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Garrard County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 172 recorded events between 1969 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 64.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,597 nationally and #110 in Kentucky.
172
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$2.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Garrard County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Garrard County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 3.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 57 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 20 events fall before 1990 and 152 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $1.3M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Garrard County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 111 | 0 | $1.3M | 78 | 1969–2025 |
| Hail | 25 | 0 | $0 | 2.75 | 1986–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 19 | 0 | $1.2M | 0 | 1996–2021 |
| Tornado | 11 | 0 | $87K | F4 | 1974–2025 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2019 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $3K | 0 | 2019–2019 |
Decade by decade
Garrard County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
16 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 10 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-04-03 | EF4 | 7 | 28 | 31.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-05-08 | EF3 | 2 | 15 | 21.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-03 | EF3 | 1 | 98 | 21.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1977-10-01 | EF2 | 0 | 16 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 8.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 7.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-02-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-05-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Garrard County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 28, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | BUCKEYE | 0 | 3 | $80K |
| Jul 6, 1987 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tied down house trailer was rolled about 100 feet into the middle of a road and was destroyed. The adult female and 2 children that were in the home at the time were treated for minor injuries. Also, damage occurred to several homes and barns. Trees were downed. The wind was strong enough to push large rolled bales of hay down a hill.
A small and brief EF1 tornado touched down near a ridge-top on Gillespie Pike east of Lancaster. The tornado first uprooted a tree, then came to a small shed, which it shifted off its foundation into a fence. The main property for that shed then had a loss of roof covering as well as impact from debris. Another outbuilding was overturned and slid about 10 feet. The tornado then crossed the street, where a brick veneer home lost part of its outer wall, as it was struck by debris, as well as some roof damage. A couple of columns on the porch fell. The adjoining garage lost its roof and doors were bent inward, falling onto the vehicles inside. A barn behind the house collapsed and another outbuilding completely lost its walls, but the contents were not disturbed. This is the point where the tornado lifted.
The Garrard County Emergency Manager reported numerous trees down across the northern part of the county. A large tree fell on a storage building and power lines on Chenault Lane near Herrington Lake. Downed power poles and lines were also blocking a county road in the area.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
17,568
Population (ACS)
$205K
Median home value
19
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 24, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Apr 3, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM |
| Feb 16, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | EM |
| Jul 23, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Apr 10, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Garrard County, Kentucky?
172 events are on record between 1969 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $2.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Garrard County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 111 recorded events — 64.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Garrard County?
16 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 10 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Garrard County?
19 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Garrard County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Garrard County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Garrard County as very low risk, placing it in the 30 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Garrard County, Kentucky severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Gallatin County 161
- Grant County 211
- Fulton County 230
- Graves County 432
- Franklin County 252
- Grayson County 310
Cite this page
“Garrard County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/garrard-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.