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Butler County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 294 recorded events between 1971 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 48.0% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,810 nationally and #51 in Kentucky.
294
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$3.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Butler County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Butler County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 5.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 130 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 14 events fall before 1990 and 280 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Butler County, Kentucky record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $3.3M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Butler County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 141 | 0 | $124K | 71 | 1972–2026 |
| Flood | 66 | 0 | $177K | 0 | 2006–2018 |
| Hail | 45 | 0 | $1K | 1.75 | 1971–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 30 | 0 | $115K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Tornado | 10 | 1 | $3.3M | F3 | 1971–2026 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $200K | 0 | 2020–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2014–2014 |
Decade by decade
Butler County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
11 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971-04-27 | EF3 | 1 | 0 | 27.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-04-21 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 5.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-04-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 26.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1961-05-07 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 58.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-05-26 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 40.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2018-02-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-03-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-11-17 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 5.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-05-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 14.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Butler County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 1971 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $2.5M | |
| Nov 17, 2013 | Tornado | HUNTSVILLE | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
An EF-1 tornado with maximum winds of 105 mph first touched down just west of Huntsville, located in Butler County. Damage was first surveyed on Blaine Road where several trees were uprooted. While moving across Huntsville along Huntsville-Quality road, it damaged a few homes and uprooted additional trees. Along Silver City-Huntsville road, additional homes and outbuildings were damaged. A man was injured within a double wide mobile home when its roof and a wall were lifted from the structure. This injury occurred just west of the intersection of Panther Creek and Silver City-Huntsville Road. Finally, farther east along Muddy Creek Road, the tornado damaged several additional homes and trees before lifting 4 mile east of Huntsville.
The Green River at Woodbury crested at 49.5 feet around 2 PM EST on May 5. Flood stage at Woodbury is 33 feet. Major flooding occurs at this level. Woodbury was nearly cut off, and parts of the town were flooded. U.S. Highway 231 near the William Natcher Parkway was flooded and Morgantown High School was cut off.
The Green River at Rochester Ferry crested at 28.6 feet around 6 AM EST on May 7. Flood stage at Rochester is 17 feet. Moderate flooding occurs at this level, with water in basements of some homes in Rochester. Sections of Kentucky Highway 70 and Highway 1117 were closed by high water.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
12,393
Population (ACS)
$111K
Median home value
29
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| May 23, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Woodbury 151
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Butler County, Kentucky?
294 events are on record between 1971 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $3.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Butler County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 141 recorded events — 48.0% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Butler County?
11 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 7 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Butler County?
29 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Butler County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Butler County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Butler County as very low risk, placing it in the 18 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Butler 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
- Bullitt County 312
- Caldwell County 177
- Breckinridge County 349
- Calloway County 460
- Breathitt County 566
- Campbell County 252
Cite this page
“Butler County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/butler-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.