NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Whitesburg, 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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Whitesburg, Kentucky since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Hugo in 1989. Since 1950, 10 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 10
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Whitesburg
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Whitesburg; the strongest was Hugo in 1989, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 60 miles away. The record near Whitesburg begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Hugo in 1989. The busiest decade was the 1930s, with 2 systems. None of the 6 systems has come since 2000. Whitesburg has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 52% of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site. The highest rating among the 10 tornadoes within 25 miles is F2 or EF2, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 8, 2009, came within 16 miles. Of the 10, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 4. The most recent tornado was on April 9, 2011. Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 95% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Whitesburg. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 39 times since 1984, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 281 Kentucky cities, 77% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Whitesburg.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Whitesburg
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | HugoSep 22 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1979 | FredericSep 14 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1934 | Unnamed 1934 stormJun 18 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormOct 18 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormOct 1 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Whitesburg: 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 Whitesburg
By decade
- 2010s2
- 2000s3
- 1990s1
- 1980s2
- 1970s1
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 2009 | EF2 | 16 mi | 1.71 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1995 | F2 | 17 mi | 24 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 2011 | EF1 | 21 mi | 0.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 4, 2008 | EF1 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 3, 1983 | F1 | 2 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 27, 1983 | F1 | 21 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 4, 1974 | F1 | 24 mi | 7.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 5, 1957 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 9, 2011 | EF0 | 17 mi | 0.37 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 2009 | EF0 | 20 mi | 0.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 10 of 10, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Whitesburg
The Storm Prediction Center has 39 hail reports within 10 miles of Whitesburg since 1984, made on 27 separate days. Of these, 23 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 26, 1989. The most recent report is from April 14, 2025. April has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Whitesburg
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Skyline 1 SE, KY, 9 miles west of Whitesburg at 1,083 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 26°F. July is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and October the driest at 2.9 inches; the year adds up to 49.9 inches over 101 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 15 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 100 nights a year. Snowfall averages 16.7 inches a year, most of it in January. That 49.9 inches is more than at 40 of the 93 Kentucky stations used on this site (43%). Jenkins, 12 miles east, has its own station (Clintwood 1W, VA): 49.2 inches a year, 0.7 less than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 26 | 3.7 | 8 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 49 | 29 | 3.9 | 8 | 4.2 |
| Mar | 59 | 33 | 4.8 | 10 | 3.1 |
| Apr | 70 | 42 | 4.5 | 9 | 0.1 |
| May | 77 | 52 | 4.8 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 60 | 4.4 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 64 | 5.7 | 10 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 64 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 57 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 70 | 46 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 59 | 34 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.3 |
| Dec | 49 | 29 | 4.5 | 9 | 3.6 |
| Year | 67 | 45 | 49.9 | 101 | 16.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Skyline 1 SE, KY (1,083 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 Whitesburg
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 180 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Whitesburg: 119 thunderstorm wind reports, 23 floods, 20 flash floods, 17 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 3 people and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $603,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 9, 2003. July has had the most flash floods, 6 of 20. Of the 281 Kentucky cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 107 have had fewer than Whitesburg.
July 28, 2022: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Whitesburg — 3 killed.
NWS: “Multiple reports of flash flooding were received across the eastern half of Letcher County. Some of these reports include: 01:00 AM EST - Pictures show a car forced into a culvert pipe by flash flooding in front of the Colson Volunteer Fire Department.”
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 Whitesburg's ZIP code 41858 have filed 91 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $4.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Late July Flooding in 2022: 42 claims (46% of all) and $3.8 million, then February Kentucky Flooding in 2025 with 15 and Flooding in 1984 with 13. 77% 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, 99 have fewer than Whitesburg.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Late July Flooding2022 | 42 | $3.8 million |
| February Kentucky Flooding2025 | 15 | $197,000 |
| Flooding1984 | 13 | $74,000 |
Letcher County, which includes Whitesburg, has been named in 40 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 33 of them major disasters (by incident: 16 severe storms, 14 floods, 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, on February 24, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Letcher County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for inland flooding; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $16.9 million a year, the 37th highest of 120 Kentucky counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $14.8 million (88%), 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 Whitesburg
- Jenkins, KY12 mi
- Pound, VA13 mi
- Cumberland, KY14 mi
- Appalachia, VA15 mi
- Viper, KY17 mi
- Norton, VA17 mi
- Virgie, KY18 mi
- Wise, VA18 mi
- Big Stone Gap, VA20 mi
- Clintwood, VA21 mi
- Hazard, KY22 mi
- Coeburn, VA24 mi
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