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Knox County, Indiana severe weather history spans 554 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #709 nationally and #10 in Indiana.
554
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
24
Direct injuries
$32.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Knox County, Indiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Knox County, Indiana severe weather history averages 7.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 183 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 44 events fall before 1990 and 510 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Knox County, Indiana record is lightning, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $18.6M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Knox County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 289 | 0 | $2.5M | 79 | 1957–2026 |
| Hail | 97 | 0 | $150 | 2.5 | 1975–2026 |
| Flood | 90 | 0 | $18.6M | 0 | 1998–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 44 | 0 | $592K | 0 | 1996–2026 |
| Tornado | 27 | 0 | $10.8M | F4 | 1954–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2011 |
| Lightning | 2 | 1 | $1K | 0 | 1998–2010 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Knox County, Indiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
27 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 18 touched down inside it and 9 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-06-02 | EF4 | 1 | 12 | 106.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1989-01-07 | EF4 | 0 | 55 | 19.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1959-02-10 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 3.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-05-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 26.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 8.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-09-20 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 13.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1990-06-02 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-05-06 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 55.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1967-12-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Knox County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 7, 1998 | Lightning | VINCENNES | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 19, 1963 | Tornado | 0 | 12 | $2.5M | |
| Jan 7, 1989 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $250K | |
| Sep 20, 2002 | Tornado | MONROE CITY | 0 | 2 | $1.0M |
| Nov 17, 2013 | Tornado | BEAL | 0 | 1 | $75K |
| Jun 11, 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | VINCENNES ONEAL ARPT | 0 | 1 | $16K |
| Jun 15, 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | EMISON | 0 | 1 | $30K |
| May 6, 1971 | 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
Flooding occurred along the White River in Knox County, including near the Petersburg, Hazleton, and Edwardsport areas, due to heavy rain and levee breaches. Levee unit 8 failed in the Smother's Creek area near Edwardsport. The levee breach failure caused the White River to crest at Edwardsport. More than 20,000 acres of Daviess County flooded as a result of the levee failure.
An EF-1 tornado touched down south of the town of Beal in Knox county. A 60 by 100 foot building was blown away on South Wabash River Road due to this tornado. Also, multiple high tension towers and lines were downed south of Beal. Another structure had windows blown in.
Two houses sustained significant damaged due to damaging thunderstorm winds. At one house the roof came off, the garage was destroyed, and both cars in the garage were destroyed. At the other house the garage was pulled away from the south side of the house and ended up on the north side. The garage doors were wrapped around trees and seven large pine trees were destroyed. The front porch also sustained damage. Several utility poles were also knocked down and damaged occurred to the roof of a high school. The scoreboard at the high school was destroyed.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
36,007
Population (ACS)
$138K
Median home value
17
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 23, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND | DR |
| Sep 23, 2008 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 8, 2008 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Vincennes 220
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Knox County, Indiana?
554 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $32.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Knox County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 289 recorded events — 52.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Knox County?
27 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 18 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Knox County?
17 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Knox County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Knox County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Knox County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 55 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Knox County, Indiana 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
- Johnson County 423
- Kosciusko County 519
- Jennings County 176
- LaGrange County 203
- Jefferson County 249
- Lake County 659
Cite this page
“Knox County, Indiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/indiana/knox-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.