47
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$1.0M
Property damage
Flood in Breathitt County, Kentucky: 47 recorded events between 1997 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 0. That places the county #267 nationally and #13 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Flood in Breathitt County, Kentucky: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for flood in Breathitt County is the 2010s, when 24 of the county's 47 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Breathitt County archive, flood makes up 8.3% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #267 for this hazard and #13 within Kentucky, putting it in the 90.9 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Mar is the peak month for flood in Breathitt County with 12 recorded events, while Sep is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 23, 1999 | TAULBEE | 0 | 1 | 0 | $1K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2025 | STEVENSON | 0 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | NED | 0 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | QUICKSAND | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 28, 2022 | LAMBRIC | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | JACKSON | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | JACKSON | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | LAWSON | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | LOST CREEK | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | CROCKETTSVILLE | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 1, 2021 | WILHURST | 0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Breathitt County
- Thunderstorm Wind 311
- Hail 91
- Flash Flood 80
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Around one inch of rain fell between 4 and 11 am. This resulted in stream rises in the county. Streams rose high enough to cover low water bridges. A 54 year old male attempted to drive across a low water bridge near Taulbee. Water was about 2 feet deep and the car was swept off the bridge. The man drowned.
Flood water was up to the top of the lockers in Rousseau Elementary School. Water was also in homes near the school as well as a grocery store. The Breathitt County Office of Emergency Management reported that both the school and grocery store were total losses.
A portion of Highway 476 was flooded near Lost Creek due to Troublesome Creek coming out of its banks. A portion of Wolverine Road was flooded due to the North Fork of the Kentucky River overflowing its banks. Kentucky Highway 541 was under water near Jackson. A car was stranded in the flood water near the Kentucky Mountain Bible College in this same location.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many flood events are on record in Breathitt County, Kentucky?
47 flood events are recorded in Breathitt County between 1997 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest flood recorded in Breathitt County?
The strongest flood on record in Breathitt County measured 0.
Where does the flood data for Breathitt County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Flood in Breathitt County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/breathitt-county/flood/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.