Elizabethtown

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Flood insurance figures are for Hardin County, the county that contains Elizabethtown.

Claims by ZIP code

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).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

The drought index is for Hardin County, the county that contains Elizabethtown.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the city centre.
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Mapped landslides

Landslides mapped in Hardin County.

Mapped by KY GS (10).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Mar 2, 1997Flood, Hardin$12.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Record rainfall amounts from late evening Friday February 28 to the morning of Sunday March 2 lead to major flooding along the Salt River basin including the Rolling Fork. The Salt River at Sheperdsville reached the 32 foot flood stage just after 1 am est Sunday March 2 and crested at 40.9 feet at 1 pm est on Monday March 3. This was the worst flooding here since March 1964. The Rolling Fork at Boston reached the 35 foot flood stage at 11 pm est Saturday March 1 and crested at a record level of 53.2 feet at 1 pm est Monday March 3. This major flooding caused the most of the towns of Boston, Lebanon Junction and Sheperdsville to be underwater with water up to the rooftops in spots.…

2. Feb 6, 2008Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado destroyed a trailer and an outbuilding along Hansborough Road. It caused major roof damage along Bethlehem Academy Road, with one home losing the roof completely. Several boats were flipped over, and a large bus was pushed two feet. The tornado pushed in garage doors at an industrial building along Ring Road. This building also suffered significant roof damage. At Central Hardin High School, the tornado snapped concrete pillar stadium lights at the football stadium. The press box was thrown on to the playing field and destroyed. The basketball gym and a wing of the school suffered roof damage consistent with an EF2 tornado. Along Black Branch Road just east of the…

3. Mar 28, 1997Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An F1 tornado swept a 7 mile path from Rineyville to Colesburg damaging 5 homes, 2 mobile homes and 1 apartment complex. In addition, 8 barns were destroyed and 2 horses were killed.

4. Jan 2, 2006Tornado$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado touched down near Cecilia, blowing the roof off a barn, but only producing shingle damage on nearby residences. It did more damage when it reached St. John Road, where it destroyed a home and some farm buildings. As the tornado continued to the northeast, it produced major roof damage to homes along Rineyville Road. Next, an office building that was under construction was lifted off its foundation. A convenience store was destroyed along U.S. 31W. A few more homes received minor damage before the tornado lifted near Longview.

5. Feb 22, 2018Flood$1.3 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many areas in and around West Point experienced significant river and areal flooding due to excessive rainfall. Multiple roads were washed out, eroded or severely flooded. Many bridges had cracks or broken joints.

6. May 11, 2003Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado formed southwest of Rineyville near Highway 1375. It then skipped across the countryside and reached the town of Rineyville. The tornado then moved about 3 miles northeast of Rineyville and dissipated. It did not appear to be on the ground for the entire duration. Embedded in the tornado path was significant straight line wind damage. An estimated 40 homes were damaged or destroyed. Many of the heavily damaged structures were mobile homes.

7. Dec 22, 2004Ice Storm, Hardin$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A winter storm began with freezing rain. This left a layer of ice about one inch thick on surfaces. Two to four inches of snow and sleet fell on top of this. A hangar collapsed at the airport in Elizabethtown, destroying a few airplanes. A few structures failed, mainly service station canopies or outbuildings. Some businesses reported ceiling or other minor building damage, but no major structural damage was reported at businesses or residences. Numerous residents were without power for an extended period of time. The weight of ice brought down many trees and large limbs in the area. Roads were dangerous or impassable due to the ice, sleet, and snow cover. Other driving problems…

8. Oct 31, 2018Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   This brief, skipping tornado touched down initially as an EF-0 near the east end of Labrador Way, in a subdivision 1.5 miles south of the Rineyville Elementary School. It did minor roof damage to two homes, tossed a trampoline into a neighboring home, causing siding damage, and pushed a large travel trailer onto a minivan, heavily damaging both. Mud was spattered onto the north-facing front of the home, where a porch column support was also moved slightly. From here it traveled east-northeast, snapping tree limbs as it skipped over mainly open pastureland until it reached Thomas Rd. ||On the west side of Thomas Road, the tornado reached its greatest intensities and size, with…

9. Sep 22, 2006Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Water was reported in some homes and businesses in Elizabethtown and Radcliff. Ring Road in Elizabethtown was closed due to high water, and a vehicle was submerged. Dixie Highway north of Elizabethtown was closed. Valley Creek was out of its banks. A telephone switching center was flooded out, which knocked out telephone and internet communications for a large section of central and south central Kentucky. The Red Cross opened a shelter in Elizabethtown, which was occupied by up to two dozen residents. Numerous water rescues were performed. Parts of Interstate 65 were shut down for a time due to high water.

10. Jul 19, 2012Lightning$300,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Local media reported that lightning struck the Summit Methodist Church, starting a fire. The church was a total loss.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

106°F2 times, most recently Jul 7, 2012

All-time low

−22°FJan 19, 1994

Warmest night

83°F3 times, most recently Jun 29, 2024

Coldest day

1°FJan 20, 1985

Wettest day

7.22 inMar 1, 1997

Snowiest day

15.5 inJan 17, 1994

Hottest year

2024mean 61.9°F

Coldest year

1960mean 54.5°F

Wettest year

201868.83 in

Driest year

195330.38 in

Snowiest season

50.1 in1977-78

Station Louisville International Airport (USW00093821), 480 ft elevation, 33.7 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 27, 2026; 100.0% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

Declarations for Hardin County.

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).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00093821.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.