NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Stearns, 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 Stearns, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Helene in 2024. Since 1950, 35 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 35
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
51 deaths in all
What the records show for Stearns
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Stearns; the strongest was Helene in 2024, a tropical storm with 46 mph winds when its centre passed 14 miles away. The record near Stearns begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Helene in 2024. Of the 7 systems, one has come since 2000. Stearns has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 74% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The highest rating among the 35 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 5 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2025, came within 23 miles. Of the 35, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 14 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 16. Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Stearns. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 54 times since 1969, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Stearns has more hail reports within 10 miles than 51% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Stearns's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Stearns
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | HeleneSep 27 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Stearns: 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 Stearns
By decade
- 2020s4(1 EF3+)
- 2010s4
- 2000s6
- 1990s5
- 1980s1
- 1970s12(9 EF3+)
- 1960s2(2 EF3+)
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 16, 2025 | EF4 | 23 mi | 60.08 mi | 18 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 19 mi | 38.4 mi | 10 / 113 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 25 mi | 18.8 mi | 7 / 150 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 19 mi | 11 mi | 5 / 6 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 2 mi | 16.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 22.3 mi | 7 / 40 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 9 mi | 13.9 mi | 2 / 45 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 12 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 21 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 24 mi | 12.2 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 21 mi | 18 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Mar 12, 1967 | F3 | 24 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 12, 1967 | F3 | 8 mi | 23.6 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 35, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Stearns
The Storm Prediction Center has 54 hail reports within 10 miles of Stearns since 1969, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 27, 2014. The most recent report is from May 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Stearns
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Stearns 2S, KY, 5 miles southeast of Stearns at 1,220 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 24°F. July is the wettest at 6.1 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 3.3 inches; the year adds up to 56.4 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 16 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 119 nights a year. That 56.4 inches is more than at 90 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (97%). Oneida, TN, 15 miles south, has its own station (Oneida, TN): 58.2 inches a year, 1.8 more than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 24 | 4.8 | 8 |
| Feb | 49 | 26 | 4.5 | 7 |
| Mar | 59 | 33 | 5.2 | 8 |
| Apr | 69 | 41 | 4.7 | 8 |
| May | 77 | 51 | 5.5 | 8 |
| Jun | 82 | 59 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Jul | 85 | 63 | 6.1 | 8 |
| Aug | 85 | 62 | 3.7 | 6 |
| Sep | 80 | 54 | 3.7 | 5 |
| Oct | 69 | 42 | 3.3 | 5 |
| Nov | 58 | 32 | 3.8 | 6 |
| Dec | 48 | 27 | 5.8 | 8 |
| Year | 67 | 43 | 56.4 | 83 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Stearns 2S, KY (1,220 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 Stearns
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 164 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Stearns: 139 thunderstorm wind reports, 12 heavy rain events, 8 floods and 5 flash floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $2.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on July 9, 2003. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 1 have had fewer than Stearns.
September 6, 2018: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Stearns — $2.0 million damage.
June 5, 2004: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Stearns — $150,000 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
McCreary County, which includes Stearns, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 fires). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm, on May 29, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives McCreary County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $4.8 million a year, the 110th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.6 million (34%), 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.