Kentucky, 2000

Flash Flooding in Kentucky, January 3, 2000

January 3, 2000 · NWS PAH · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Thunderstorms during the early morning hours produced 3 to 5 inches of rain, which saturated the ground. Another round of storms arrived during the late afternoon, producing another inch or two of rain in an hour.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$1.3 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

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 PAH wrote it up.

Thunderstorms during the early morning hours produced 3 to 5 inches of rain, which saturated the ground. Another round of storms arrived during the late afternoon, producing another inch or two of rain in an hour. These heavy rainfall rates, up to 1.3 inches in 15 minutes in Carlisle County, triggered flash flooding. Road and bridge damage was significant. Two bridges were washed out in Ballard County, including one over Kentucky 358. In the Lovelaceville area of Ballard County, a creek overflowed, threatening homes and prompting the closure of U.S. Highway 62. In Carlisle County, where seven to eight roads were closed at one point, most of the damage was to bridge pilings and bridge approaches. In McCracken County, numerous water rescues were performed by emergency services personnel. Vehicles were stranded in floodwaters at a K-Mart parking lot in Lone Oak, just southwest of Paducah. Damage in Livingston County was relatively minor and confined mainly to rural county roads. A few residences in the aforementioned counties had basement flooding.

The radar

The Paducah radar (KPAH), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:45 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Ballard

When
January 3, 2:45 PM CST to 4:45 PM CST
Where
Ballard County, Countywide
Property damage
$800,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
37.058, -88.999 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Carlisle

When
January 3, 2:45 PM CST to 4:45 PM CST
Where
Carlisle County, Countywide
Property damage
$400,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
36.853, -88.971 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, McCracken

When
January 3, 3:00 PM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
McCracken County, Countywide
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
37.054, -88.713 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Livingston

When
January 3, 3:15 PM CST to 5:15 PM CST
Where
Livingston County, Countywide
Property damage
$90,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
37.210, -88.354 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kentucky in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, January 2000

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: 5131982, 5132065, 5132358, 5132357.