NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Frankfort, 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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Frankfort, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 84 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 84
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Frankfort
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Frankfort; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 10 miles away. The record near Frankfort begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 71 miles away. Of the 6 systems, one has come since 2000. Frankfort has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 52% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The highest rating among the 84 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 28, 1996, came within 20 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 4 people. Of the 84, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on May 3, 2025. Frankfort has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 64% of the 281 Kentucky cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 68 times since 1982, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Frankfort has more hail reports within 10 miles than 72% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Frankfort's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Frankfort
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 10 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 Frankfort: 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 Frankfort
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s11(1 EF3+)
- 2000s10(1 EF3+)
- 1990s19(1 EF3+)
- 1980s10
- 1970s12(2 EF3+)
- 1960s6
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 2 mi | 79.4 mi | 4 / 122 |
| May 28, 1996 | F4 | 20 mi | 30 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Feb 28, 2011 | EF3 | 18 mi | 2.26 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 27, 2004 | F3 | 20 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Apr 23, 1970 | F3 | 15 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 5, 2008 | EF2 | 14 mi | 6.99 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 27, 2004 | F2 | 19 mi | 7.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 28, 1996 | F2 | 14 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 18, 1995 | F2 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F2 | 20 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 10, 1986 | F2 | 23 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Mar 20, 1982 | F2 | in town | 20 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 84, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Frankfort
The Storm Prediction Center has 68 hail reports within 10 miles of Frankfort since 1982, made on 50 separate days. Of these, 47 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 3 days, most recently May 19, 2022. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 19.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Frankfort
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Frankfort Capital City Airport, KY, 2 miles southwest of Frankfort at 804 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 25°F. May is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 47.5 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 28 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 98 nights a year. That 47.5 inches is more than at 15 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (16%). Midway, 9 miles east, has its own station (Versailles 3 NNW, KY): 48.2 inches a year, 0.7 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 25 | 3.3 | 6 |
| Feb | 48 | 28 | 3.4 | 7 |
| Mar | 57 | 35 | 4.7 | 8 |
| Apr | 69 | 45 | 4.6 | 8 |
| May | 77 | 54 | 5.1 | 9 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 4.3 | 8 |
| Jul | 88 | 67 | 4.7 | 8 |
| Aug | 87 | 65 | 3.2 | 6 |
| Sep | 81 | 57 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Oct | 70 | 46 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Nov | 57 | 36 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Dec | 47 | 29 | 3.8 | 7 |
| Year | 67 | 46 | 47.5 | 83 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Frankfort Capital City Airport, KY (804 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 Frankfort
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 208 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Frankfort: 153 thunderstorm wind reports, 34 flash floods, 17 floods, 2 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $2.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on November 10, 2002. July has had the most flash floods, 8 of 34. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 198 have had fewer than Frankfort.
December 11, 2021: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Frankfort — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 62 year old male on Devils Hollow Road drove his vehicle into high water on his way to work. His body was found three miles downstream in Benson Creek around 10:30 AM the next day.”
April 4, 2025: flash flood 1 mile from the centre of Frankfort — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 9 year old boy was on his way to the school bus stop when he was swept away by water. His body was located approximated 2 hours later about half of a mile downstream.”
May 3, 2010: flood in Frankfort — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “8 feet around 7 PM EST on May 4. Flood stage at Frankfort is 31 feet.”
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 Frankfort's ZIP code 40601 have filed 1,649 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $38.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1989: 856 claims (52% of all) and $9.1 million, then Not a named storm in 1978 with 139 and Central U.S. April Flooding in 2025 with 138. 71% 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, 141 have fewer than Frankfort.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1989 | 856 | $9.1 million |
| Not a named storm1978 | 139 | $1.9 million |
| Central U.S. April Flooding2025 | 138 | $16.7 million |
| February Kentucky Flooding2025 | 21 | $420,000 |
Franklin County, which includes Frankfort, has been named in 27 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 10 severe storms, 6 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on April 24, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Franklin County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and lightning; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $25.5 million a year, the 23rd highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $14.4 million (56%), 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.
Cities near Frankfort
- Midway, KY9 mi
- Bagdad, KY10 mi
- Stamping Ground, KY11 mi
- Waddy, KY12 mi
- Versailles, KY13 mi
- Lawrenceburg, KY14 mi
- Pleasureville, KY17 mi
- Georgetown, KY17 mi
- Owenton, KY19 mi
- Shelbyville, KY19 mi
- Salvisa, KY20 mi
- Eminence, KY20 mi
All Kentucky cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Frankfort with another place →