An upper low over the northern Plains moved northeast toward the Great Lakes throughout the day, with an associated surface cold front draping south from the system. Ahead of the front a strong low level jet caused southern Indiana and central Kentucky to be placed under a Wind Advisory earlier in the day.
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 LMK wrote it up.
An upper low over the northern Plains moved northeast toward the Great Lakes throughout the day, with an associated surface cold front draping south from the system. Ahead of the front a strong low level jet caused southern Indiana and central Kentucky to be placed under a Wind Advisory earlier in the day. As the front approached from the west, severe weather become more of an issue, with central Kentucky receiving large hail and structural damage from thunderstorm winds.
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 Mar 14, 12:53 PM CST, 4 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Louisville KY
253 PM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019
.Short Term...(This evening through Friday)
Issued at 241 PM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019
Ongoing strong to severe storms at this hour across portions of
southern Indiana and western/central Kentucky. Overall environment
so far has been conducive for supercellular storms capable of
tornadoes, large hail, and straight line damaging winds. Regional
satellite reveals breaks ahead of this line, indicating the
atmosphere should continue to destabilize and theoretically remain
favorable for strong to severe storms. High-res models have hinted
at some weakening in storms, particularly south of the Ohio River,
as we head into the late afternoon hours, before upticking in
strength again in central/eastern Kentucky by evening. Although
reasons for this are not entirely clear, satellite/radar trends for
storms generally south of the Ohio River have shown them struggling
a bit over the past hour, so the models may be on to something
despite increasing instability. That being said, will continue to
maintain the tornado watch for the current counties, with possible
extensions in duration and areal extent soon. Activity should push
out of the region by midnight.
The other story today has been the gusty winds. Gradient winds have
been pushing +50mph for many spots, and expect the strong winds to
continue through a good portion of the evening. As a result, have
extended the duration of the wind advisory to 03z tonight to account
for gusty wind potential.
&&
.Long Term...(Friday night through Thursday)
Issued at 235 PM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019
Relatively quiet weather is expected through the weekend as the
region remains at the base of a broad 500mb trough. A strong wave
within the base of the trough may impact the region Monday, bringing
light precipitation, but there's some differences in medium range
output so will keep PoPs low for now.
Dry weather then looks to persist into the mid week timeframe. A
cold front may swing through during the Thursday/Friday timeframe
and bring additional precipitation to the region.
&&
.Aviation...(18Z TAF Issuance)
Updated at 111 PM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019
A line of strong to severe storms is currently ongoing across south-
central Indiana into western Kentucky. This line will slowly move to
the east through the afternoon, though some uncertainty remains as
to whether it will hold together or begin to break apart as some
models indicate some weakening. Regardless, will keep thunderstorms
in all TAF for a period this afternoon and evening. Gusty and
erratic winds will be possible in any thunderstorm.
Drier air will move in behind the line of storms and result in VFR
conditions, though a deck of stratus clouds may impact terminals
early tomorrow morning.
&&
.LMK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
IN...Wind Advisory until 11 PM EDT /10 PM CDT/ this evening for
INZ076>079-083-084-089>092.
KY...Wind Advisory until 11 PM EDT /10 PM CDT/ this evening for
KYZ023>043-045>049-053>057-061>067-070>078-081-082.
&&
Short Term...DM
Long Term...DM
Aviation...DMHazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Louisville KY 1055 AM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019 KYZ033>043-045>049-053>057-063>067-073>078-081-082-151500- Henry-Shelby-Franklin-Scott-Harrison-Spencer-Anderson-Woodford- Fayette-Bourbon-Nicholas-Nelson-Washington-Mercer-Jessamine-Clark- Larue-Marion-Boyle-Garrard-Madison-Hart-Green-Taylor-Casey-Lincoln- Allen-Barren-Monroe-Metcalfe-Adair-Russell-Cumberland-Clinton- Including the cities of New Castle, Shelbyville, Frankfort, Georgetown, Cynthiana, Taylorsville, Lawrenceburg, Versailles, Lexington, Paris, Carlisle, Bardstown, Springfield, Harrodsburg, Nicholasville, Winchester, Hodgenville, Lebanon, Danville, Lancaster, Richmond, Horse Cave, Greensburg, Campbellsville, Liberty, Stanford, Scottsville, Glasgow, Tompkinsville, Edmonton, Columbia, Jamestown, Burkesville, and Albany 1055 AM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019 /955 AM CDT Thu Mar 14 2019/ ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT /7 PM CDT/ THIS EVENING... This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of south central Indiana and Central Kentucky. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight. Strong to severe thunderstorms are possible this afternoon and evening with damaging winds as the primary threat. Tornadoes and hail are also possible. Heavy rainfall may result in localized flooding. Outside of thunderstorms, strong winds blowing from the south will gust as high as 40 to 50 mph today. Winds of this magnitude can blow around small items, topple weakly rooted trees, and make travel difficult on east-west oriented roads. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotters are asked to report any severe weather, strong winds, heavy rainfall, or flooding impacts today. INZ076>079-083-084-089>092-KYZ023>032-061-062-070>072-151500- Orange-Washington-Scott-Jefferson-Dubois-Crawford-Perry-Harrison- Floyd-Clark-Hancock-Breckinridge-Meade-Ohio-Grayson-Hardin-Bullitt- Oldham-Trimble-Butler-Edmonson-Logan-Warren-Simpson- Including the cities of Paoli, Salem, Scottsburg, Madison, Jasper, English, Tell City, Corydon, New Albany, Jeffersonville, Lewisport, Hawesville, Hardinsburg, Brandenburg, Hartford, Leitchfield, Elizabethtown, Shepherdsville, Louisville, La Grange, Bedford, Milton, Morgantown, Brownsville, Russellville, Bowling Green, Franklin, and Providence 1055 AM EDT Thu Mar 14 2019 /955 AM CDT Thu Mar 14 2019/ ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT /7 PM CDT/ THIS EVENING... ...TORNADO WATCH 24 IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM EDT /4 PM CDT/ THIS AFTERNOON... This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of south central Indiana and Central Kentucky. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight. Strong to severe thunderstorms are possible this afternoon and evening with damaging winds as the primary threat. Tornadoes and hail are also possible. See the latest tornado watch for details. Heavy rainfall may result in localized flooding. Outside of thunderstorms, strong winds blowing from the south will gust as high as 40 to 50 mph today. Winds of this magnitude can blow around small items, topple weakly rooted trees, and make travel difficult on east-west oriented roads. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotters are asked to report any severe weather, strong winds, heavy rainfall, or flooding impacts today. DM
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
123 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0111 PM FUNNEL CLOUD BRETZVILLE 38.30N 86.87W
03/14/2019 DUBOIS IN 911 CALL CENTER
FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED AT STATE ROAD 64 AND
STATE ROAD 162.
&&
KDWPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
150 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0125 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 4 ENE HOWE VALLEY 37.70N 86.02W
03/14/2019 M55 MPH HARDIN KY MESONET
&&
CGPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
153 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0140 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 3 ENE LORETTO 37.65N 85.36W
03/14/2019 M52 MPH MARION KY MESONET
&&
CGPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
155 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0115 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 2 NNW MT. EDEN 38.08N 85.16W
03/14/2019 M53 MPH SHELBY KY MESONET
&&
CGPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
235 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0220 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 4 SE MILLERSBURG 38.26N 84.10W
03/14/2019 M52 MPH NICHOLAS KY MESONET
&&
CGPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
236 PM EDT THU MAR 14 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0225 PM NON-TSTM WND GST 3 E HARTFORD 37.45N 86.84W
03/14/2019 M50 MPH OHIO KY MESONET
&&
CGThe Evansville,IN radar (KVWX), 81 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:58 UTC.
8 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Trees were reported down at Roberts Lane in Lewisport, Kentucky.
A barn blew down on Caldwell Road in north Washington County, Kentucky.
A greenhouse was blown down.
A large pine tree blew down along Cumberland Trace.
Barn damage was reported.
Hail was observed near State Road 373.
Golf ball size hail was reported in La Grange.
A tree was reported down due to high winds in the area.
A few trees were snapped near Alumni Stadium at Kentucky State University.
A few trees blew down on the north side of Frankfort.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, March 2019
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: 802720, 802721, 802722, 802723, 802724, 802709, 802711, 802725, 802726, 802727.