Tornadoes · United States · Tennessee

Tornadoes in Bradley County, Tennessee

28 tornadoes have crossed Bradley County since 1950, 18th of the 95 counties in Tennessee with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.7 years. They have killed 33 people and injured 671. 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
28
Deaths
33
Injuries
671
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, April 27, 2011

The deadliest in Bradley County

  1. EF4 Ringgold–Apison tornado, Georgia and TennesseeApril 27, 201120 killed, 335 injured
  2. EF2, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 27, 20114 killed
  3. F3, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 3, 19743 killed, 50 injured
  4. EF3 Chattanooga tornado, Georgia and TennesseeApril 12, 20202 killed, 18 injured
  5. F3, Bradley and Polk counties, TennesseeApril 3, 19741 killed, 100 injured
  6. F3, Hamilton, Bradley, Meigs and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 15, 19941 killed, 9 injured
  7. EF1, Hamilton and Bradley counties, TennesseeApril 27, 20111 killed
  8. F1, Bradley County, TennesseeApril 16, 19981 killed

The strongest

  1. EF4 Ringgold–Apison tornado, Georgia and TennesseeApril 27, 2011EF4, 48.0 mi (77 km)
  2. EF3, Hamilton, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties, TennesseeMarch 2, 2012EF3, 41.0 mi (66 km)
  3. F3, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 3, 1974F3, 21.2 mi (34 km)
  4. EF3 Chattanooga tornado, Georgia and TennesseeApril 12, 2020EF3, 19.3 mi (31 km)
  5. F3, Bradley and Polk counties, TennesseeApril 3, 1974F3, 18.1 mi (29 km)
  6. F3, Hamilton, Bradley, Meigs and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 15, 1994F3, 15.0 mi (24 km)
  7. F3, Bradley County, TennesseeApril 15, 1965F3, 10.4 mi (17 km)
  8. F3, Bradley, McMinn and Polk counties, TennesseeFebruary 6, 1986F3, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  9. F3, Bradley County, TennesseeMarch 29, 1997F3, 4.0 mi (6 km)
  10. EF2, Bradley, Polk and McMinn counties, TennesseeApril 27, 2011EF2, 27.9 mi (45 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 16 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Bradley County. Each year links to every tornado in Tennessee that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20204224EF3
20141EF1
2012144EF3
2011725336EF4
20101EF1
20042F1
199821F1
1997150F3
19961F0
1994119F3
19891F1
198615F3
19801F1
197424150F3
1965150F3
196313F2

Every tornado that crossed Bradley County

28 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 Tennessee.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 12, 202011:55 PM EDTEF1Bradley4.7500
April 12, 202011:50 PM EDTEF1Bradley5.1500
April 12, 202011:45 PM EDTEF2Bradley3.05006
April 12, 202010:15 PM CDTEF3Chattanooga tornado19.31,500218$250,000
April 28, 201411:05 PM EDTEF1Bradley0.6100$90,000
March 2, 201212:41 PM ESTEF3Hamilton41.040044$35 million
April 27, 20117:15 PM CDTEF4Ringgold–Apison tornado48.080020335$68 million
April 27, 20117:35 PM EDTEF0Bradley1.050$20,000
April 27, 20116:28 PM EDTEF2Bradley27.92504$650,000
April 27, 20113:36 PM EDTEF0Bradley2.0150$50,000
April 27, 20113:15 PM EDTEF0Bradley1.850$15,000
April 27, 20113:02 PM EDTEF1Hamilton17.01201$125,000
April 27, 20118:45 AM EDTEF2Bradley2.01501$125,000
October 26, 20103:30 PM EDTEF1Bradley0.140$100,000
August 2, 20046:00 PM EDTF0Bradley0.330$20,000
May 31, 20043:30 AM EDTF1Bradley7.560$80,000
May 7, 19982:30 PM EDTF1Bradley6.0100$380,000
April 16, 199812:20 AM EDTF1Bradley11.5501$750,000
March 29, 19971:30 AM ESTF3Bradley4.010050$3.2 million
May 27, 19967:28 PM EDTF0Bradley3.530
April 15, 199412:30 PM EDTF3Hamilton15.088019$500,000 to $5 million
November 15, 19897:45 PM ESTF1Bradley3.030$5,000 to $50,000
February 6, 19864:18 PM ESTF3Bradley10.02705$500,000 to $5 million
April 8, 19805:31 PM ESTF1Bradley5.250$5,000 to $50,000
April 3, 19746:15 PM EDTF3Bradley21.2500350$50,000 to $500,000
April 3, 19743:05 PM EDTF3Bradley18.13501100$50,000 to $500,000
April 15, 19655:25 PM GMT-5F3Bradley10.460050$500,000 to $5 million
March 19, 19637:15 PM GMT-5F2Bradley3.31503$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Bradley CountyThe forecast for Bradley CountyThe live radar over Bradley CountyEvery county in Tennessee

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.