NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Catlettsburg, KY
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Catlettsburg, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 28 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 28
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Catlettsburg
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Catlettsburg; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 30 miles away. The record near Catlettsburg begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 47 miles away. None of the 7 systems has come since 2000. Catlettsburg has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 74% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The highest rating among the 28 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 2, 2012, came within 22 miles. Of the 28, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 15 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2024. Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 87% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Catlettsburg. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 127 times since 1962, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Catlettsburg has more hail reports within 10 miles than 92% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Catlettsburg's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Catlettsburg
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | overhead | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Catlettsburg: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Catlettsburg
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s4(1 EF3+)
- 2000s2
- 1990s5
- 1980s5
- 1970s2
- 1960s1(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 22 mi | 84.99 mi | 10 / 118 |
| Apr 8, 1965 | F3 | in town | 6.9 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF2 | 9 mi | 1.14 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 2016 | EF2 | 18 mi | 2.63 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Jul 12, 1980 | F2 | 5 mi | 29.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 16 mi | 4.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.44 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 9 mi | 0.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 18 mi | 1.09 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 8 mi | 1.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF1 | 14 mi | 7.88 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 7, 2023 | EF1 | 16 mi | 6.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 28, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Catlettsburg
The Storm Prediction Center has 127 hail reports within 10 miles of Catlettsburg since 1962, made on 70 separate days. Of these, 70 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently May 1, 2016. The most recent report is from April 29, 2025. May has the most reports, 39.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Catlettsburg
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Huntington Tri State Airport, WV, 3 miles east of Catlettsburg at 824 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 26°F. July is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 45.3 inches over 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 25 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 90 nights a year. Snowfall averages 19.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 45.3 inches is more than at 3 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (3%). South Point, OH, 6 miles northeast, has its own station (S Pt, OH): 49.7 inches a year, 4.4 more than here, and the same July average high, 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 26 | 3.1 | 7 | 6.0 |
| Feb | 47 | 29 | 3.4 | 7 | 5.8 |
| Mar | 57 | 36 | 4.2 | 8 | 4.3 |
| Apr | 69 | 46 | 3.9 | 8 | 0.3 |
| May | 76 | 54 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 62 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 66 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 65 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 58 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 69 | 46 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 57 | 37 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.5 |
| Dec | 47 | 30 | 3.6 | 7 | 2.7 |
| Year | 67 | 46 | 45.3 | 86 | 19.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Huntington Tri State Airport, WV (824 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Catlettsburg
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 377 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Catlettsburg: 238 thunderstorm wind reports, 64 flash floods, 62 floods, 8 heavy rain events and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $10.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on March 1, 2017. July has had the most flash floods, 20 of 64. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 262 have had fewer than Catlettsburg.
May 6, 2022: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Catlettsburg — 1 killed, $900,000 damage.
July 25, 2005: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Catlettsburg — 1 killed, $1,000 damage.
July 20, 2008: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Catlettsburg — 1 injured, $15,000 damage.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Catlettsburg's ZIP code 41129 have filed 67 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $790,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2004, with 10. 21% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 143 Kentucky cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 91 have fewer than Catlettsburg.
Boyd County, which includes Catlettsburg, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 26 of them major disasters (by incident: 16 severe storms, 6 floods, 3 ice storms, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on February 24, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Boyd County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for heat waves; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $29.5 million a year, the 16th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $18.8 million (64%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.