Kentucky, 1997

Tornado in Kentucky, March 28, 1997

March 28, 1997 · NWS LMK · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A strong F3 tornado touched down in the Cane Valley area destroying 15 mobile homes, 14 homes, a business, a church and 12 barns. Also, 26 homes, 2 businesses and 2 churches were heavily damaged.

Where it happened

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
7
Property damage
$3.0 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS LMK wrote it up.

A strong F3 tornado touched down in the Cane Valley area destroying 15 mobile homes, 14 homes, a business, a church and 12 barns. Also, 26 homes, 2 businesses and 2 churches were heavily damaged. 51 homes were destroyed and 50 damaged across northern Adair county. The tornado moved northeast skipping at times to Pellyton before lifting. Only 7 minor injuries were reported, however. Many people sought refugee in one of the damaged churches.

The radar

The Louisville radar (KLVX), 104 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:14 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Adair

When
March 28, 8:15 PM EST to 8:35 PM EST
Where
Adair County, Cane Vly to Pellyton
Rating
F3
Path length
10 mi
Path width
500 yd
Injuries
7 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$3.0 million
Coordinates
37.180, -85.320

What these are

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 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Kentucky, 1997Warnings in Kentucky, March 1997

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: 5597226.