Kentucky, 2010

Hail and Damaging Winds in Kentucky, January 21, 2010

January 21, 2010 · NWS LMK · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

A stationary front and surface low, with some strong upper level support, set off some severe thunderstorms over south central Kentucky.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$155,000
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 LMK wrote it up.

A stationary front and surface low, with some strong upper level support, set off some severe thunderstorms over south central Kentucky.

The radar

The Nashville radar (KOHX), 101 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:35 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Barren

When
January 21, 2:35 PM CST
Where
Barren County, 1.77 mi NW of Glasgow
Measured
60 kt (69 mph) estimated gust
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
37.000, -85.920

Thunderstorm winds blew down trees and blew the shingles off barns and houses. A carport was also blown off the side of a house.

Hail, Clinton

When
January 21, 4:50 PM CST
Where
Clinton County, 0.89 mi NW of Albany
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.690, -85.140

Lightning, Boyle

When
January 21, 6:20 PM EST
Where
Boyle County, 0.84 mi NNW of Alum Spgs
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
Newspaper
Coordinates
37.612, -84.853

The time of occurrence is estimated; the fire department arrived on the scene approximately 630 PM. Lightning struck several hundred yards from three homes near the 5500 block of Lebanon Road. The lightning followed an underground phone line into the homes, carving a trench as it traveled through the ground, and blowing out large sections of driveway. It also damaged a buried water line. The homes themselves suffered only minor, if any, damage, and there were no injuries.

Thunderstorm Wind, Simpson

When
January 21, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Simpson County, 1.47 mi SE of Franklin Whak Arpt to 0.57 mi WNW of Franklin
Measured
65 kt (75 mph) estimated gust
Property damage
$100,000
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.708, -86.608

Three houses were damaged in the 800 block of West Cedar. The roof was blown off one, while the other two sustained shingle damage. Several businesses had minor damage in the 500 block of West Madison, and an old warehouse building was destroyed in the 10000 block of West Cedar.

What these are

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.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Lightning
A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kentucky in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, January 2010

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 202837, 202836, 203286, 202838.