Blount County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
The chance of earthquake damage in Blount County is much higher than Tennessee average and is higher than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Blount County is much lower than Tennessee average and is much lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #4
| Blount County | 2.67 |
| Tennessee | 0.56 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Blount County | 0.0000 |
| Tennessee | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #68
| Blount County | 59.87 |
| Tennessee | 175.35 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 14,026 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Blount County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 32 | Dense Fog: | 6 | Drought: | 75 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 1,245 | Hail: | 3,689 | Heat: | 24 | Heavy Snow: | 138 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 9 | Ice Storm: | 32 | Landslide: | 2 | Strong Wind: | 85 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 7,886 | Tropical Storm: | 11 | Wildfire: | 4 | Winter Storm: | 92 | Winter Weather: | 79 |
| Other: | 617 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Blount County.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 6 historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Blount County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 8.0 | 1973-11-30 | 4.7 | 3 | 35.8 | -83.96 |
| 40.2 | 1979-08-13 | 3.7 | 5 | 35.24 | -84.38 |
| 32.2 | 1984-02-14 | 3.6 | 10 | 36.13 | -83.74 |
| 18.3 | 1982-09-24 | 3.5 | 8 | 35.68 | -84.25 |
| 31.0 | 1969-07-13 | 3.5 | N/A | 36.1 | -83.7 |
| 33.5 | 1977-07-27 | 3.5 | 7 | 35.42 | -84.42 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 25 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Blount County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 6.6 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°47'N / 83°55'W | 0.50 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Blount | |
| 12.8 | 2010-04-25 | 2 | 35°37'N / 84°08'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 20K | 0K | Blount | |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The NWS storm survey determined a tornado tracked from Loudon County for one-half of a mile along Thompson Bridge road. It was classified as an EF2 tornado with winds estimated at 110 mph with a path width of 100 yards. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A strong low pressure system along with an associated cold front tracked across the area triggering thunderstorms during the evening and overnight hours. A tornado touched down in eastern Monroe County, then tracked across southern Loudon County and finally dissipated in western Blount County. Another weak tornado touched down briefly in Polk County. | |||||||||||
| 13.3 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°40'N / 84°10'W | 35°40'N / 84°09'W | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Loudon | ||
| 16.6 | 1965-04-15 | 2 | 35°52'N / 84°05'W | 35°57'N / 84°00'W | 7.40 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 6 | 2.5M | 0 | Knox |
| 24.1 | 1984-05-07 | 2 | 35°44'N / 84°21'W | 1.00 Mile | 70 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Loudon | |
| 25.2 | 1953-05-02 | 2 | 36°02'N / 84°04'W | 0.80 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Anderson | |
| 26.0 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°20'N / 83°49'W | 35°23'N / 83°35'W | 13.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Swain |
| 26.7 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°31'N / 84°21'W | 1.00 Mile | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Monroe | |
| 26.8 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 35°16'N / 83°59'W | 35°20'N / 83°49'W | 10.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 2 | 11 | 250K | 0 | Graham |
| 27.6 | 1993-02-21 | 3 | 36°01'N / 84°15'W | 36°06'N / 83°58'W | 10.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 3 | 5.0M | 0 | Knox |
| Brief Description: The tornado started near Oak Ridge, moved through the Bull Run Steam Plant and went through the town of Claxton. Fifty homes were damaged and six mobile homes were destroyed. Two business were destroyed and another 10 were damaged including a weapons plant. Twelve electric transmission towers were knocked down. | |||||||||||
| 35.1 | 1993-02-21 | 2 | 35°47'N / 84°34'W | 35°45'N / 84°31'W | 10.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Blount And Loudon |
| Brief Description: The tornado that went through Loudon County continued across Blount County through the town of Friendsville and ending just west of Maryville. One large home was destroyed and several other were damaged. Numerous trees were snapped. | |||||||||||
| 36.7 | 1955-03-25 | 2 | 36°01'N / 84°25'W | 36°12'N / 84°14'W | 16.30 Miles | 1760 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Jefferson |
| 36.7 | 1980-04-28 | 2 | 35°15'N / 84°20'W | 35°16'N / 84°17'W | 3.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Monroe |
| 37.4 | 2002-11-10 | 2 | 36°12'N / 84°12'W | 36°12'N / 84°05'W | 5.50 Miles | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 213K | 0 | Anderson |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado produced a damage path 75 yards wide for a distance of 5.5 miles from near Briceville to Medford. The Medford community received the brunt of the damage, which was concentrated along Highway 25W, Leinart Road, Bryant Circle and Old and New Clear Branch roads. In all, 32 homes were damaged while 3 were totally destroyed. In addition, 9 mobile homes were damaged. | |||||||||||
| 41.6 | 2002-11-10 | 3 | 36°02'N / 84°36'W | 36°03'N / 84°27'W | 8.30 Miles | 300 Yards | 7 | 28 | 968K | 0 | Morgan |
| Brief Description: A strong F3 tornado (with wind speeds estimated around 175 mph) touched down 4.4 miles south of Wartburg in the Mossy Grove community killing 5 people and injuring 28. This tornado then struck Joyner at 8:40 P.M. killing two more people for a total of 7 dead. The tornado damaged 63 homes while destroying 24 others. In addition, 18 mobile homes were damaged and 12 others were destroyed. M47PH, F36PH, F73PH, M55VE, F1VE, M45PH, F93PH | |||||||||||
| 42.1 | 1952-02-29 | 2 | 35°18'N / 84°40'W | 35°27'N / 84°28'W | 15.30 Miles | 587 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mcminn |
| 42.3 | 1963-03-19 | 2 | 35°27'N / 84°39'W | 35°29'N / 84°36'W | 3.60 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Mcminn |
| 42.8 | 1974-04-08 | 3 | 35°26'N / 84°37'W | 2.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Mcminn | |
| 43.5 | 1976-02-18 | 2 | 35°57'N / 83°13'W | 1.00 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 10 | 2.5M | 0 | Cocke | |
| 44.4 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 34°58'N / 84°13'W | 35°09'N / 83°57'W | 18.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 4 | 26 | 25.0M | 0 | Cherokee |
| 46.5 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 35°16'N / 84°38'W | 35°19'N / 84°33'W | 6.10 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 50 | 250K | 0 | Mcminn |
| 46.9 | 1953-05-02 | 4 | 35°31'N / 84°45'W | 35°32'N / 84°43'W | 1.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Mcminn |
| 48.0 | 1986-02-06 | 3 | 35°18'N / 84°39'W | 35°17'N / 84°36'W | 3.00 Miles | 270 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Mcminn |
| 48.8 | 1953-05-02 | 4 | 35°31'N / 84°47'W | 35°31'N / 84°45'W | 2.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 4 | 8 | 250K | 0 | Meigs |
| 49.7 | 1976-06-28 | 2 | 35°19'N / 83°10'W | 0.20 Mile | 10 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Jackson | |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.