NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Richmond, 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 Richmond, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 68 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 68
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Richmond
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Richmond; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 32 miles away. The record near Richmond begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm 70 miles away. Of the 7 systems, one has come since 2000. Richmond has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 74% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The strongest of the 68 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 7 miles, and it killed 7 people. Of the 68, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 28 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 20. The most recent tornado was on October 19, 2025. Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 57% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Richmond. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 66 times since 1959, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Richmond has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Richmond
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 12 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 35 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 32 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 Richmond: 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 Richmond
By decade
- 2020s15
- 2010s5
- 2000s8(1 EF3+)
- 1990s15
- 1980s8
- 1970s10(2 EF3+)
- 1960s4
- 1950s3(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 7 mi | 31.9 mi | 7 / 28 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF3 | 3 mi | 21.12 mi | 2 / 15 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 21.1 mi | 1 / 98 |
| Mar 4, 1955 | F3 | 5 mi | 8.9 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 20, 1996 | F2 | 12 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Apr 20, 1996 | F2 | 20 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 7 |
| May 21, 1990 | F2 | in town | 0.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 10, 1986 | F2 | 23 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 20 |
| Jun 16, 1982 | F2 | 16 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Mar 16, 1982 | F2 | 15 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Oct 1, 1977 | F2 | 15 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 16 |
| Aug 3, 1977 | F2 | 20 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 68, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Richmond
The Storm Prediction Center has 66 hail reports within 10 miles of Richmond since 1959, made on 41 separate days. Of these, 43 were 1 inch across or larger, and 8 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on May 5, 2003. The most recent report is from September 5, 2025. May has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Richmond
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cressy, KY, 15 miles northeast of Richmond at 720 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 23°F. May and July are the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and November the driest at 3.3 inches; the year adds up to 50.9 inches. Highs reach 90°F on about 18 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 116 nights a year. That 50.9 inches is more than at 47 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (51%). Berea, 12 miles south, has its own station (Crab Orchard 6 N, KY): 50.4 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 23 | 3.6 |
| Feb | 48 | 25 | 3.7 |
| Mar | 57 | 32 | 4.7 |
| Apr | 68 | 41 | 4.6 |
| May | 76 | 52 | 5.4 |
| Jun | 83 | 61 | 4.9 |
| Jul | 85 | 65 | 5.4 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 3.7 |
| Sep | 79 | 55 | 3.9 |
| Oct | 69 | 42 | 3.5 |
| Nov | 57 | 32 | 3.3 |
| Dec | 47 | 28 | 4.2 |
| Year | 66 | 43 | 50.9 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cressy, KY (720 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 Richmond
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 211 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Richmond: 144 thunderstorm wind reports, 45 flash floods, 17 floods, 3 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 5 people and injured 12, and the NWS estimated $2.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 201 mph, on June 13, 1997. June has had the most flash floods, 15 of 45. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 236 have had fewer than Richmond.
June 27, 2026: flash flood in Richmond — 2 killed.
NWS: “Two people were trapped and drowned in a basement apartment on the 300 block of University Drive after the outside entrance, 10 feet below ground level, filled with water.”
May 2, 2010: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Richmond — 1 killed, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “The heavy rains over the previous 24 hours caused the creek flowing by a home to flood the house. One person died in the home when they began shaking and collapsed in the water.”
April 14, 2015: flood 6 miles from the centre of Richmond — 1 killed, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “The public reported that several homes were surrounded by high water from heavy rainfall. Approximately 3 to 4 inches of rain fell during the morning.”
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 Richmond's ZIP code 40475 have filed 76 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $2.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2026, with 17. 7% 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, 94 have fewer than Richmond.
Madison County, which includes Richmond, has been named in 28 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 severe storms, 5 floods, 3 ice storms, 3 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on September 1, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Madison County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Relatively Low for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $36.7 million a year, the 13th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $18.2 million (49%), 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 Richmond
- Waco, KY9 mi
- Berea, KY12 mi
- Paint Lick, KY12 mi
- Irvine, KY17 mi
- Winchester, KY17 mi
- Lancaster, KY18 mi
- Nicholasville, KY18 mi
- Clay City, KY20 mi
- Wilmore, KY22 mi
- Lexington, KY22 mi
- Crab Orchard, KY23 mi
- Mc Kee, KY24 mi
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