NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Union, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Union, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 80 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 80
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
18 deaths in all
What the records show for Union
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Union; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 52 miles away. The record near Union begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 72 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site, 56% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Union. The strongest of the 80 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 9 miles, and it killed 3 people. The deadliest, an EF4 on March 2, 2012, killed 4 people. Of the 80, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 25. The most recent tornado was on July 20, 2025. Union has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 56% of the 281 Kentucky cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 108 times since 1963, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Union has more hail reports within 10 miles than 90% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
Compare Union's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Union
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 52 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 Union: 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 Union
By decade
- 2020s17
- 2010s14(2 EF3+)
- 2000s3
- 1990s12(2 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s16(4 EF3+)
- 1960s5(1 EF3+)
- 1950s6
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 9 mi | 20.8 mi | 3 / 210 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF4 | 11 mi | 9.85 mi | 4 / 8 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 21 mi | 19.8 mi | 2 / 39 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F4 | 5 mi | 26.7 mi | 1 / 10 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 22 mi | 33 mi | 0 / 37 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 13 mi | 27.1 mi | 0 / 104 |
| Aug 9, 1969 | F3 | 23 mi | 22.2 mi | 4 / 247 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 21 mi | 20.41 mi | 3 / 13 |
| Oct 1, 1977 | F3 | 22 mi | 0.7 mi | 0 / 17 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 23 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 8, 1996 | F2 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Apr 8, 1980 | F2 | 3 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 4 |
The strongest 12 of 80, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Union
The Storm Prediction Center has 108 hail reports within 10 miles of Union since 1963, made on 62 separate days. Of these, 47 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on May 2, 1983. The most recent report is from April 30, 2025. April has the most reports, 36.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Union
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Cincinnati Northern Ky Airport, KY, 8 miles north of Union at 869 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 23°F. June is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 45.3 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 22 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 100 nights a year. Snowfall averages 23.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 45.3 inches is more than at 3 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (3%). Verona, 8 miles south, has its own station (Williamstown, KY): 45.9 inches a year, 0.6 more than here, and a July average high of 87°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 23 | 3.3 | 7 | 7.7 |
| Feb | 44 | 26 | 3.2 | 7 | 6.7 |
| Mar | 54 | 34 | 4.2 | 8 | 3.4 |
| Apr | 66 | 44 | 4.5 | 9 | 0.4 |
| May | 75 | 54 | 4.7 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 62 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 66 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 65 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 57 | 3.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 46 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 54 | 35 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.8 |
| Dec | 43 | 28 | 3.7 | 7 | 4.1 |
| Year | 64 | 45 | 45.3 | 83 | 23.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Cincinnati Northern Ky Airport, KY (869 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 Union
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 337 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Union: 273 thunderstorm wind reports, 31 floods, 23 flash floods, 8 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 4 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $2.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on April 20, 2011. April has had the most flash floods, 6 of 23. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 138 have had fewer than Union.
May 27, 2004: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Union — 4 killed.
July 22, 2020: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Union — 4 injured.
March 2, 2017: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Union — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous hardwood and softwood trees were snapped or uprooted. In addition, damage occurred to the roofs of several homes and businesses.”
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 Union's ZIP code 41091 have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $146,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 25% 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, 13 have fewer than Union.
Boone County, which includes Union, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 28, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Boone County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for 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 $49.5 million a year, the 8th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $16.9 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.