F0
20032F0
20021F0
20011F1
20003F0
19982F0
19972F1
19961F0
19952F0
199421F1
19881F1
19871F2
19853F1
19821F2
198038F3
19772F2
19731F2
197223F2
19702F1
19692F1
195212F1

Every tornado that crossed Hancock County

66 tornadoes, newest first. 4 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Mississippi. The 2 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 18, 20266:50 AM CDTEF1Saint Tammany Parish to MS12.3300
June 18, 20268:02 AM CDTEF1Hancock7.5275
April 10, 202410:31 AM CDTEF0Hancock2.875
April 10, 202410:28 AM CDTEF1Hancock2.9150$100,000
April 10, 202410:23 AM CDTEF1Hancock2.7100
April 10, 202410:17 AM CDTEF1Hancock5.2200
April 10, 202410:15 AM CDTEF1Hancock2.9100
April 10, 202410:15 AM CDTEF1Hancock10.3150
April 10, 202410:06 AM CDTEF2Saint Tammany Parish to MS7.8300
April 10, 202410:03 AM CDTEF1Saint Tammany Parish to MS9.8250
March 15, 20241:35 PM CDTUnratedHancock0.675
August 29, 202110:15 PM CDTEF0Hancock2.9200$20,000
August 29, 202110:11 PM CDTEF0Hancock3.3200$250,000
August 29, 20216:59 PM CDTEF0Hancock10.675$50,000
August 29, 20216:25 AM CDTEF1Hancock1.7150$10,000
April 8, 20213:26 AM CDTEF0Hancock0.775$25,000
July 14, 20203:24 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.325$8,000
January 11, 202010:33 AM CSTUnratedHancock2.230
May 4, 201911:18 AM CDTEF1Saint Tammany Parish to MS4.5200
April 25, 201911:22 AM CDTEF1Hancock0.325
September 6, 20183:09 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.630
December 13, 20163:19 PM CSTEF0Hancock4.320
September 30, 20123:20 PM CDTEF1Hancock6.140$30,000
September 3, 201110:20 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.130$30,000
November 30, 20107:40 AM CSTEF0Hancock0.125$1,000
April 2, 20092:05 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.220
April 2, 20091:50 PM CDTEF0Hancock1.525$2,000
March 27, 20091:45 AM CDTEF1Hancock7.0200$20,000
May 29, 20053:03 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
April 6, 200511:35 AM CDTF1Hancock1.530$50,000
June 22, 20042:00 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
August 12, 200312:15 PM CDTF0Hancock0.220
June 30, 20037:40 PM CDTF0Hancock0.230$1,000
October 3, 200211:00 AM CDTF0Hancock0.330$10,000
June 11, 20014:25 AM CDTF1Hancock1.040$50,000
July 22, 20004:41 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
July 22, 20004:33 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120$1,000
July 16, 20007:32 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
September 20, 19989:50 AM CDTF0Hancock0.130$10,000
August 13, 19984:02 PM CDTF0Hancock0.130
November 21, 19973:00 PM CSTF1Hancock0.330$50,000
October 25, 19973:40 PM CDTF1Hancock0.840$70,000
November 7, 19965:17 PM CSTF0Hancock0.110
May 9, 199511:40 PM CDTF0Hancock0.323
April 22, 19957:10 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
May 3, 19947:52 AM CDTF0Hancock1.030$5,000 to $50,000
April 12, 19945:05 PM CDTF1Hancock0.5401$50,000 to $500,000
September 16, 19887:40 PM CDTF1Hancock0.523$5,000 to $50,000
November 16, 19877:10 PM CSTF2Hancock3.073$50,000 to $500,000
May 21, 19852:30 PM CDTF1Hancock0.750$500 to $5,000
May 21, 19852:25 PM CDTF1Hancock0.550$5,000 to $50,000
May 21, 19852:10 PM CDTF1Hancock0.427$5,000 to $50,000
April 20, 19825:00 PM CSTF2Hancock18.0133$50,000 to $500,000
May 19, 19807:40 PM CDTF3Hancock13.18008$5 million to $50 million
May 15, 19803:57 PM CDTF1Hancock0.530$500 to $5,000
April 13, 19807:45 AM CSTF2Hancock15.1300$50,000 to $500,000
August 1, 19777:30 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110$500 to $5,000
May 2, 19776:15 AM CDTF2Hancock5.420$5,000 to $50,000
April 7, 19734:30 AM CSTF2Hancock0.110$5,000 to $50,000
May 7, 19726:30 PM CDTF2Hancock7.6231$5,000 to $50,000
March 2, 19725:40 AM CSTF2Hancock4.12002$50,000 to $500,000
December 29, 19709:55 AM CSTF1Hancock7.610$5,000 to $50,000
February 1, 19703:30 PM CSTF1Hancock0.110
July 14, 19692:30 PM GMT-5F0Hancock0.110
April 13, 19699:30 AM GMT-6F1Hancock0.1100$5,000 to $50,000
February 13, 195210:30 PM GMT-6F1Hancock0.1102

Nearby

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