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Metcalfe County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 189 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 58.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,505 nationally and #98 in Kentucky.
189
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
9
Direct injuries
$9.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Metcalfe County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Metcalfe County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 2.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 64 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 19 events fall before 1990 and 170 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Metcalfe County, Kentucky record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $7.7M 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 Metcalfe County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 111 | 0 | $1.1M | 78 | 1968–2026 |
| Hail | 35 | 0 | $550K | 2 | 1968–2018 |
| Tornado | 19 | 3 | $7.7M | F2 | 1957–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 17 | 0 | $300K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $200K | 0 | 2013–2019 |
Decade by decade
Metcalfe County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
20 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 15 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-04-16 | EF3 | 2 | 9 | 48.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1997-03-28 | EF3 | 0 | 7 | 15.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-04-16 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-11-26 | EF2 | 1 | 1 | 5.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-04-07 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 8.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1995-05-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-04-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-03-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-04-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-02-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Metcalfe County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 1997 | Tornado | SUMMER SHADE | 1 | 6 | $1.0M |
| Nov 27, 1965 | Tornado | 1 | 1 | $0 | |
| Apr 16, 1998 | Tornado | WISDOM | 1 | 0 | $5.0M |
| May 21, 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | EDMONTON | 0 | 1 | $5K |
| Jul 28, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | SULPHUR WELL | 0 | 1 | $100K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tornado touched down in Edmonton then traveled along U.S. 80 to the Adair County line 14 miles to the West. A mobile and three barns were destroyed. Several homes and a factory were damaged. Many trees and power lines were also blown down.
Over 160 structures were damaged in a 2-3 mile wide swath extending 15 miles from near Hiseville in Barren County northeast across Metcalfe into Green County. Three EF-1 tornadoes, with maximum winds of 100-110 mph were embedded within this area. Outside of the tornadoes, maximum winds were estimated at 70-90 mph. In Metcalfe County, two of the three tornadoes touched down near the community of Center, which had been hit by a brief EF-1 tornado just eight days earlier. In addition to the dozens of structures damaged by the non-tornadic winds – including the complete destruction of several outbuildings – several headstones were blown over in a small cemetery a half mile north of Center.
Numerous roads across the county were closed due to flash flooding, and Dunham Lake dam on the north side of Edmonton was in danger of failing when water surging over the spillway eroded up to 7 feet of earth away from both sides of the concrete spillway. The rushing water also washed away the shoulder of a roadway immediately downstream of the dam. A total of eight to ten inches of rain fell across Metcalfe county from May 1-2.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
10,425
Population (ACS)
$110K
Median home value
31
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 Metcalfe County, Kentucky?
189 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $9.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Metcalfe County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 111 recorded events — 58.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Metcalfe County?
20 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 15 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Metcalfe County?
31 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Metcalfe County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Metcalfe County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Metcalfe County as very low risk, placing it in the 22 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Metcalfe 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
- Mercer County 196
- Monroe County 175
- Menifee County 225
- Montgomery County 321
- Meade County 278
- Morgan County 372
Cite this page
“Metcalfe County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/metcalfe-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.