NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Warsaw, 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 Warsaw, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Opal in 1995. Since 1950, 81 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 81
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
21 deaths in all
What the records show for Warsaw
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Warsaw; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 47 miles away. The record near Warsaw begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Opal in 1995, a tropical storm 75 miles away. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site, 73% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Warsaw. The strongest of the 81 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1974; its path came within 13 miles, and it killed 3 people. The deadliest, an F4 on April 3, 1974, killed 11 people. Of the 81, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 34 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 29. The most recent tornado was on July 20, 2025. Warsaw has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 59% of the 281 Kentucky cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 57 times since 1964, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Warsaw has more hail reports within 10 miles than 58% of the 281 Kentucky cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Warsaw
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | OpalOct 5 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 13 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 47 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 Warsaw: 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 Warsaw
By decade
- 2020s18
- 2010s15(2 EF3+)
- 2000s1
- 1990s16(2 EF3+)
- 1980s7
- 1970s13(4 EF3+)
- 1960s6
- 1950s5(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1974 | F5 | 13 mi | 20.8 mi | 3 / 210 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 22 mi | 35.6 mi | 11 / 190 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF4 | 14 mi | 9.85 mi | 4 / 8 |
| Nov 22, 1992 | F4 | 1 mi | 26.7 mi | 1 / 10 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F4 | 14 mi | 27.1 mi | 0 / 104 |
| Apr 1, 1974 | F3 | 23 mi | 3.3 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF3 | 21 mi | 3.26 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 9, 1999 | F3 | 22 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Feb 10, 1959 | F3 | 12 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Mar 14, 2024 | EF2 | 14 mi | 17.97 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 2, 2012 | EF2 | 12 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 12, 1986 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 81, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Warsaw
The Storm Prediction Center has 57 hail reports within 10 miles of Warsaw since 1964, made on 39 separate days. Of these, 38 were 1 inch across or larger, and 11 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 2 days, most recently May 4, 1996. The most recent report is from March 14, 2024. April has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Warsaw
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Warsaw Markland Dam, KY, 4 miles west of Warsaw at 451 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 42°F and 23°F. May is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 48.0 inches over 81 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 26 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 110 nights a year. Snowfall averages 6.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 48.0 inches is more than at 19 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (20%). Vevay, IN, 9 miles west, has its own station (Vevay, IN): 48.4 inches a year, 0.4 more than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | 23 | 3.2 | 6 | 1.5 |
| Feb | 46 | 26 | 3.5 | 6 | 2.8 |
| Mar | 56 | 33 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.7 |
| Apr | 67 | 42 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 76 | 53 | 5.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 62 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 66 | 4.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 65 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 57 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 69 | 45 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 56 | 34 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 46 | 28 | 3.9 | 8 | 1.5 |
| Year | 66 | 44 | 48.0 | 81 | 6.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Warsaw Markland Dam, KY (451 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 Warsaw
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 225 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Warsaw: 158 thunderstorm wind reports, 39 floods, 27 flash floods and 1 heavy rain event. They killed 1 person and injured 15, and the NWS estimated $1.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on March 1, 2017. May has had the most flash floods, 8 of 27. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 163 have had fewer than Warsaw.
December 18, 2021: flood 3 miles from the centre of Warsaw — 1 killed, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “A vehicle was swept away while driving through a low a water crossing along Bud Ballard Road, resulting in one fatality. F55VE.”
November 10, 2002: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Warsaw — 10 injured, $375,000 damage.
July 1, 2023: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Warsaw — 2 injured, $20,000 damage.
NWS: “Several large tress were downed and four homes were damaged by the trees. Two people suffered minor injuries in the homes.”
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 Warsaw's ZIP code 41095 have filed 21 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2005, and were paid $283,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 38% 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, 46 have fewer than Warsaw.
Gallatin County, which includes Warsaw, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1996, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 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 Gallatin County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $5.7 million a year, the 104th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.4 million (60%), 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 Warsaw
- Sparta, KY5 mi
- Vevay, IN9 mi
- Rising Sun, IN12 mi
- Verona, KY12 mi
- Union, KY14 mi
- Dry Ridge, KY15 mi
- Crittenden, KY16 mi
- Walton, KY16 mi
- Carrollton, KY17 mi
- Dillsboro, IN18 mi
- Burlington, KY19 mi
- Aurora, IN20 mi
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