Kentucky, 1974

Tornadoes and Hail in Kentucky, April 1, 1974

April 1, 1974 · 20 events in 18 counties and zones

15 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 2 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
1
Injuries
23
Property damage
$2.8 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
20

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

15 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 2 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Laurel

When
April 1, 4:05 PM CST
Where
Laurel County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
37.130, -84.080

Hail, Hopkins

When
April 1, 4:15 PM CST
Where
Hopkins County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
37.330, -87.500

Thunderstorm Wind, Laurel

When
April 1, 4:20 PM CST
Where
Laurel County
Coordinates
37.130, -84.080

Hail, Grant

When
April 1, 4:30 PM CST
Where
Grant County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
38.650, -84.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Caldwell

When
April 1, 4:30 PM CST
Where
Caldwell County
Coordinates
37.120, -87.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Daviess

When
April 1, 4:43 PM CST
Where
Daviess County
Measured
60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates
37.770, -87.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Muhlenberg

When
April 1, 4:55 PM CST
Where
Muhlenberg County
Coordinates
37.330, -87.300

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When
April 1, 5:30 PM CST
Where
Meade County
Coordinates
37.930, -86.180

Thunderstorm Wind, Breckinridge

When
April 1, 5:40 PM CST
Where
Breckinridge County
Coordinates
37.830, -86.470

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When
April 1, 5:45 PM CST
Where
Meade County
Coordinates
37.930, -86.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Leslie

When
April 1, 5:45 PM CST
Where
Leslie County
Coordinates
37.250, -83.200

Thunderstorm Wind, Oldham

When
April 1, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Oldham County
Coordinates
38.330, -85.470

Thunderstorm Wind, Carter

When
April 1, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Carter County
Coordinates
38.330, -82.950

Tornado, Henry

When
April 1, 6:20 PM CST
Where
Henry County
Rating
F3
Path length
3.3 mi
Path width
300 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
20 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
38.500, -85.230

Tornado, Elliott

When
April 1, 6:30 PM CST
Where
Elliott County
Rating
F1
Path length
2 mi
Path width
150 yd
Injuries
3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
38.080, -83.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Morgan

When
April 1, 6:45 PM CST
Where
Morgan County
Coordinates
37.920, -83.270

Thunderstorm Wind, Owen

When
April 1, 6:45 PM CST
Where
Owen County
Coordinates
38.630, -84.830

Thunderstorm Wind, Floyd

When
April 1, 6:45 PM CST
Where
Floyd County
Coordinates
37.670, -82.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Boone

When
April 1, 6:52 PM CST
Where
Boone County
Measured
62 kt (71 mph)
Coordinates
39.050, -84.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Kenton

When
April 1, 7:30 PM CST
Where
Kenton County
Coordinates
38.870, -84.600

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Henry1974-04-01Direct

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kentucky in 1974Every state in 1974This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Kentucky, 1974

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10031198, 10031199, 10031200, 10031201, 10031202, 10031203, 10031204, 10031205, 10031206, 10031207, 10031208, 10031209, 10031210, 10031211, 10031212, 10032061, 10032272, 10032273, 10032274, 10032275.