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Ohio County, Kentucky severe weather history spans 339 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 50.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,563 nationally and #31 in Kentucky.
339
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$9.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Ohio County, Kentucky severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Ohio County, Kentucky severe weather history averages 4.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 149 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 32 events fall before 1990 and 307 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Ohio County, Kentucky record is flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $8.7M 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 Ohio County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 171 | 0 | $454K | 70 | 1969–2026 |
| Hail | 74 | 0 | $500 | 2.75 | 1973–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 40 | 0 | $140K | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Flood | 37 | 1 | $135K | 0 | 2006–2025 |
| Tornado | 14 | 0 | $8.7M | F3 | 1954–2026 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2016 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2011 |
Decade by decade
Ohio County, Kentucky severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
13 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-12-10 | EF4 | 57 | 515 | 168.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-02-05 | EF3 | 3 | 24 | 18.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1959-01-21 | EF3 | 3 | 0 | 6.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-04-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 26.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-05-07 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 58.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2016-05-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-08-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2018-06-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-11-18 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-04-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Ohio County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 17, 2025 | Flood | DUKEHURST | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Nov 18, 2017 | Tornado | TAYLOR MINES | 0 | 1 | $250K |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Lightning | BEAVER DAM | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
In the early morning hours, a man was driving to work on Parks Ridge Road when he drove into water over the roadway. Rough River which bends near and under Parks Ridge Road was flooded at the time. One of his windows was half way down, and another, in the back on the right side of the vehicle, was all the way down. Investigators believe the man exited the vehicle out the open back window. The car and man were found separately on opposite banks three days later in flood waters. The exact time of the incident is unknown, but reporting made reference to it still being dark at the time.
On Shrull Lane west of Centertown, a mobile home and several outbuildings were destroyed. There was intermittent damage across extreme western Ohio County. There was structural damage to 16 homes in Hartford. Roofs were off some homes. Mobile homes were picked up and twisted.
The Rough River at Dundee crested at 28.9 feet around 330 AM EST on April 5. Flood stage at Dundee is 25 feet. Moderate flooding occurs at this level, with the post office flooded and sections of Kentucky Highway 69 covered with water.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
23,735
Population (ACS)
$121K
Median home value
30
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| 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 |
| Jul 23, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Ohio County, Kentucky?
339 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $9.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Ohio County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 171 recorded events — 50.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Ohio County?
13 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Ohio County?
30 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Ohio County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Ohio County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Ohio County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 54 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Ohio 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
- Nicholas County 127
- Oldham County 326
- Nelson County 331
- Owen County 238
- Muhlenberg County 392
- Owsley County 193
Cite this page
“Ohio County, Kentucky.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kentucky/ohio-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.