States › Mississippi › Itawamba County

Itawamba County, Mississippi

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 28057 · 23,838 residents (2021) · 533 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 96Tornado · 21Flood · 20Wind · 181Winter · 27

Itawamba County within Mississippi. Dots: HailTornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 29 Sep 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Between 1950 and 2026, NCEI recorded 476 storm events in Itawamba County, Mississippi, led by damaging wind.

That is 89.3 events per 100 square miles, in line with the Mississippi figure of 89.7, and 199.7 per 10,000 residents against 142.8 statewide.

23 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 3 deaths and 7 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $6.7M and crop damage at $10K.

FEMA has designated the county in 26 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Winter Storm (major disaster, 6 Feb 2026).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 3 claims since 1978, of which 2 were paid, totalling $52K (about $26K per paid claim). FEMA counts 16 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Low" and its expected annual loss as "Very Low" ($12M a year across 18 hazards).

19 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 0 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

23events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

476events since 19503 deaths, 7 injuries recorded

26disaster declarationslast 6 Feb 2026

3NFIP flood claims$52K paid

Compared with Mississippi and the United States

Measure	Itawamba County	Mississippi	US
Recorded events since 1950	476	42,114	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	89.3	89.7	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	199.7	142.8	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	23	1,524	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	3	928	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$6.7M	$31B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	0.1	21.9	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$26K	$58K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	0.0	11.5	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Tornado: 1

Wind: 3

Hail: 2Tornado: 3Wind: 2

Hail: 6Wind: 15

Hail: 30Tornado: 2Flood: 1Wind: 48Winter: 3

Hail: 22Tornado: 4Flood: 7Wind: 33Winter: 6Tropical: 3Heat: 2Cold: 3Drought: 7Lightning: 1

Hail: 18Tornado: 4Flood: 8Wind: 42Winter: 11Heat: 23Drought: 10Lightning: 1

Hail: 18Tornado: 7Flood: 4Wind: 38Winter: 7Heat: 67Cold: 7Drought: 7

11950s31960s71970s211980s841990s882000s1172010s1552020s

Recorded events in Itawamba County by decade and hazard group. HailTornadoFloodWindWinterTropicalHeatColdDroughtLightning NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 306 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 145 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Wind181

Hail96

Heat92

Winter27

Drought24

Tornado21

Flood20

Cold10

Tropical3

Lightning2

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	181	—	1.0%	detail
■ Hail	96	—	1.1%	detail
■ Heat	92	1	3.4%
■ Winter	27	—	1.5%	detail
■ Drought	24	—	1.7%
■ Tornado	21	—	0.6%	detail
■ Flood	20	—	0.5%	detail
■ Cold	10	1	3.0%
■ Tropical	3	—	0.5%
■ Lightning	2	1	0.5%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
27 Apr 2016	Lightning	Lightning	—	$10K	—	1	—	County
22 Aug 2000	Heat	Heat	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
25 Dec 2004	Cold/Wind Chill	Cold	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
28 Apr 2014	Tornado	Tornado	EF3	$3.0M	—	—	2	County
6 May 2003	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$350K	—	—	2	County
28 Apr 1954	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$25K	—	—	2	County
25 Oct 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	—	$10K	—	—	1	County
5 Nov 2018	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$500K	—	—	—	County
11 Jun 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	64 mph	$350K	—	—	—	County
13 Apr 1991	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	—	County
22 Feb 2019	Flood	Flood	—	$206K	—	—	—	County
8 May 2008	Tornado	Tornado	EF2	$150K	—	—	—	County
31 Aug 2017	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$150K	—	—	—	County
25 Oct 1997	Hail	Hail	2.75 in	$100K	$10K	—	—	County
27 Apr 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF5	$100K	—	—	—	County
15 Mar 2025	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$100K	—	—	—	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
6 Feb 2026	DR-4899	Major disaster	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
24 Jan 2026	EM-3640	Emergency	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
21 May 2025	DR-4874	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
12 Aug 2023	DR-4727	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Tornadoes.	Public assistance
22 Oct 2021	DR-4626	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	Public assistance
28 Aug 2021	EM-3569	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Ida	Public assistance
5 Apr 2020	DR-4528	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3474	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
6 Dec 2019	DR-4470	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
20 Jun 2019	DR-4450	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
23 Apr 2019	DR-4429	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
4 Jan 2016	DR-4248	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
30 Apr 2014	DR-4175	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
29 Apr 2011	DR-1972	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Associated Flooding	Public assistance
30 Aug 2008	EM-3291	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Gustav	Public assistance
29 Aug 2005	DR-1604	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina	Public assistance
10 Jul 2005	DR-1594	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Dennis	Public assistance
23 May 2003	DR-1470	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes And High Winds	Individual assistance
23 Feb 2001	DR-1360	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance
25 Jan 1999	DR-1265	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms, Ice And Freezing Rain	Public assistance
18 Feb 1994	DR-1009	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm, Freeezing Rain And Sleet	Public assistance
17 May 1991	DR-906	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
5 Mar 1991	DR-895	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
3 Jan 1991	DR-888	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Individual assistance
22 Feb 1977	EM-3032	Emergency	Snowstorm	Drought & Freezing	Public assistance
27 Mar 1973	DR-368	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Heavy Rains, Tornadoes & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Itawamba County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 19783

Paid claims2

Total paid$52K

Average paid claim$26K

Repetitive-loss properties0

Residential policies in force160.2% of 8,478 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2000	1	0	$0	—
1999	2	2	$51,649	$25,825

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskRelatively Lowscore 49.6 of 100

Expected annual loss$12MVery Low

Social vulnerabilityRelatively High

Community resilienceRelatively Moderate

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Cold wave	Relatively High	$4,996,900
Inland flooding	Very Low	$2,451,578
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$1,665,650
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$965,474
Heat wave	Relatively Low	$701,889
Lightning	Relatively Moderate	$495,635
Strong wind	Relatively Low	$377,790
Hail	Very Low	$88,684
Hurricane	Very Low	$88,420
Drought	Relatively Low	$52,702
Ice storm	Relatively Low	$36,359
Wildfire	Very Low	$9,523
Landslide	Relatively Low	$6,573
Winter weather	Very Low	$5,930

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

Tracks within 100 miles19

Tracks within 50 miles7

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Katrina	2005	18 mi	46 mph
Frederic	1979	28 mi	52 mph
Camille	1969	98 mi	40 mph
Audrey	1957	46 mi	40 mph
Baker	1950	41 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1934	59 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1923	97 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1916	41 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1916	51 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	47 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1912	89 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1906	85 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1901	91 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	72 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1881	41 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1879	55 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1860	91 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1860	51 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1855	89 mi	46 mph

HURDAT2 best-track positions at tropical-storm strength (34 kt) or more, measured from the county's Census centre point; through the 2025 season. Distance from a track is not the same as the extent of the storm's wind, rain or surge.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Itawamba County, MS?

NCEI records 96 hail events in Itawamba County since 1950, in 33 different years; that is about 1.2 recorded events a year. 23 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Itawamba County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 21 tornadoes in Itawamba County since 1950, 7 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Itawamba County?

6 Feb 2026: Severe Winter Storm, a major disaster declaration for winter storm. The county appears in 26 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Itawamba County, and how much was paid?

3 NFIP claims since 1978, 2 of them paid, for $52K in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Itawamba County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively Low" for overall risk, "Very Low" for expected annual loss, "Relatively High" for social vulnerability and "Relatively Moderate" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Itawamba County compare with the rest of Mississippi?

89.3 recorded events per 100 square miles against 89.7 statewide, and 0.1 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 21.9. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 29 Sep 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 30 Sep 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.