# Tornado outbreak sequence of May 4–10, 1933

From May 4–10, 1933, a tornado outbreak sequence produced at least 33 tornadoes. Among them was the Beaty Swamp tornado, a violent F4 that struck shortly after midnight CST on May 11, 1933, in Overton County, Tennessee, killing 35 people, injuring 150 others, and devastating the unincorporated communities of Beaty Swamp and Bethsaida. The storm was the second-deadliest tornado in the history of Middle Tennessee, even though it struck a sparsely populated, rural area. The community of Beaty Swamp ceased to exist and does not appear on any current maps. The only landmark that alludes to the former community is Beaty Swamp Road, which intersects Highway 111 in the northeast corner of Overton County. The severe weather event that generated the tornado also produced others, including long-tracked, intense tornadoes or tornado families that devastated portions of Alabama, South Carolina, and Kentucky, killing a combined total of 76 people.

## Confirmed tornadoes

Confirmed tornadoes by Fujita rating :
| FU | F0 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | Total |
| 6 | ? | ? | 16 | 8 | 3 | 0 | ≥ 33 |

### May 4 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Thursday, May 4, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F2 | Calico Rock | Izard | AR | 21:00–? | 6 miles (9.7 km) | 50 yards (46 m) | Tornado destroyed a few barns. Losses totaled $500. |
| FU | Eudora | Chicot | AR | 22:00–? | 3 miles (4.8 km) | Un­known | Large tornado destroyed several structures. Losses totaled $50,000. |
| F2 | Bosco | Ouachita | LA | 23:00–? | Un­known | Un­known | Tornado struck a plantation, unroofing the main residence. Six tenant homes were destroyed as well. Four people were injured and losses totaled $25,000. |
| F3 | E of Tallulah | Madison | LA | 00:30–? | 10 miles (16 km) | 500 yards (460 m) | 1 death – Tornado destroyed both large and small homes. 15 people were injured and losses totaled $35,000. |
| F2 | Valley Park | Issaquena, Sharkey | MS | 02:00–? | 5 miles (8.0 km) | 50 yards (46 m) | Tornado destroyed a church and four homes. |

### May 5 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Friday, May 5, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F3 | E of Edna to Demopolis | Choctaw, Sumter, Marengo | AL | 06:20–? | 35 miles (56 km) | 400 yards (370 m) | 4 deaths – Tornado destroyed 50 homes as it passed through Demopolis, rendering 200 people homeless. 27 people were injured and losses totaled $60,000. |
| F4 | S of Brent to Helena | Bibb, Shelby | AL | 08:30–? | 35 miles (56 km) | 500 yards (460 m) | 21 deaths – Tornado obliterated small homes near Centerville and Coalmont. 14 of the fatalities occurred in Helena, along with 150 injuries, as the town was devastated. In all, 200 people were injured and losses totaled $250,000. |
| FU | Un­known | Jefferson | AL | 09:00–? | Un­known | 100 yards (91 m) | One person was injured and losses totaled $4,000. |
| F3 | Northern Anderson to Belton to Barksdale | Anderson, Greenville, Laurens | SC | 19:30–? | 45 miles (72 km) | 300 yards (270 m) | 19 deaths – Tornado struck mills in Belton, destroying poorly built homes nearby. Other homes were destroyed in Greenville County. 100 people were injured and losses totaled $350,000. Most of the damages were to mills. |

### May 6 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Saturday, May 6, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F2 | W of Starkville | Oktibbeha | MS | 07:30–? | Un­known | Un­known | One home was destroyed. Three people were injured and losses totaled $3,000. |
| F2 | Un­known | Lee | MS | 07:30–? | Un­known | Un­known | Three small homes were destroyed. Five people were injured and losses totaled $6,000. |

### May 7 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Sunday, May 7, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F2 | S of Remsen to SE of Alton | Plymouth, Sioux | IA | 19:45–? | 12 miles (19 km) | Un­known | Tornado struck seven farmsteads, three of which lost their barns. One person was injured and losses totaled $20,000. |
| F2 | NE of Searcy | White | AR | 21:30–? | Un­known | Un­known | Short-lived tornado, attended by hail, destroyed barns. |
| F2 | N of Harrisburg to Trumann | Poinsett | AR | 22:00–? | 16 miles (26 km) | 400 yards (370 m) | Tornado destroyed a school and nine homes in the Shady Grove community. At least two—possibly three—people were injured and losses totaled $25,000. |
| F2 | W of Barnum | Webster | IA | 22:00–? | Un­known | Un­known | Tornado destroyed a CBS-type barn. |
| F2 | N of Bondurant to Maxwell | Polk, Story | IA | 22:00–? | 12 miles (19 km) | 200 yards (180 m) | Widely-visible tornado destroyed a couple of barns. A farmstead sustained the third tornado strike in its history. Losses totaled $3,000. |
| F2 | Eagle Grove | Wright | IA | 22:30–? | 2 miles (3.2 km) | 50 yards (46 m) | Tornado destroyed a chicken coop, a toolshed, and a barn. Losses totaled $5,000. |
| FU | Lu Verne | Humboldt, Kossuth | IA | 23:30–? | Un­known | Un­known | Losses totaled $500. |
| F3 | S of Covington to Charleston | Tipton | TN | 23:45–? | 15 miles (24 km) | 300 yards (270 m) | 6 deaths – Tornado destroyed or damaged approximately 105 agricultural outbuildings and homes. 20 people were injured and losses totaled $75,000. |
| F2 | N of Somers to N of Barnum | Calhoun, Webster | IA | Un­known | 12 miles (19 km) | Un­known | Tornado destroyed a few barns. Losses totaled $4,000. |
| F2 | E of Fort Dodge | Webster | IA | Un­known | Un­known | Un­known | One barn was destroyed. |

### May 8 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Monday, May 8, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| FU | Sycamore | Turner | GA | Un­known | Un­known | Un­known | Tornado reported. |
| FU | Cloverdale | Dade | GA | Un­known | Un­known | Un­known | Tornado reported. |

### May 9 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Tuesday, May 9, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F2 | SW of Tipton | Tipton | IN | 09:00–? | 1 mile (1.6 km) | Un­known | A large barn was destroyed and its contents strewn. |
| F2 | Lapel to Anderson | Madison | IN | 09:30–? | 4 miles (6.4 km) | Un­known | Tornado unroofed a home and damaged a factory. Damage to roofs and from seepage totaled $40,000. |
| FU | NE of Dayton | Montgomery | OH | 11:37–? | 3 miles (4.8 km) | 880 yards (800 m) | Losses totaled $1 million. |
| F3 | S of Versailles | Ripley | IN | 22:15–? | 7 miles (11 km) | 200 yards (180 m) | Tornado destroyed several barns and four homes. Five people were injured. |
| F3 | South Fork to Woods Ridge | Ohio | IN | 22:40–? | 5 miles (8.0 km) | 400 yards (370 m) | Tornado destroyed three homes, one of which it nearly leveled, a seven-room structure that sustained borderline-F4 damage. Three people were injured. |
| F3 | N of Dale to SW of Norris City | Hamilton, White | IL | 00:00–? | 8 miles (13 km) | 200 yards (180 m) | 2 deaths – Large tornado destroyed three homes, one of which was left with only a single wall. Three people were injured and losses totaled $5,000. |
| F4 | SW of Tompkinsville to Southeastern Russell Springs | Monroe, Cumberland, Adair, Russell | KY | 02:30–? | 60 miles (97 km) | 800 yards (730 m) | 36 deaths — See section on this tornado |
| F2 | Columbia | Metcalfe, Adair | KY | 02:30–? | 15 miles (24 km) | 400 yards (370 m) | 2 deaths – Five homes were destroyed and 12 others damaged in Columbia. 12 people were injured and losses totaled $45,000. |
| F3 | N of Lebanon | Wilson | TN | 04:30–? | 5 miles (8.0 km) | 200 yards (180 m) | 2 deaths – Three homes were obliterated and scattered. Bodies were found 300 yd (900 ft) away. Other residents survived in underground storm shelters that had been built after tornadoes on March 14. Six people were injured and losses totaled $25,000. |

### May 10 event

Confirmed tornadoes – Wednesday, May 10, 1933 :
| F# | Location | County / Parish | State | Time (UTC) | Path length | Max. width | Summary |
| F4 | N of Livingston to Byrdstown | Overton, Pickett | TN | 06:15–? | 20 miles (32 km) | 800 yards (730 m) | 35 deaths — See section on this tornado |

### Tompkinsville–Sewell–Cundiff–Russell Springs, Kentucky

A tornado family killed 16 people and destroyed 60 homes in Tompkinsville, striking the southern portion of the city and devastating African-American communities. Bodies were found 100 yd (91 m) away, and the swath of damage was 1⁄4 mi (0.40 km) wide. Farther northeast, the tornado killed two more people, at Sewell. Across Monroe County 50 injuries were reported. The tornado may have weakened as it headed northeastward, causing two injuries in Cumberland County and two more deaths near Cundiff in Adair County. Afterward, the tornado restrengthened and widened to 1 mi (1.6 km) as it neared Russell Springs. The tornado passed within 1⁄2 mi (0.80 km) of downtown Russell Springs, leveling 100 or more homes on the southeastern edge of town. At least 14 and possibly as many as 20 fatalities occurred in or near Russell Springs. Outside Russell Springs, chickens were reportedly left featherless. At least 87 people were injured and losses totaled $245,000. As many as 100 injuries may have occurred in Russell County alone. At that time, this tornado was the third-deadliest on record in the Commonwealth of Kentucky after the Louisville tornado of 1890, which took 76 lives, and the Fulton County-Bondurant tornado of 1917 when 65 people were killed. However, after 58 people were killed during the Western Kentucky tornado of 2021, this tornado would become the fourth-deadliest on record.

### Beaty Swamp–Bethsaida, Tennessee

Around midnight local time, a violent tornado touched down approximately 6 mi (9.7 km) north of Livingston and headed northeast, paralleling Big Eagle Creek and passing northwest of Bethsaida. The tornado subsequently struck the small settlement of Beaty Swamp, obliterating every home and causing 33 fatalities there, including an entire family of nine. Little debris was left in the vicinity, a reaper-binder was thrown 500 yd (1,500 ft), and cars were moved hundreds of feet. Almost everyone in Beaty Swamp was either injured or killed. After devastating Beaty Swamp, the tornado continued through Bethsaida and past West Fork before dissipating near Byrdstown. In Pickett County the tornado caused only minor damage to properties and trees. Estimates of the path length vary from 11 to 20 mi (18 to 32 km). Heavy rainfall, suggestive of a high-precipitation supercell, immediately preceded the tornado. Another violent tornado did not hit the area until April 3, 1974.