Tornadoes · United States · Mississippi

Tornadoes in Lamar County, Mississippi

53 tornadoes have crossed Lamar County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 26th of the 82 counties in Mississippi with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.4 years. They have killed 6 people and injured 170. 2 were 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
53
Deaths
6
Injuries
170
F4 and above
2
Worst on record
EF4, April 19, 2020

The deadliest in Lamar County

  1. EF3, Lamar, Forrest and Perry counties, MississippiJanuary 21, 20174 killed, 57 injured
  2. EF4 Sandy Hook–Camp Shelby tornado, MississippiApril 19, 20201 killed, 1 injured
  3. EF2, Lamar County, MississippiFebruary 23, 20161 killed

The strongest

  1. EF4 Sandy Hook–Camp Shelby tornado, MississippiApril 19, 2020EF4, 53.8 mi (86 km)
  2. EF4 Hattiesburg tornado, MississippiFebruary 10, 2013EF4, 21.6 mi (35 km)
  3. EF3, Lamar, Forrest and Perry counties, MississippiJanuary 21, 2017EF3, 31.1 mi (50 km)
  4. F3, Lamar and Forrest counties, MississippiNovember 15, 2006F3, 13.0 mi (21 km)
  5. EF3, Lamar and Covington counties, MississippiDecember 16, 2019EF3, 5.8 mi (9 km)
  6. F2, Lamar, Covington and Jones counties, MississippiFebruary 20, 1954F2, 37.1 mi (60 km)
  7. F2, Pearl River and Lamar counties, MississippiFebruary 26, 1958F2, 23.1 mi (37 km)
  8. EF2, Marion and Lamar counties, MississippiFebruary 10, 2013EF2, 18.1 mi (29 km)
  9. EF2, Lamar County, MississippiMay 6, 2026EF2, 13.4 mi (22 km)
  10. EF2, Marion and Lamar counties, MississippiMarch 31, 2025EF2, 7.3 mi (12 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 31 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Lamar County. Each year links to every tornado in Mississippi that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
202613EF2
20251EF2
20223EF1
20211EF0
2020111EF4
20191EF3
20181EF1
20174457EF3
201651EF2
20151EF0
20142EF0
2013274EF4
20122EF1
20111EF0
20084EF1
200657F3
20051F2
200137F1
20001F0
199712F1
19952F1
19941F0
19921F0
19891F2
19751F1
19741F1
19721F2
19651F1
19611F1
195819F2
1954110F2

Every tornado that crossed Lamar County

53 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
May 6, 20266:51 PM CDTEF2Lamar13.46003
March 31, 20256:30 AM CDTEF2Marion7.3300$2.3 million
August 24, 20221:04 PM CDTEF0Lamar0.025
March 30, 20227:44 PM CDTEF1Lamar1.9425$20,000
March 30, 20227:44 PM CDTEF0Lamar7.325$35,000
March 17, 20216:16 PM CDTEF0Lamar1.4300$75,000
April 19, 20207:09 PM CDTEF4Sandy Hook–Camp Shelby tornado53.82,27511$700,000
December 16, 20195:17 PM CSTEF3Lamar5.8560$510,000
April 14, 201810:07 AM CDTEF1Lamar6.1200$15,000
August 30, 201710:04 AM CDTEF1Lamar1.7100$150,000
March 30, 20175:32 AM CDTEF0Lamar1.1200$95,000
January 21, 20173:35 AM CSTEF3Lamar31.1900457$9.5 million
January 2, 20172:52 PM CSTEF1Lamar8.4225$80,000
March 31, 20167:53 AM CDTEF1Lamar1.450$70,000
February 23, 20164:29 PM CSTEF1Lamar1.475$10,000
February 23, 20164:15 PM CSTEF2Lamar5.61001$105,000
February 23, 20164:07 PM CSTEF0Lamar0.125$5,000
January 21, 20166:49 PM CSTEF2Lamar6.5530$65,000
October 31, 20154:24 PM CDTEF0Forrest4.5100$24,000
December 23, 20142:46 PM CSTEF0Lamar0.250$23,000
December 23, 20142:45 PM CSTEF0Lamar0.150$3,000
February 10, 20135:03 PM CSTEF4Hattiesburg tornado21.61,32071$39 million
February 10, 20134:23 PM CSTEF2Marion18.14003$375,000
December 9, 20124:15 PM CSTEF0Lamar0.150$8,000
March 2, 20126:23 PM CSTEF1Lamar11.9300$400,000
September 4, 20118:05 AM CDTEF0Lamar0.040$500
December 10, 20081:13 AM CSTEF1Lamar0.6100$700,000
September 1, 20081:45 PM CDTEF0Lamar3.150$10,000
September 1, 20081:34 PM CDTEF0Lamar2.030$2,000
May 15, 200810:05 AM CDTEF1Lamar15.4600$710,000
November 15, 20063:50 AM CSTF1Lamar1.070$100,000
November 15, 20062:30 AM CSTF3Lamar13.05006$1.5 million
October 27, 20067:45 AM CDTF1Lamar2.0250
October 17, 20063:39 AM CDTF2Lamar0.850$700,000
March 20, 20064:10 PM CSTF1Lamar3.0501$500,000
January 7, 20059:35 PM CSTF2Lamar3.0300$200,000
October 13, 20011:30 PM CDTF0Lamar0.225$1,000
March 12, 20019:38 AM CSTF1Marion18.04407$4.5 million
February 16, 20013:35 PM CSTF0Marion3.0150$20,000
November 9, 20001:50 AM CSTF0Lamar0.550$3,000
January 15, 19974:49 PM CSTF1Lamar7.0802$100,000
April 11, 19956:15 AM CDTF1Lamar2.5200$50,000 to $500,000
March 7, 199512:17 PM CSTF0Lamar1.040$500 to $5,000
March 9, 199410:20 AM CSTF0Lamar2.050$500 to $5,000
August 27, 19927:15 PM CDTF0Lamar2.0100$500 to $5,000
November 22, 19893:30 PM CSTF2Lamar2.5400$50,000 to $500,000
February 16, 19758:30 PM CSTF1Lamar0.3100$5,000 to $50,000
September 9, 19744:00 PM CDTF1Lamar0.130$50 to $500
November 13, 197211:30 AM CSTF2Lamar0.850$50,000 to $500,000
August 19, 19652:45 PM GMT-5F1Lamar0.560$50 to $500
February 21, 19615:20 PM GMT-6F1Lamar0.110$500 to $5,000
February 26, 19586:00 PM GMT-6F2Pearl River23.1509$50,000 to $500,000
February 20, 195412:35 AM GMT-6F2Lamar37.120010$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

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