Besides the structural damage, trees and power lines were downed over much of central Kentucky.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS LMK wrote it up.
Besides the structural damage, trees and power lines were downed over much of central Kentucky.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Louisville, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 26, 1:30 AM EST, 11 hours 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY 230 AM EDT WED MAY 26 2004 AFTER SUBSTANTIAL RAINS FELL ACROSS OUR CWA LAST EVENING...RADAR SHOWS ADDITIONAL RAINFALL DEVELOPING ACROSS SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND SOUTHWEST INDIANA. EXPECT THIS AREA TO MOVE INTO SOUTHERN INDIANA AND WEAKEN TOWARDS DAWN. A SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS WEAK LOW PRESSURE IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...AND A STATIONARY FRONT ORIENTATED PARALLEL TO BUT NORTH OF THE OHIO RIVER ACROSS SOUTHERN INDIANA. THIS FRONT IS NOT EXPECTED TO MOVE MUCH...PERHAPS SAGGING SOUTH INTO EXTREME NORTHERN KENTUCKY BY THIS AFTERNOON. THE UPPER AIR PATTERN FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT WILL FEATURE A STRONG ZONAL JET EXTENDING FROM A POSITIVELY TILTED TROUGH OVER THE SOUTHERN ROCKIES ACROSS THE NORTHERN OHIO VALLEY. WITH FAST ZONAL FLOW...INDIVIDUAL DISTURBANCES ARE HARD TO DISCERN. OVERALL I EXPECT PRECIPITATION TO DIMINISH TO SCATTERED SHOWERS DURING THE MORNING HOURS...BEFORE REDEVELOPING LATE THIS AFTERNOON IN A MORE UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE. FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY...STATIONARY FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO RESIDE ACROSS LOWER OHIO VALLEY. YET ANOTHER IN A SERIES OF DISTURBANCES WILL MOVE ACROSS CWA. EXACT LOCATION OF THE FRONT WILL DETERMINE THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL...BUT LIKE TUESDAY EVENING...TRAINING STORMS MAY BRING HEAVY RAINFALL TO AREAS OF SOUTHERN INDIANA OR CENTRAL KENTUCKY. WITH WIDESPREAD RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 1/2 HAVEN FALLEN TUESDAY EVENING...POSSIBILITY OF FLOODING EXISTS AND WILL PROBABLY ISSUE FLOOD WATCH THROUGH 4 AM THURSDAY. WILL ALSO CONTINUE CHANCES OF RAIN THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY AS STATIONARY FRONT STILL WAVERS ACROSS LOWER OHIO VALLEY. && .LMK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IN...FLOOD WATCH ALL ZONES THROUGH 4 AM THURSDAY MORNING. KY...FLOOD WATCH ALL ZONES THROUGH 4 AM THURSDAY MORNING. && DENMAN
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY 115 PM EDT WED MAY 26 2004 INZ076>079-083-084-089>092-KYZ023>043-045>049-053>057-061>067- 070>078-081-082-270900- ADAIR KY-ALLEN KY-ANDERSON KY-BARREN KY-BOURBON KY-BOYLE KY- BRECKINRIDGE KY-BULLITT KY-BUTLER KY-CASEY KY-CLARK KY-CLARK IN- CLINTON KY-CRAWFORD IN-CUMBERLAND KY-DUBOIS IN-EDMONSON KY- FAYETTE KY-FLOYD IN-FRANKLIN KY-GARRARD KY-GRAYSON KY-GREEN KY- HANCOCK KY-HARDIN KY-HARRISON KY-HARRISON IN-HART KY-HENRY KY- JEFFERSON KY-JEFFERSON IN-JESSAMINE KY-LARUE KY-LINCOLN KY-LOGAN KY- MADISON KY-MARION KY-MEADE KY-MERCER KY-METCALF KY-MONROE KY- NELSON KY-NICHOLAS KY-OHIO KY-OLDHAM KY-ORANGE IN-PERRY IN- RUSSELL KY-SCOTT KY-SCOTT IN-SHELBY KY-SIMPSON KY-SPENCER KY- TAYLOR KY-TRIMBLE KY-WARREN KY-WASHINGTON KY-WASHINGTON IN- WOODFORD KY- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...LOUISVILLE...LEXINGTON...BOWLING GREEN... WINCHESTER...VERSAILLES...STANFORD...SHELBYVILLE...RUSSELLVILLE... RICHMOND...HARRODSBURG...HARDINSBURG...GLASGOW...FRANKLIN... FRANKFORT...ELIZABETHTOWN...DANVILLE...CYNTHIANA...COLUMBIA... BARDSTOWN...NEW ALBANY...JASPER AND CORYDON 115 PM EDT (1215 PM CDT) WED MAY 26 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL KENTUCKY AND SOUTH CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A NEARLY STALLED FRONTAL BOUNDARY, COMBINED WITH A VERY MOIST AND MODERATELY UNSTABLE AIRMASS, WILL PRODUCE PERIODS OF SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. PROLONGED PERIODS OF HEAVY RAINFALL ARE POSSIBLE, THEREFORE A FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES. IN ADDITION, THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE STORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING ACROSS THE ENTIRE OUTLOOK AREA. DAMAGING WIND GUSTS WILL BE THE PRIMARY THREAT WITH LARGE HAIL ALSO A THREAT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. AN UNSETTLED PATTERN WILL REMAIN OVER THE AREA INTO THE UPCOMING WEEKEND, RESULTING IN CONTINUED CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS. A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE STORMS IS FORECAST FOR THE OUTLOOK AREA ON THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... TRAINED SPOTTERS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RELAY REPORTS OF SEVERE WEATHER OR FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LOUISVILLE. EXAMPLES ARE DOWNED TREES OR STRUCTURAL DAMAGE DUE TO HIGH WINDS, HAIL LARGER THAN DIME SIZE, AND FLOODING THAT IS BLOCKING ROADWAYS. KIRKPATRICK
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
157 PM EDT WED MAY 26 2004
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0157 PM HAIL CUSTER 37.73N 86.25W
05/26/2004 0.75 INCH BRECKINRIDGE KY AMATEUR RADIO
&&
LDThe Louisville radar (KLVX), 48 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:59 UTC.
23 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood, 2 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Five to six inches of water were over a road in the town of Irvington. Two inches of water were standing on other roads.
A garage had considerable damage when a tree was blown on to it.
The spotter also reported a 65 MPH wind gust.
Highways 210 and 61 near the Larue County line were closed due to high water.
The roof was blown off a barn. Power lines were downed.
Aluminum siding was blown off a residence.
Several homes and barns were damaged. The major portion of the roof was blown off one of the homes. One barn was completely destroyed, and some farm equipment inside was damaged or destroyed.
College and State Streets were closed at Sixth and Seventh Avenues.
Portions of a roof were blown off a community building at Phil Moore Park.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, May 2004
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: 5396392, 5396393, 5396394, 5396395, 5396476, 5396495, 5396477, 5396478, 5396480, 5396481, 5396482, 5396483, 5396479, 5396484, 5396485, 5396486, 5396487, 5396488, 5396491, 5396489, 5396490, 5396492, 5396493, 5396494, 5396496, 5396497, 5396498, 5396499.