NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rockholds, 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 Rockholds, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 36 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 36
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
28 deaths in all
What the records show for Rockholds
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Rockholds; the strongest was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm with 47 mph winds when its centre passed 41 miles away. The record near Rockholds begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Helene in 2024. Of the 7 systems, one has come since 2000. Rockholds has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 74% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The strongest of the 36 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF4 on May 16, 2025; its path came within 18 miles, and it killed 18 people. Of the 36, none had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 15 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 10. Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rockholds. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 68 times since 1959, with stones up to 3.5 inches. Rockholds has more hail reports within 10 miles than 72% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Rockholds's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rockholds
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 31 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 47 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Rockholds: 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 Rockholds
By decade
- 2020s3(1 EF3+)
- 2010s3(1 EF3+)
- 2000s9
- 1990s8
- 1980s4(1 EF3+)
- 1970s6(3 EF3+)
- 1960s2(2 EF3+)
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 16, 2025 | EF4 | 18 mi | 60.08 mi | 18 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 22.3 mi | 7 / 40 |
| May 9, 1988 | F3 | 23 mi | 5 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Jul 27, 2014 | EF3 | 24 mi | 4.66 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 25 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 21 |
| Jun 29, 1973 | F3 | 22 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 12, 1967 | F3 | 11 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 12, 1967 | F3 | 11 mi | 23.6 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 8, 1980 | F2 | 24 mi | 11.2 mi | 2 / 9 |
| Jun 2, 2001 | F2 | 22 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 10 |
| May 6, 1984 | F2 | 22 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F2 | 13 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 36, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rockholds
The Storm Prediction Center has 68 hail reports within 10 miles of Rockholds since 1959, made on 45 separate days. Of these, 40 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.5 inches, fell on April 28, 1959. The most recent report is from May 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rockholds
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Williamsburg, KY, 8 miles southwest of Rockholds at 940 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 25°F. December is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 2.5 inches; the year adds up to 52.1 inches over 87 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 20 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 113 nights a year. Snowfall averages 11.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 52.1 inches is more than at 65 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (70%). Gray, 9 miles northeast, has its own station (Barbourville, KY): 53.9 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and the same July average high, 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 25 | 4.2 | 8 | 4.1 |
| Feb | 49 | 27 | 4.5 | 7 | 2.6 |
| Mar | 59 | 33 | 5.1 | 9 | 2.0 |
| Apr | 69 | 41 | 5.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 77 | 52 | 4.9 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 61 | 4.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 63 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 55 | 4.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 70 | 44 | 2.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 58 | 33 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 49 | 28 | 5.2 | 8 | 2.5 |
| Year | 68 | 44 | 52.1 | 87 | 11.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Williamsburg, KY (940 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 Rockholds
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 319 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rockholds: 215 thunderstorm wind reports, 53 flash floods, 45 floods and 6 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $5.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on July 13, 2003. July has had the most flash floods, 16 of 53. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 250 have had fewer than Rockholds.
February 6, 2020: flood 8 miles from the centre of Rockholds — 1 killed, $4.0 million damage.
August 31, 2013: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Rockholds — 1 injured, $10,000 damage.
April 4, 2011: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Rockholds — 1 injured, $1,000 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
Whitley County, which includes Rockholds, has been named in 38 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 30 of them major disasters (by incident: 17 severe storms, 9 floods, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm, on May 29, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Whitley County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $18.0 million a year, the 33rd highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $10.9 million (61%), 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.