Lowndes County, Alabama Hurricane History

No active tropical cyclones are within 500 miles of Lowndes County, Alabama as of Thursday, 10 September 2026. Official forecasts at nhc.noaa.gov.

Since 1852, 34 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Lowndes County, Alabama — about one every 5.1 years. Of those, 4 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Sally (2020), which passed 25 miles away on 17 September 2020.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

5.1

Avg. years between

Years since the last

Storm tracks within 50 miles

TS / TDCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5

Each line is one storm track, coloured by the strongest category it reached while within 50 miles. The dashed ring marks that 50-mile radius; hairlines are one-degree graticule. Source: NOAA NHC HURDAT2.

How strong they get

Cat 1 · 3TS / TD · 31

The 34 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 3 of them reached Cat 1.

Key facts

Most recentSally (2020) — 25 mi away, 17 September 2020
Strongest stormEloise (1975) — 73 kt (84 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordUnnamed Storm (1852) — 1.4 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)None on record
Passes within 25 miles12 of 34
Peak monthSeptember — 10 storms (29% of all)
Most active year1959 — 2 storms
Most active decade2000s — 5 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi0
Record span1852–2020

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Lowndes County, Alabama, September is the most active month, with 10 of the 34 recorded storms (29%). Activity concentrates in July, September and October, together 71% of all storms. The 2000s was the most active decade on record, with 5 storms. 0 of the 34 storms were major hurricanes (Category 3 or stronger) while within 50 miles.

J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
0	0	0	0	1	4	5	4	10	9	1	0

Activity by decade

19002000

Tropical cyclones passing within 50 miles, by decade, 1850s to 2020s. Decades with no storms are shown as empty columns. Comparing two equal 38-year windows inside the aircraft-reconnaissance era: 6 storms in 1950–1987 against 10 in 1988–2025.

1850s	1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s	1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
2	0	1	1	2	4	2	2	1	3	3	1	1	1	3	5	1	1

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Sally (2020)	17 Sep 2020	25.3 mi	TS / TD	32 kt
Alberto (2018)	29 May 2018	4.6 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Cindy (2005)	7 Jul 2005	34.8 mi	TS / TD	24 kt
Ivan (2004)	16 Sep 2004	48.2 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Hanna (2002)	15 Sep 2002	28.6 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Barry (2001)	6 Aug 2001	26.3 mi	TS / TD	24 kt
Allison (2001)	12 Jun 2001	35.6 mi	TS / TD	21 kt
Danny (1997)	21 Jul 1997	31.7 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Opal (1995)	5 Oct 1995	9.4 mi	Cat 1	65 kt
Alberto (1994)	7 Jul 1994	38.3 mi	TS / TD	10 kt
Juan (1985)	1 Nov 1985	18.1 mi	TS / TD	39 kt
Eloise (1975)	23 Sep 1975	44.3 mi	Cat 1	73 kt
Unnamed Storm (1969)	1 Oct 1969	15.1 mi	TS / TD	28 kt
Irene (1959)	8 Oct 1959	7.1 mi	TS / TD	28 kt
Arlene (1959)	2 Jun 1959	47.4 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
King (1950)	20 Oct 1950	43.8 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1948)	10 Jul 1948	6.9 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1947)	16 Oct 1947	31.8 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1944)	11 Sep 1944	13.4 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1939)	27 Sep 1939	35.8 mi	TS / TD	27 kt
Unnamed Storm (1926)	29 Jul 1926	37.3 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1923)	26 Jun 1923	43.2 mi	TS / TD	31 kt
Unnamed Storm (1916)	18 Oct 1916	37.8 mi	TS / TD	62 kt
Unnamed Storm (1912)	14 Jun 1912	41.2 mi	TS / TD	39 kt
Unnamed Storm (1907)	22 Sep 1907	30.0 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1903)	14 Sep 1903	39.4 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1902)	11 Oct 1902	26.5 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Unnamed Storm (1900)	14 Sep 1900	22.7 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1899)	2 Aug 1899	13.7 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1893)	3 Oct 1893	9.1 mi	TS / TD	54 kt
Unnamed Storm (1881)	29 Aug 1881	31.8 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1879)	16 Oct 1879	48.0 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Unnamed Storm (1859)	16 Sep 1859	11.0 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1852)	27 Aug 1852	1.4 mi	TS / TD	43 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

A further 3 systems passed within 50 miles after losing tropical characteristics. These are excluded from the counts above because they were no longer tropical cyclones at their closest approach — but several were highly damaging, so they are listed here.

Storm	Status	Closest approach	Distance	Wind
Lee (2011)	Post-tropical	5 Sep 2011	20.5 mi	32 kt
Five (2010)	Remnant low	14 Aug 2010	14.5 mi	17 kt
Unnamed Storm (1932)	Post-tropical	16 Oct 1932	49.9 mi	39 kt

About this data. Computed from NOAA's HURDAT2 Atlantic and Northeast Pacific hurricane databases (hurdat2-1851-2025-02272026.txt), covering 1852–2025. Tracks are recorded every six hours and are interpolated to one-hour steps before distances are measured, so closest-approach figures are not distorted by the sampling interval. Distances are measured to the county's Census internal point, not to its nearest boundary, so a storm listed at 55 miles may still have crossed the coastline — see Methodology. Records before about 1900 are sparser and less precise than modern ones, and storms that stayed at sea were less likely to be recorded at all.

Storms that came back

1 named storm in this record passed Lowndes County, Alabama more than once.

Alberto — 2 passes (1994, 2018)

How Lowndes County, Alabama compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Lowndes County, Alabama ranks #425 — more exposed than 80.7% of them. Within Alabama it ranks #29 of 67, against a state average of 32.6 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 1 Eloise (1975) passed 44 miles away on 23 September 1975 as a hurricane, reaching 73 kt (84 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Opal (1995) passed 9 miles away on 5 October 1995 as a hurricane, reaching 70 kt (81 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1916) passed 38 miles away on 18 October 1916 as a hurricane, reaching 65 kt (75 mph) while within 50 miles.
TS / TD Unnamed Storm (1893) passed 9 miles away on 3 October 1893 as a tropical storm, reaching 60 kt (69 mph) while within 50 miles.

33 of the 34 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 5.1 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 34 storms spread over the 174 years from 1852 to 2025. 2 separate years saw more than one storm pass within 50 miles while decades have gone by with none. The longest recorded quiet stretch was 20 years, between 1859 and 1879. It has been 5 years since the last one; 12 of the 31 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Lowndes County, Alabama?

4 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Lowndes County, Alabama at hurricane strength since 1852. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 34.

When was the last hurricane in Lowndes County, Alabama?

Ivan (2004), on 16 September 2004, passing 48 miles away — 22 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Sally (2020) in 2020.

What was the strongest storm to affect Lowndes County, Alabama?

Eloise (1975), which reached 73 kt (84 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 44 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Lowndes County, Alabama?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 5.1 years — 34 storms over the 174 years from 1852 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Lowndes County, Alabama borders or sits close to 5 other counties with a published storm record. Wilcox County, Alabama has 42 on record.

Wilcox County, Alabama42 storms within 50 mi Crenshaw County, Alabama36 storms within 50 mi Autauga County, Alabama35 storms within 50 mi Butler County, Alabama35 storms within 50 mi Dallas County, Alabama35 storms within 50 mi