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Knox; Bell; Harlan; Morgan; Johnson; Wolfe; Magoffin; Floyd; Lee; Breathitt; Knott; Owsley; Perry; Clay; Leslie; Letcher; Martin; Pike
Clay County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 333 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 61.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,587 nationally and #32 in Kentucky.
333
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$4.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Clay County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Clay County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 5.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 127 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 13 events fall before 1990 and 320 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Clay County, Kentucky record is flash flood, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $2.8M 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 Clay County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 204 | 0 | $854K | 65 | 1958–2025 |
| Hail | 52 | 0 | $3K | 2.75 | 1985–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 41 | 3 | $465K | 0 | 1996–2022 |
| Flood | 19 | 0 | $158K | 0 | 2010–2021 |
| Tornado | 7 | 0 | $2.8M | F2 | 1967–2001 |
| Heavy Rain | 6 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2019–2022 |
| Debris Flow | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2021–2022 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2009 |
Decade by decade
Clay County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
6 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 5 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-04-03 | EF2 | 0 | 22 | 19.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2001-06-02 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-08-17 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-05-18 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-06-22 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1984-07-06 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Clay County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 28, 2022 | Flash Flood | LITTLETON | 3 | 0 | $0 |
| May 26, 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | HORSE CREEK | 0 | 1 | $10K |
| Jul 11, 2004 | Flash Flood | MANCHESTER | 0 | 1 | $5K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Multiple reports of flash flooding were received from western Clay County. Reports included:||3:00 AM EST – The bridge at Skull Branch was reported washed out.|3:00 AM EST – The newspaper indicated multiple reporst of flash flooding in the Little Bullskin area near Oneida around this time. Some reports of flooding were also found on social media.|3:18 AM EST – A RV reportedly washed away along Booneville Road near Oneida. |3:20 AM EST – Beech Creek Road at the Bert T. Combs Campground was closed due to flooding.|4:40 AM EST – The culvert for KY-1482 over Panco Branch at the Intersection of Panco Drive washed away.|7:00 AM EST – The cooperative observer in Oneida measured 7.20 inches of rainfall in a 24 hour period.|2:09 PM EST (28th) – A landslide (debris flow) was reported on KY-11 near mile marker 22 in Clay County, near the community of Teges.
Local media reported flash flooding in Burning Springs, including along U.S. Highway 421. This prompted the county to declare a State of Emergency as nearly $75,000 of damage was incurred due to flooding and heavy rain. Approximately 20 county roads and 15 bridges were damaged as nine people were forced to leave their homes.
Local media reported flood waters forcing the closure of Chop Bottom Road southeast of Manchester. A vehicle attempting to drive through this became stuck, while the three passengers were rescued by the Manchester Police Department.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,921
Population (ACS)
$91K
Median home value
48
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 29, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| 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 |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Clay County, Kentucky?
333 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $4.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Clay County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 204 recorded events — 61.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Clay County?
6 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 5 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Clay County?
48 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Clay County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Clay County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Clay County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 67 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Clay 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
- Clark County 198
- Clinton County 174
- Christian County 620
- Crittenden County 156
- Casey County 252
- Cumberland County 148
Cite this page
“Clay County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/clay-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.