NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lewisport, 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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Lewisport, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 88 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 88
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
63 deaths in all
What the records show for Lewisport
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Lewisport; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 53 miles away. The record near Lewisport begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 3 miles away. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site, 73% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Lewisport. The highest rating among the 88 tornadoes within 25 miles is F5, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 3, 1974, came within 13 miles. The deadliest, an F5 on April 3, 1974, killed 31 people. Of the 88, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 56 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 20. The most recent tornado was on June 7, 2025. Lewisport has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 70% of the 281 Kentucky cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 66 times since 1967, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Lewisport has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Lewisport's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Lewisport
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 28 | 3 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 53 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Lewisport: 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 Lewisport
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s21
- 2000s22(3 EF3+)
- 1990s10
- 1980s8
- 1970s7(3 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s5(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 24 mi | 32 mi | 31 / 270 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 13 mi | 68 mi | 6 / 86 |
| Nov 6, 2005 | F3 | 15 mi | 41.3 mi | 24 / 238 |
| Oct 18, 2007 | EF3 | 11 mi | 6.99 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Jan 3, 2000 | F3 | 16 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Nov 19, 1970 | F3 | 7 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Dec 9, 1952 | F3 | 3 mi | 35 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F2 | 15 mi | 32.3 mi | 1 / 19 |
| Apr 11, 1979 | F2 | 23 mi | 10 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Mar 28, 2020 | EF2 | 24 mi | 5.06 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 8 mi | 16.49 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 18, 2007 | EF2 | 21 mi | 17.26 mi | 0 / 4 |
The strongest 12 of 88, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lewisport
The Storm Prediction Center has 66 hail reports within 10 miles of Lewisport since 1967, made on 51 separate days. Of these, 40 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on May 19, 1989. The most recent report is from September 4, 2025. May has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lewisport
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Tell City, IN, 7 miles east of Lewisport at 390 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 26°F. May is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 51.2 inches over 79 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 78 nights a year. That 51.2 inches is more than at 53 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (57%). Hawesville, 7 miles east, has its own station (Cannelton, IN): 48.9 inches a year, 2.3 less than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 41 | 26 | 3.7 | 6 |
| Feb | 45 | 28 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Mar | 54 | 36 | 4.7 | 8 |
| Apr | 66 | 45 | 5.3 | 8 |
| May | 74 | 55 | 5.8 | 9 |
| Jun | 82 | 64 | 5.1 | 8 |
| Jul | 85 | 67 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Aug | 85 | 66 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Sep | 79 | 58 | 3.7 | 5 |
| Oct | 68 | 47 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Nov | 55 | 37 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Dec | 44 | 30 | 4.5 | 8 |
| Year | 65 | 47 | 51.2 | 79 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Tell City, IN (390 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 Lewisport
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 271 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lewisport: 171 thunderstorm wind reports, 57 floods, 30 flash floods, 12 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 105 mph, on June 26, 2011. May has had the most flash floods, 5 of 30. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 186 have had fewer than Lewisport.
February 24, 2007: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Lewisport — 1 injured, $5,000 damage.
NWS: “A stray bolt of lightning from an isolated storm entered a house through the telephone line. A 64-year-old man was knocked across his living room.”
May 30, 2004: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Lewisport — $200,000 damage.
January 29, 2008: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Lewisport — $100,000 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
Hancock County, which includes Lewisport, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1996, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 14 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 ice storms). 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 Hancock County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $7.8 million a year, the 83rd highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.2 million (66%), 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.