Multiple thunderstorms formed across eastern Kentucky in a warm, moist, and unstable air mass on June 17th. Extensive flooding occurred across the area.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 JKL wrote it up.
Multiple thunderstorms formed across eastern Kentucky in a warm, moist, and unstable air mass on June 17th. Extensive flooding occurred across the area. Several reports of large hail were also received during the late afternoon.
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 Jackson, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 17, 2:15 AM EST, 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 315 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 .SHORT TERM.../TODAY THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT/...UPDATED PERSISTENT TRAINING OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AND PROPAGATE ACROSS THE CWA EARLY THIS MORNING. THIS HAS RESULTED IN ISSUANCE OF SEVERAL FLOOD ADVISORIES AND EVEN A FEW FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE AREA. APPEARS ACTIVITY IS DUE TO INTERACTION OF NEARLY NORTH...SOUTH SFC TROUGH...WARM FRONTAL BOUNDARY BISECTING THE AREA...AND AN H850 LLJ MAX JUST ABOVE THE NOCTURNAL INVERSION. EXPECT ACTIVITY TO GRADUALLY TAPER OFF THROUGH SUNRISE AS MODELS SHOW THIS JET SHIFTING TO THE EAST AND WEAKENING A BIT WITH TIME. UPPER LEVEL LOW AND CORRESPONDING SFC LOW WILL TRACK ACROSS THE MID WEST OVER THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS...EVENTUALLY HELPING TO SHIFT STUBBORN...ALMOST ENTRENCHED WARM FRONTAL BOUNDARY OUT OF THE AREA WHILE DRAGGING A TRAILING COLD FRONT THROUGH THE AREA BY THURSDAY MORNING. BOUNDARY THEN RETURNS ALMOST IMMEDIATELY TO THE NORTH THURSDAY IN RESPONSE TO ANOTHER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING THROUGH THE UPPER MID WEST. DIFFICULT TO FIGURE OUT EXACTLY WHAT MODELS WANT TO DO WITH THESE BOUNDARIES...AND THE WEATHER ASSOCIATED WITH THEM. BUT MODELS SUGGEST THE POSSIBILITY OF A CONVECTIVE COMPLEX OF STORMS MOVING THROUGH THE AREA DURING THE DAY THURSDAY...WITH MOVEMENT ROUGHLY JUST NORTH AND ALONG RETURNING WARM FRONTAL BOUNDARY. FOR SENSIBLE WEATHER...WEAK UPPER LEVEL SHORT WAVE ENERGY WITH INTERACT WITH DIURNAL HEATING AND AFOREMENTIONED SFC BOUNDARY FOR ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TODAY. ANY LEFT OVER BOUNDARIES FROM PREVIOUS CONVECTION SHOULD ONLY AID IN ANY ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT. WITH AMPLE MID TROPOSPHERIC VEERING FLOW AND PLENTY OF FUEL FOR STORMS TO DRAW UPON IN THE BOUNDARY LAYER...SOME OF THESE STORMS COULD ONCE AGAIN PRODUCE SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE AREA. AS A RESULT...SPC HAS AGAIN PLACED EASTERN KENTUCKY IN A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER TODAY. WILL ADDRESS ANY CONCERNS IN THE HWO. MOS GUIDANCE HAS BACKED WAY OFF ON POPS FOR THURSDAY...BUT WAS HESITANT TO REMOVE THEM ALTOGETHER WITH POTENTIAL OF THE THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX THAT MODELS SEEM TO HINT AT FOR THURSDAY PROPER. WENT WITH SCATTERED COVERAGE...SOMEWHAT HIGHER THAN GUIDANCE SUGGESTS. OTHERWISE...TEMPS REALLY WARM UP. OVERALL...GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO TREND HIGHER FOR THE END OF THE WEEK AND FOLLOWED SUIT. ONLY DAMPER FOR TEMPS ON THURSDAY WOULD BE THE POSSIBILITY OF MORE WIDESPREAD RAIN SHOULD THAT OCCUR. .LONG TERM.../FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/ CHANGES MADE TO THE EXTENDED INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING...DUE TO UNCERTAINTY AMONGST THE VARIOUS MODELS AND MOS DATA REGARDING TIMING OF PRECIPITATION ONSET ON FRIDAY...DECIDED TO GO WITH THE MORE RELIABLE ECMWF MODEL SOLUTION. FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY APPEAR TO BE THE BEST TIMES FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS OVER THE WEEKEND. THE QUESTIONS WILL BE WHAT WILL BE THE ORIENTATION OF THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY THAT TRIGGERS CONVECTION...THE TIMING OF THE BOUNDARY...AND THE TIMING AND AMOUNT OF MIDDLE AND UPPER LEVEL JET ENERGY AND LOW LEVEL MOISTURE THAT WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR CONVECTIVE INITIATION AND STORM MAINTENANCE. THE GFS AND ECMWF BOTH SHOWED PRETTY JET DYNAMICS FOR FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY MORNING. THE TIMING IN TODAYS MODELS WAS A BIT FASTER THAN PREVIOUS RUNS SO ADJUSTED POP...SKY...AND WEATHER GRIDS TO REFLECT THIS. ALSO MODIFIED QPF GRIDS A BIT FOR THE SAME REASON. ONCE PRECIPITATION ENDS ON SATURDAY THE MODELS ALL AGREE THAT SUNDAY...MONDAY...AND TUESDAY WILL ALL BE DRY WITH LIGHT WINDS AND WARM MUGGY TEMPERATURES. THE TEMPERATURE FORECAST WAS ADJUSTED SLIGHTLY TOWARD THE LATEST HPC AND MEXMOS VALUES...BUT NOT TO THE EXTREMELY WARM READINGS THE MEXMOS WAS DEPICTING FOR FRIDAY. LOOKS LIKE QUITE A FEW LOCATIONS WILL BE IN THE UPPER 80S AND LOWER 90S ON FRIDAY WITH TEMPERATURES IN THE MID TO UPPER 80S SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. && .AVIATION.../06Z TO 06Z/ CIGS AND VSBY EXTREMELY VAIRABLE AS SHRA AND TSRA ROLL THRU THE VSBY INCREASES WITH THE RAIN WASHING THE AIR CLEAN. THEN THE SHRA END AND THE FOG DROPS VSBY INTO LIFR RANGE. THE VSBY MODIFIES SLIGHTLY UNTIL THE NEXT SHRA AND THEN THE CYCLE REPEATS. WILL BE FCSTNG BETWEEN VFR AND VLIFR UNTIL THE SHRA END AROUND 10Z. THEN BY DAWN THE SHRA WILL RETURN IN EARNEST AND CHANGE TO TSRA AROUND NOON. STATIONARY FNT IN THE CWFA WILL KEEP THE FOCUS ON PCPN UNTIL AFTER 18/00Z WHEN WE SHOULD SEE THE COLD FNT CLEAR OUT THE CURRENT WX PATTERN AND EXPECT SOME DRY WX TO TAKE OVER. THAT MAY STILL INCLUDE MORNING FOG IF WE CAN NOT GET ENUF DRY AIR TO PUSH INTO THE AREA. && .JKL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && SHORT TERM...RAY LONG TERM...AR AVIATION...DUSTY
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 400 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 KYZ044-050>052-058>060-068-069-079-080-083>088-104-106>120-181100- FLEMING-MONTGOMERY-BATH-ROWAN-ESTILL-POWELL-MENIFEE-ROCKCASTLE- JACKSON-PULASKI-LAUREL-WAYNE-MCCREARY-WHITLEY-KNOX-BELL-HARLAN- ELLIOTT-MORGAN-JOHNSON-WOLFE-MAGOFFIN-FLOYD-LEE-BREATHITT-KNOTT- OWSLEY-PERRY-CLAY-LESLIE-LETCHER-MARTIN-PIKE- 400 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN KENTUCKY. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE TODAY AND THIS EVENING. SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON WITH DAMAGING WINDS BEING THE MAIN THREAT. IN ADDITION...A SATURATED GROUND COMBINED WITH THE POTENTIAL OF HEAVY RAINFALL WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT PASS REPEATEDLY OVER THE SAME LOCATIONS...COULD LEAD TO SOME LOCALIZED FLOODING PROBLEMS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THURSDAY AND THURSDAY NIGHT...THEN AGAIN FROM FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH THROUGH SATURDAY EVENING. AN ALREADY WET GROUND FROM RECENT RAINFALL...COMBINED WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERAL ROUNDS OF RAIN THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE WORK WEEK COULD PRODUCE SOME LOCALIZED FLOODING PROBLEMS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. RAY
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 1046 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 2009 KYZ068-079-170315- ROCKCASTLE-PULASKI- 1046 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 2009 ...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM TO AFFECT WEST CENTRAL ROCKCASTLE AND NORTHERN PULASKI COUNTIES THROUGH 1115 PM EDT TUESDAY EVENING... AT 1046 PM EDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED 7 MILES WEST OF EUBANK...MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH. THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR HOGUE AROUND 1055 PM EDT...PULASKI AROUND 1105 PM EDT...BOBTOWN AROUND 1115 PM EDT... RESIDENTS SHOULD EXPECT VERY HEAVY RAIN...WITH RAINFALL RATES OF UP TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR...GUSTY WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL IN THESE AREAS. SCHOETTMER
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY
1049 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0520 PM TSTM WND GST 3 SE WHITLEY CITY 36.69N 84.43W
06/16/2009 E60 MPH MCCREARY KY TRAINED SPOTTER
SPOTTER ESTIMATED WINDS UP TO 60 MPH WITH MULTIPLE TREES
UPROOTED IN THE AREA.
&&
SCHOETTMERPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY
1053 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0622 PM TSTM WND DMG SSW LOW 36.78N 83.40W
06/16/2009 HARLAN KY TRAINED SPOTTER
A TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTED FIVE TREES DOWN NEAR HIS HOME
AND THE ELECTRICITY WAS OUT.
&&
SCHOETTMERSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 1227 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 KYZ113-115>117-170500- KNOTT-PERRY-CLAY-LESLIE- 1227 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 ...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM TO AFFECT SOUTHWESTERN KNOTT AND PERRY AND EAST CENTRAL CLAY AND NORTHERN LESLIE COUNTIES THROUGH 100 AM EDT WEDNESDAY MORNING... AT 1227 AM EDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED NEAR SHOAL... MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH. THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR MOSLEY BEND AROUND 1235 AM EDT...AVAWAM AROUND 1240 AM EDT...HAZARD AROUND 1245 AM EDT...DIABLOCK AROUND 1250 AM EDT...WISCOAL AROUND 1255 AM EDT... RESIDENTS SHOULD EXPECT HEAVY RAIN...WITH RAINFALL RATES OF UP TO ONE INCH PER HOUR...GUSTY WINDS OF 30 TO 40 MPH...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL IN THESE AREAS. DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS THUNDERSTORM. TAKE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY. REMEMBER...IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER THEN LIGHTNING IS CLOSE ENOUGH TO BE A HAZARD. DUSTY
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 338 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 KYZ085-086-088-115>118-170830- WHITLEY-PERRY-CLAY-LESLIE-LETCHER-KNOX-HARLAN- 338 AM EDT WED JUN 17 2009 ...A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO AFFECT SOUTHEASTERN PERRY AND SOUTHERN CLAY AND LESLIE AND LETCHER AND EASTERN KNOX AND HARLAN AND EXTREME EAST CENTRAL WHITLEY COUNTIES THROUGH 430 AM EDT WEDNESDAY MORNING... AT 337 AM EDT...A LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM BOBS FORK TO 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WALKER TO 10 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WHEELER...MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH. THE STORMS WILL BE NEAR HYDEN AROUND 345 AM EDT...WOOTON AROUND 350 AM EDT...TREMONT AROUND 355 AM EDT...FREW AROUND 400 AM EDT...VIPER AROUND 405 AM EDT... RESIDENTS SHOULD EXPECT HEAVY RAIN...WITH RAINFALL RATES OF UP TO ONE INCH PER HOUR...GUSTY WINDS OF 30 TO 40 MPH...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL IN THESE AREAS. DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. TAKE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY. REMEMBER...IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER THEN LIGHTNING IS CLOSE ENOUGH TO BE A HAZARD. DUSTY
The Jackson,KY radar (KJKL), 49 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:01 UTC.
17 flash flood, 5 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 3 heavy rain, 3 funnel cloud, 2 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Trees were blown down on Highway 80.
A volunteer storm spotter reported 2 inches of rain in about 40 minutes.
Streams were starting to rise onto roadways.
A bridge on Highway 343 was washed out. Homes on Yonts Fork Road had water flowing into them.
Highways 317 and 343 were closed due to flash flooding. Water was inside the Neon fire station.
The public measured 4.4 inches of rainfall since noon today. The rainfall was measured with an NWS 4 inch rain gage.
Six to 12 inches of water was flowing across Highway 317 at the Goose Creek Road intersection.
Main street was flooded and roads in Neon were impassable. State and county could not move equipment due to flooding.
Water rose out of the banks of creeks and streams and was flowing over roads in the vicinity of Dorton. Gable Hollow, Dorton Jenkins Highway, Blaze Branch, and Three Mile Road were closed at that time.
Kentucky Highway 26 remains flooded with up to 4 feet of water and is closed in several areas between Williamsburg and Corbin.
Water was reported to still be rising and Blake Ford Road remained flooded and closed with several feet of water over it in spots.
A trained spotter reported a funnel cloud at the Whitley County airport.
Golf ball size hail was reported. A wall cloud was also seen moving overhead and heavy rain was occurring at the time of the hail report.
Golf ball size hail and a funnel cloud were observed at Goldbug.
Dispatch reported seeing a funnel cloud over the court house in Williamsburg.
A funnel cloud was spotted over the intersectio of Highway 92 and Interstate 75. The funnel was developed and about a quarter of a mile wide.
Highway 92 was closed due to flood waters about 1.5 miles southwest of the intersection of Highways 92 and 225.
Flash flooding occurred along Beans Fork Road. The road was closed due to flooding at Noetown.
A large tree was knocked over onto a church on Highway 30 West near Guerrant.
An NWS employee reported that quarter sized hail fell on Highway 397 near Curt.
The public reported golf ball sized hail on Wolf Creek Road.
Water from swollen streams was flowing over roads and bridges in Williamsburg.
Kentucky Highway 26 and some side roads were under water and closed due to flooding.
Water was reported to be flowing over Kentucky Highway 194 just to the east of Meta.
New Zion Church Road closed due to flooding.
Highway 779 was closed near the intersection with Highway 26 due to flooding.
Jacks Fork Road was closed due to flooding.
Kentucky Highway 26 was flooded and closed in multiple locations between Williamsburg and Corbin.
Freeman Hollow, North 6th Street, and North 10th Street were all closed due to flooding.
Devils Creek Road was closed due to flooding near the intersection of KY Highway 204 and Kentucky 25W.
Blake Fork Road closed due to flooding.
A tree was blown down onto a power line.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, June 2009
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: 181567, 181569, 181573, 181574, 181589, 183776, 181575, 181577, 181570, 183792, 183793, 181580, 181581, 181582, 181583, 181584, 181585, 183778, 183781, 183769, 183770, 183771, 181571, 183772, 183775, 183782, 183783, 183784, 183787, 183789, 183790, 183791, 183987.