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Simpson County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 256 recorded events between 1965 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 59.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,068 nationally and #65 in Kentucky.
256
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
25
Direct injuries
$9.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Simpson County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Simpson County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 4.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 106 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 36 events fall before 1990 and 220 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Simpson County, Kentucky record is flood, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $8.3M 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 Simpson County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 151 | 0 | $733K | 87 | 1968–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 53 | 0 | $20K | 0 | 1997–2026 |
| Hail | 24 | 0 | $86K | 2 | 1971–2023 |
| Tornado | 17 | 1 | $8.3M | F3 | 1965–2025 |
| Flood | 9 | 4 | $35K | 0 | 2009–2025 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $45K | 0 | 2013–2023 |
Decade by decade
Simpson County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
19 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 15 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-12-09 | EF3 | 4 | 62 | 47.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-04-03 | EF3 | 3 | 57 | 31.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-06-10 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 13.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2012-01-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-11-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-05-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-05-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1965-05-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-02-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-06-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Simpson County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | Tornado | 1 | 12 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 12, 2022 | Flood | HILLSDALE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 5, 2019 | Flood | SCHWEIZER | 1 | 0 | $5K |
| Feb 24, 2018 | Flood | FLAT ROCK | 1 | 0 | $30K |
| May 9, 2009 | Flood | FRANKLIN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 30, 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | FRANKLIN | 0 | 6 | $1K |
| Sep 11, 2013 | Lightning | FRANKLIN | 0 | 5 | $15K |
| May 22, 1989 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
At approximately 9:00 pm CST on March 4, a male driver drove around a barricade before driving his car into standing water over the roadway. He called his girlfriend frantically stating he was in a river. That was the last anyone heard from him. His cell phone last pinged at 9:00 pm CST at a location just west of Interstate 65 north of the Tennessee border. The air temperature at the time was 19 degrees Fahrenheit.||His vehicle was found the next morning, and his body was found on Thursday March 7 a short distance from where his vehicle was found.
At approximately 7:55 PM CDT, Kentucky State Police received a call from a 41 year old male. He stated he was trying to drive over Saddler Ford Bridge, but his 2013 Ford pick-up was being swept off the bridge. The emergency manager later stated that the driver disregarded warning signs and barricades that were set up before the bridge warning drivers of the flowing water over the bridge. The man's body was found around a mile downstream the following day.
A 49-year old male drove a pickup truck around barriers and attempted to cross Dittmore Ford over Drakes Creek, which was covered by four to five feet of water. He called 911 from his cell phone, but drowned in his vehicle.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,972
Population (ACS)
$229K
Median home value
20
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 24, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Franklin 139
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Simpson County, Kentucky?
256 events are on record between 1965 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $9.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Simpson County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 151 recorded events — 59.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Simpson County?
19 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 15 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Simpson County?
20 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Simpson County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Simpson County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Simpson County as very low risk, placing it in the 27 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Simpson 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
- Shelby County 325
- Spencer County 166
- Scott County 295
- Taylor County 347
- Russell County 198
- Todd County 273
Cite this page
“Simpson County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/simpson-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.