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Washington County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 163 recorded events between 1968 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 61.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,646 nationally and #112 in Kentucky.
163
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
24
Direct injuries
$1.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Washington County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Washington County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 2.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 51 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 16 events fall before 1990 and 147 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Washington County, Kentucky record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $631K in reported property damage. In total, 5 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Washington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 100 | 0 | $631K | 80 | 1968–2025 |
| Hail | 27 | 0 | $300K | 2.75 | 1968–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 21 | 1 | $140K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Tornado | 9 | 1 | $190K | F1 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 6 | 1 | $85K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
Decade by decade
Washington County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
10 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 8 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-05-30 | EF2 | 1 | 14 | 5.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-02-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-08-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-04-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-02-06 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-11-09 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-11-09 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-04-20 | EF1 | 0 | 4 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-03-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-05-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Washington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 30, 2025 | Tornado | POTTSVILLE | 1 | 14 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2020 | Flash Flood | WILLISBURG | 1 | 1 | $30K |
| Feb 15, 2025 | Flood | THOMPSONVILLE | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Apr 20, 2000 | Tornado | WILLISBURG | 0 | 4 | $70K |
| May 1, 2002 | Hail | SPRINGFIELD | 0 | 3 | $150K |
| Nov 9, 2000 | Tornado | SHARPSVILLE | 0 | 1 | $10K |
| Apr 20, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 1 | $120K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A driver on Lawrenceburg Road noticed a white Ford Explorer that had washed off the road in flood waters. He then noticed an elderly man and woman were still in the vehicle with water up to their necks. Rescuers broke out windows on the vehicle and pulled the couple out just as it filled completely with flood water. Both were unconscious when they were pulled out; the woman was resuscitated at the scene, but her husband never regained consciousness and died later that afternoon after they were both transported to a local hospital.
A one-half mile long area of straight-line wind damage was surveyed southwest of Willisburg. The most significant damage was to a sturdy Amish school house that lost part of its roof, and to a nearby home that had lost the vertical supports to its front porch when the roof briefly lifted. Several trees were also downed and minor roof damage occurred to two outbuildings.
The tornado touched down on Pleasant Drive about two miles southeast of Springfield. It was embedded within an area of straight-line wind damage. The tornado blew the roof off a house, and threw it about 125 yards downwind. Several pine trees were snapped and small outbuildings were destroyed. A 14 inch diameter pine tree was snapped and moved about 45 yards downwind as well.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
12,140
Population (ACS)
$179K
Median home value
29
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 |
| Nov 26, 2024 | Tropical Storm | REMNANTS OF HURRICANE HELENE | DR |
| Jul 23, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Washington County, Kentucky?
163 events are on record between 1968 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $1.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Washington County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 100 recorded events — 61.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Washington County?
10 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 8 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Washington County?
29 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Washington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Washington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Washington County as very low risk, placing it in the 17 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Washington 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
- Warren County 583
- Wayne County 311
- Union County 276
- Webster County 217
- Trimble County 152
- Whitley County 477
Cite this page
“Washington County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/washington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.