Mason County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Mason County: 0.
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.

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.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

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.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

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 county boundary (or inside the county).
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

Mapped by KY GS (11).

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.

Costliest events since 1996

1. Sep 14, 2008High Wind, Mason$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Strong winds of 40 to 50 miles per hour were sustained for several hours. Gusts over 60 mph were common. Widespread damage occurred across the region, from trees being blown down on powerlines to significant structural damage.

2. Feb 18, 2000Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Persistent heavy rainfall caused extensive flooding across the county. Three private driveway bridges were washed away, 4 roads were washed out, and 6 vehicles became submerged in the flood waters.

3. Jul 22, 2017Flash Flood$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Five to seven inches of rain produced widespread flash flooding across Mason County. Several homes were damaged by rushing water, including one home that was washed off its foundation along State Route 11 east of Maysville. About 60 vehicles were washed away from an auto sales lot in Maysville. Numerous roads across the area also sustained damaged due to the rushing water.

4. Mar 1, 1997Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Estimated rainfall from 5 to over 12 inches across the county in less than 36 hours caused area creeks and streams to rise out of their banks. Numerous roads were covered by water causing several vehicles to stall in the water. Some people had to be rescued from their vehicles. Three bridges were washed out and water flooded into some homes. An area man drowned when water engulfed his truck along the North Fork of the Licking River.

5. May 10, 2003Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado touched down to the southeast of Maysville, continuing east-southeast into Lewis County. The greatest damage occurred in the Heron Hill area in western Lewis County. Seventeen people were injured in Lewis County. 21 homes were destroyed, 10 homes sustained major damage and 17 homes received minor damage. Numerous barns, buildings and garages were also damaged or destroyed. The tornado appeared to skip across parts of Mason and Lewis Counties. Tornado damage ended four miles to the southeast of Vanceburg.

6. Jun 18, 2026Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado began just west of Martha Comer Drive, snapping several hardwood tree trunks before moving across the southern portion of a community college campus. The Kentucky Mesonet site on campus measured a wind gust of 114 mph. The tornado then tracked east and northeast across open field, eventually hitting several businesses along Kentucky Highway 9 (AA Highway), causing roof and structural damage. As the tornado approached East Maple Leaf Road, it quickly intensified. A couple of residences were severely damaged, including an outbuilding demolished with pieces and contents of the structure thrown between 100 to 200 feet. This included a 690 pound four wheeler and a large…

7. Apr 2, 2024Tornado$300,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado began within the town of Minerva, Kentucky causing tree and minor structural damage. Numerous trees were observed to be uprooted and snapped along Minerva Tuckahoe Road, consistent with EF1 intensity. Additionally, a structure was damaged on T Wenz Road, which confirmed the estimated EF1 intensity, with considerable roof coverage loss and a partial collapse of the second story brick wall. Due to a lack of access along the rest of T Wenz Road and Lee Creek, it is unknown how many trees and builders were damaged. The last known sign of damage, a few trees uprooted, was observed along Tuckahoe Road. It is believed the tornado dissipated before the Ohio River.

8. Jan 6, 1996Winter Storm, Mason$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Blizzard of '96 developed near the Gulf Coast and moved up the East Coast. This massive system brought the greatest snowfall from one storm to Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky airport, as well as the greatest 24 hour snowfall. Total snowfall from this storm at the airport was 14.3 inches, while in a typical entire season this location normally receives only 23 inches of snowfall. Many homes and business experienced partial or total roof collapses due to the weight of the snow. Road conditions remained hazardous in some locations for many days. Many people believed that this was the worst winter storm since the Blizzard of '78.

9. Jul 14, 2000Thunderstorm Wind$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A supercell tracked across the county causing significant damage. Numerous trees were knocked down around Minerva, trees were downed and a barn roof was blown off in Washington, and trees and power lines were downed in Maysville. Roofs were also blown off houses in Maysville.

10. May 15, 2003Flood, Mason$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    An area of strong thunderstorms produced two to three inches of rain in a little over an hour. The heavy rain caused high water on numerous roads, and several creeks rose out of their banks.

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

108°FJul 22, 1901

All-time low

−25°F2 times, most recently Jan 20, 1994

Warmest night

79°FJun 10, 2010

Coldest day

−5°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

6.34 inJul 23, 2017

Snowiest day

16.0 inJan 17, 1994

Hottest year

1921mean 59.0°F

Coldest year

1963mean 49.6°F

Wettest year

201162.44 in

Driest year

193020.34 in

Snowiest season

43.6 in1917-18

Station Maysville Wwtp (USC00155243), 515 ft elevation, 4.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1896 to October 19, 2026; 88.0% 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.

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.

Neighbouring counties

• 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 USC00155243.
• 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.