Nashville, TN Tornado History — 145 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Nashville, TN had?
Nashville has had 145 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950, including 8 violent (EF3+) tornadoes.
When was the most recent tornado near Nashville?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Nashville was an EF1 on April 3, 2025.
When is tornado season in Nashville?
May is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Nashville, with 40 on record. Spring through early summer (April–June) generally sees the highest activity across most of the central and southern United States.
At a Glance
Recent Tornado Activity Near Nashville
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 64 total, averaging 3.2 per year over this window.
Preliminary tornado reports near Nashville since December 29, 2025
These is a preliminary report, not confirmed tornadoes. It has not yet been through an NWS damage survey, and is not counted in the confirmed totals above.
Preliminary reports are revised, merged, and sometimes withdrawn — historically about 23% are consolidated downward once surveys complete. Ratings are omitted until a survey assigns one.
Confirmed records above are complete through December 29, 2025. NOAA publishes the confirmed archive annually, so tornadoes after that date appear here first and move into the totals above once finalized.
Within 25 miles of Nashville. Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center preliminary storm reports, updated daily.
Tornadoes by Decade
Tornadoes by Enhanced Fujita Rating
F0–F5 ratings (pre-2007) are grouped with their EF equivalents. The Enhanced Fujita scale replaced the original Fujita scale in February 2007.
Tornadoes by Month
Casualties on Record Near Nashville
21 fatalities have been recorded within 25 miles of Nashville since 1950, across 7 events. 651 injuries have been reported across all events. 2006 was the deadliest year on record.
The deadliest single event was a F3 on April 7, 2006, which caused 7 fatalities along a 22.7-mile track.
Notable Tornadoes Near Nashville
About Tornadoes in Nashville
This overview was written August 10, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
Nashville occupies the floor of Middle Tennessee's Central Basin, a limestone lowland ringed by the Highland Rim and threaded by the Cumberland River. That open, bowl-like terrain offers little resistance when storm systems pull humid Gulf of Mexico air northward into the Mid-South, where it meets advancing cold fronts and vigorous jet-stream winds aloft. Because that collision can occur in spring, in late autumn, and even after dark in winter, the city's tornado threat stretches across the calendar rather than confining itself to springtime. The NOAA Storm Prediction Center's database for the Nashville area reflects that broad seasonal exposure, decade after decade.
Intense events anchor the local history. An F4 tornado on April 27, 1970 carved a 42.6-mile path across the area, killing 3 people and injuring 85. Another F4 struck on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1988, killing 1 person, injuring 7, and inflicting damage near 27.5 million dollars. An F3 on April 16, 1998 tracked 42.1 miles through the metropolitan core, and a further F3 on April 7, 2006 killed 7 people while injuring 128. The EF3 of March 3, 2020 remained on the ground for 60.13 miles at widths approaching 1,600 yards, killing 5, injuring 220, and causing roughly 1.5 billion dollars in damage, while an EF2 on December 9, 2023 claimed 3 lives along a 34.77-mile track.