Pike County, Mississippi Hurricane History

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

Since 1856, 49 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Pike County, Mississippi — about one every 3.5 years. Of those, 5 were at hurricane strength at their closest approach. The most recent was Francine (2024), which passed 12 miles away on 12 September 2024.

Storms within 50 mi

At hurricane strength

3.5

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 3 · 1Cat 1 · 7TS / TD · 41

The 49 storms by the strongest category each reached while within 50 miles. 1 of them reached Cat 3.

Key facts

Most recentFrancine (2024) — 12 mi away, 12 September 2024
Strongest stormCamille (1969) — 108 kt (124 mph) at its strongest within 50 miles
Closest pass on recordUnnamed Storm (1886) — 1.6 miles
Closest major hurricane (Cat 3+)Camille (1969) — 40.1 miles
Passes within 25 miles22 of 49
Peak monthSeptember — 18 storms (37% of all)
Most active year1971 — 3 storms
Most active decade1970s and 2000s — 6 storms
Major hurricanes (Cat 3+) within 50 mi1
Record span1856–2024

When storms arrive

JFMAMJJASOND

Storms by month of closest approach; the peak is highlighted and labelled. In Pike County, Mississippi, September is the most active month, with 18 of the 49 recorded storms (37%). Activity concentrates in June, August and September, together 76% of all storms. The 1970s and 2000s are tied as the most active decades on record, with 6 storms. 1 of the 49 storms was major hurricane (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	6	5	13	18	6	0	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: 14 storms in 1950–1987 against 13 in 1988–2025.

1850s	1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s	1900s	1910s	1920s	1930s	1940s	1950s	1960s	1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010s	2020s
1	1	3	2	3	2	3	2	2	3	4	2	6	3	2	6	0	4

Every tropical or subtropical cyclone within 50 miles

Storm	Closest approach	Distance	Status	Wind
Francine (2024)	12 Sep 2024	11.8 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Ida (2021)	30 Aug 2021	27.8 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Claudette (2021)	19 Jun 2021	49.6 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Cristobal (2020)	8 Jun 2020	33.1 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Fay (2008)	25 Aug 2008	25.0 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Katrina (2005)	29 Aug 2005	47.5 mi	Cat 1	80 kt
Matthew (2004)	10 Oct 2004	32.7 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Bill (2003)	1 Jul 2003	36.5 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Isidore (2002)	26 Sep 2002	32.8 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Bertha (2002)	5 Aug 2002	22.6 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Hermine (1998)	20 Sep 1998	25.9 mi	TS / TD	22 kt
Andrew (1992)	27 Aug 1992	46.0 mi	TS / TD	34 kt
Florence (1988)	10 Sep 1988	32.8 mi	TS / TD	28 kt
Elena (1985)	2 Sep 1985	12.3 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Unnamed Storm (1980)	21 Jul 1980	35.1 mi	TD	—
Bob (1979)	11 Jul 1979	15.5 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Babe (1977)	6 Sep 1977	19.5 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1975)	30 Jul 1975	33.4 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Edith (1971)	16 Sep 1971	13.7 mi	TS / TD	47 kt
Fern (1971)	5 Sep 1971	48.4 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1971)	9 Aug 1971	47.2 mi	TD	—
Camille (1969)	18 Aug 1969	40.1 mi	Cat 2	95 kt
Hilda (1964)	4 Oct 1964	38.8 mi	TS / TD	59 kt
Arlene (1959)	31 May 1959	36.0 mi	TS / TD	26 kt
Esther (1957)	18 Sep 1957	18.1 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1956)	14 Jun 1956	16.4 mi	TS / TD	34 kt
Brenda (1955)	2 Aug 1955	36.2 mi	TS / TD	38 kt
Unnamed Storm (1949)	4 Sep 1949	14.3 mi	TS / TD	36 kt
Unnamed Storm (1945)	6 Sep 1945	6.7 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1940)	25 Sep 1940	16.5 mi	TS / TD	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1936)	28 Jul 1936	29.7 mi	TS / TD	27 kt
Unnamed Storm (1934)	17 Jun 1934	46.2 mi	TS / TD	55 kt
Unnamed Storm (1926)	22 Sep 1926	47.2 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1923)	16 Oct 1923	35.9 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Unnamed Storm (1915)	30 Sep 1915	23.6 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Unnamed Storm (1912)	13 Jun 1912	19.1 mi	TS / TD	48 kt
Unnamed Storm (1911)	12 Aug 1911	14.6 mi	TS / TD	37 kt
Unnamed Storm (1905)	10 Oct 1905	8.3 mi	TS / TD	33 kt
Unnamed Storm (1905)	29 Sep 1905	45.1 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1894)	9 Aug 1894	18.6 mi	TS / TD	25 kt
Unnamed Storm (1893)	8 Sep 1893	36.5 mi	TS / TD	53 kt
Unnamed Storm (1890)	27 Aug 1890	9.0 mi	TS / TD	36 kt
Unnamed Storm (1888)	20 Aug 1888	35.9 mi	Cat 1	68 kt
Unnamed Storm (1886)	15 Jun 1886	1.6 mi	TS / TD	35 kt
Unnamed Storm (1879)	7 Oct 1879	23.6 mi	TS / TD	40 kt
Unnamed Storm (1879)	2 Sep 1879	6.2 mi	TS / TD	60 kt
Unnamed Storm (1875)	18 Sep 1875	16.1 mi	TS / TD	30 kt
Unnamed Storm (1860)	3 Oct 1860	29.4 mi	TS / TD	58 kt
Unnamed Storm (1856)	12 Aug 1856	36.6 mi	TS / TD	40 kt

Post-tropical and extratropical passes

A further 4 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
Olga (2019)	Post-tropical	26 Oct 2019	12.0 mi	45 kt
Lee (2011)	Post-tropical	5 Sep 2011	42.5 mi	39 kt
Five (2010)	Remnant low	17 Aug 2010	10.2 mi	20 kt
Unnamed Storm (1863)	Post-tropical	1 Oct 1863	49.4 mi	40 kt

About this data. Computed from NOAA's HURDAT2 Atlantic and Northeast Pacific hurricane databases (hurdat2-1851-2025-02272026.txt), covering 1856–2025. 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.

How Pike County, Mississippi compares

Among the 2,208 U.S. counties and county-equivalents that have recorded at least one tropical cyclone within 50 miles, Pike County, Mississippi ranks #214 — more exposed than 90.3% of them. Within Mississippi it ranks #10 of 82, against a state average of 32.3 storms per county.

Notable storms

Cat 3 Camille (1969) passed 40 miles away on 18 August 1969 as a hurricane, reaching 108 kt (124 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Katrina (2005) passed 47 miles away on 29 August 2005 as a hurricane, reaching 80 kt (92 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Elena (1985) passed 12 miles away on 2 September 1985 as a tropical storm, reaching 76 kt (87 mph) while within 50 miles.
Cat 1 Unnamed Storm (1879) passed 6 miles away on 2 September 1879 as a tropical storm, reaching 75 kt (86 mph) while within 50 miles.

42 of the 49 storms made a documented landfall somewhere along their track.

How often to expect a storm

A return interval of 3.5 years does not mean storms arrive on a schedule. It is simply 49 storms spread over the 170 years from 1856 to 2025. 5 separate years saw more than one storm pass within 50 miles while stretches of a decade or more have passed with none. The longest recorded quiet stretch was 15 years, between 1860 and 1875. It has been 1 year since the last one; 33 of the 42 gaps in this record were longer than that.

Common questions

How many hurricanes have hit Pike County, Mississippi?

5 tropical cyclones have passed within 50 miles of Pike County, Mississippi at hurricane strength since 1856. Counting all tropical cyclones — including tropical storms and depressions — the total is 49.

When was the last hurricane in Pike County, Mississippi?

Ida (2021), on 30 August 2021, passing 28 miles away — 5 years ago. The most recent tropical cyclone of any strength was Francine (2024) in 2024.

What was the strongest storm to affect Pike County, Mississippi?

Camille (1969), which reached 108 kt (124 mph) while within 50 miles; its closest approach was 40 miles.

How often do hurricanes hit Pike County, Mississippi?

On average, one tropical cyclone passes within 50 miles every 3.5 years — 49 storms over the 170 years from 1856 to 2025, the end of the HURDAT2 record. That is a historical average, not a schedule or a forecast.

Nearby counties

Pike County, Mississippi borders or sits close to 5 other counties with a published storm record. Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana has 50 on record.

Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana50 storms within 50 mi Washington Parish, Louisiana47 storms within 50 mi Walthall County, Mississippi43 storms within 50 mi Lincoln County, Mississippi42 storms within 50 mi Amite County, Mississippi40 storms within 50 mi