Tornadoes · United States · Kentucky · 2020
EF0 tornado, Sardis to Shannon, Kentucky, April 8, 2020
From Sardis to Shannon, this EF0 tornado ran 1.2 miles across Mason County on April 8, 2020, touching down at 11:25 PM EDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $15,000 of property damage.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
The record
- Rating
- EF0
- Date
- April 8, 2020
- Touchdown
- 11:25 PM EDT (03:25 UTC)
- Lifted
- 11:26 PM EDT (03:26 UTC)
- On the ground
- 1 minutes
- Path length
- 1.2 miles (1.9 km)
- Path width
- 50 yards (46 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $15,000
- County
- Mason County
- Touchdown point
- 38.510, -83.902
- Lift-off point
- 38.510, -83.883
- Record number
- 2004082125-01
What the Weather Service recorded
Thunderstorms developed ahead of an advancing cold front which crossed east through the region.
The tornado touched down southwest of Mays Lick and damaged structures and trees along its path. The damage was mostly found along and north of Raymond Road (Highway 324).
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
22 minutes of warning. NWS ILN issued a tornado warning for this county at 03:03 UTC, 22 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 03:34 UTC.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 23:25 UTC and running to 04:24 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17:14 UTC | 18:57 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | ILN |
| 23:25 UTC | 04:24 UTC | Tornado Watch | ILN |
| 03:03 UTC | 03:34 UTC | Tornado Warning | ILN |
| 03:06 UTC | 04:00 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILN |
Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.
The forecast that day
The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Enhanced Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 01:04 UTC.
SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.
The air that afternoon
The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.
Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 00:00Z
3.4 hours before the tornado, 103 km from the path. April 9, 2020.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -94574 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 2413 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 66 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 13 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 128 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 295 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 7.7 K/km
Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), 12:00Z
8.6 hours after it, 103 km from the path. April 9, 2020.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -88104 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 2 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 958 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 85 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 28 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 0 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 62 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 4.5 K/km
The surface observations
Flemingsburg (FGX), 13 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01:35 UTC | 64.8 | 57.2 | 180° 12 kt | 16 | 1001.7 | |
| 01:55 UTC | 64.4 | 57.6 | 190° 12 kt | 1001 | ||
| 02:15 UTC | 64 | 58 | 190° 9 kt | 1001 | ||
| 02:35 UTC | 64.6 | 57.7 | 200° 11 kt | 18 | 1000.7 | |
| 02:55 UTC | 64.8 | 58 | 220° 12 kt | 1001 | ||
| 03:15 UTC | 64.8 | 59 | 280° 12 kt | 15 | 1001.7 | |
| 03:35 UTC | 58.6 | 53.8 | 330° 29 kt | 62 | 1005.1 | +RA |
| 03:55 UTC | 55.4 | 55.2 | 320° 19 kt | 26 | 1006.1 | -RA |
| 04:15 UTC | 55.4 | 55.4 | 320° 12 kt | 16 | 1006.4 | RA |
| 04:35 UTC | 55.8 | 55 | 340° 5 kt | 1005.1 | RA | |
| 04:55 UTC | 55.4 | 55.4 | 200° 9 kt | 1003.4 | -RA | |
| 05:15 UTC | 55.4 | 55.4 | 270° 4 kt | 1003.7 | -RA |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Cincinnati radar (KILN), 101 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 03:23 UTC.
Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track
Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.
What was reported nearby
Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Report | Where | County | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02:49 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 4 W Butler | Pendleton, KY | DAMAGE TO TREES, A ROOF, AND AN OUTBUILDING. |
| 02:52 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Sw Butler | Pendleton, KY | OUTBUILDING DESTROYED. |
| 02:52 UTC | TORNADO 1 | 8 Wsw Falmouth | Pendleton, KY | TORNADO DESTROYED SEVERAL BARNS AS WELL AS NUMEROUS TREES AND POWER POLES BEING SNAPPED OR KNOCKED DOWN. FROM HOGG RIDGE RD EAST SOUTHEAST TO MILFORD RD. |
| 02:57 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 6 Nne Falmouth | Pendleton, KY | POWER POLE SNAPPED. |
| 02:58 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 6 Ne Falmouth | Pendleton, KY | LARGE TREE DOWNED. |
| 03:00 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Wnw Lenoxburg | Pendleton, KY | OUTBUILDING DESTROYED. |
| 03:01 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ssw Lenoxburg | Pendleton, KY | ROOF DAMAGE. SEVERAL TREES DOWNED. |
| 03:03 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 N Berlin | Bracken, KY | ROOF AND SIDING DAMAGE TO MULTIPLE HOMES. SHEDS AND BARNS DAMAGED. |
| 03:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ssw Johnsville | Bracken, KY | SEVERAL TREES DOWNED ALONG COURTS HILL ROAD. TIME OF EVENT ESTIMATED. |
| 03:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Nw Brooksville | Bracken, KY | AT LEAST PARTIAL ROOF REMOVAL FROM SALEM CHURCH. TIME OF EVENT ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:05 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Nw Brooksville | Bracken, KY | CHURCH ROOF PARTIALLY BLOWN OFF. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:07 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 5 Nnw Brooksville | Bracken, KY | TREES DOWNED ALONG WALCOTT-JOHNSVILLE ROAD. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:09 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Milford | Bracken, KY | 7-8 BARNS DESTROYED, NUMEROUS TREES DOWN ACROSS COUNTY. DAMAGE WORSE IN MILFORD AREA. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:11 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 N Brooksville | Bracken, KY | BARN DESTROYED. TIME AND LOCATION ESTIMATED BY RADAR DATA. |
| 03:11 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Nw Brooksville | Bracken, KY | NUMEROUS TREES AND STRUCTURES DOWN BETWEEN BERLIN AND BROOKSVILLE NORTH TO THE AA HIGHWAY. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR |
| 03:12 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ne Brooksville | Bracken, KY | TOBACCO BARN DESTROYED. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:16 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Nnw Mount Olivet | Robertson, KY | STATE HIGHWAY BARN DAMAGED. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:16 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Mount Olivet | Robertson, KY | TREES AND LIMBS DOWN, ELECTRIC LINES DOWN, AND POWER OUT THROUGHOUT COUNTY. MULTIPLE REPORTS OF DAMAGE TO ROOFS. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:16 UTC | TORNADO 0 | 1 Nnw Mount Olivet | Robertson, KY | EF0 TORNADO. A BRIEF TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NORTH OF MT. OLIVET AND DAMAGED STRUCTURES ALONG HIGHWAY 165 NORTH OF TOWN, AND THEN EAST ACROSS BRIERLY RIDGE ROAD. |
| 03:17 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Sw Minerva | Mason, KY | ROOF DAMAGE TO TWO STRUCTURES WITHIN INDOOR RACING FACILITY. |
| 03:17 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Sw Minerva | Mason, KY | EARLYWINE RACING FACILITY SUSTAINED DAMAGE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:21 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Sardis | Mason, KY | TREES DOWN ON HOUSE AND CAR, GREENHOUSE AND BARD DAMAGED. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR DATA. |
| 03:22 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Sardis | Mason, KY | BARN DESTROYED IN SARDIS. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:25 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Wnw Maysville | Mason, KY | ROOF PARTIALLY REMOVED FROM A HOUSE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:25 UTC | TORNADO 0 | 3 Nw Peed | Mason, KY | EF0 TORNADO. A BRIEF TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN SOUTHWEST OF MAYS LICK AND DAMAGED STRUCTURES AND TREES ALONG ITS PATH. THE DAMAGE WAS MOSTLY FOUND ALONG AND NORTH OF RAYMOND ROAD. |
| 03:25 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Dalesburg | Fleming, KY | WIND BLEW OVER 20 FOOT STEEL CARGO CONTAINER 4 MILES NORTH OF FLEMINGSBURG ON HWY 57. REPORT RECEIVED VIA SOCIAL MEDIA. |
| 03:26 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Wsw Maysville | Mason, KY | TREE DOWNED ON WINTU CIRCLE IN MAYSVILLE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:28 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 E Maysville | Mason, KY | LARGE TREE DOWNED THROUGH A HOUSE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:28 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | Mays Lick | Mason, KY | TREES DOWNED ALONG US 68 NEAR MAYS LICK. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR. |
| 03:30 UTC | TSTM WND GST 47 | Kymeso Maysville 3sw | Mason, KY | |
| 03:35 UTC | TSTM WND GST 71 | Kfgx Fleming-Mason Apt | Mason, KY | |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 1 Ssw Tilton | Fleming, KY | REPORTED AT WATSON RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY TREE ACROSS ROAD. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Ne Wallingford | Fleming, KY | REPORTED AT PIGEON ROOST RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY LARGE TREE ACROSS ROAD. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Nnw Pebble | Fleming, KY | REPORTED AT HESTER RIDGE RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY TREE ACROSS ROAD. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Sw Elizaville | Fleming, KY | BARN BLOWN ONTO ROAD. REPORTED AT PIKE BLUFF RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Sw Elizaville | Fleming, KY | CORRECTS PREVIOUS TSTM WND DMG REPORT FROM 2 SW ELIZAVILLE. BARN BLOWN DOWN. REPORTED AT PIKE BLUFF RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 2 Wsw Goddard | Fleming, KY | REPORTED AT HOPE HILL RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY TREE ACROSS ROAD. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 Ene Flemingsburg Junc | Fleming, KY | BUILDING LEVELED ON MAYSVILLE RD. NEAR FLEMING COUNTY LINE. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 W Dalesburg | Fleming, KY | BARN BLOWN ONTO ROAD. REPORTED AT TAYLOR MILL RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY. |
| 03:39 UTC | TSTM WND DMG | 3 W Wallingford | Fleming, KY | REPORTED AT WALLINGFORD RD., FLEMINGSBURG, KY LARGE TREE ACROSS ROAD. |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2020 tornado in KentuckyEvery tornado in Kentucky since 1950Warnings in force in Kentucky nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of April 8, 2020
24 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 8 | 8:22 PM EDT | EF0 | Lanier, GA | 4.4 | 300 | $100,000 | ||
| April 8 | 8:43 PM EDT | EF1 | Morgan, IN | 1.0 | 35 | $500,000 | ||
| April 8 | 7:47 PM CDT | EF0 | Craighead, AR | 0.9 | 30 | $8,000 | ||
| April 8 | 8:05 PM CDT | EF2 | Poinsett, AR | 9.3 | 75 | 2 | $250,000 | |
| April 8 | 9:59 PM EDT | EF1 | Ripley, IN | 2.5 | 450 | $50,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:06 PM EDT | EF0 | Ripley, IN | 0.2 | 75 | $20,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:08 PM EDT | EF0 | Ripley, IN | 2.6 | 220 | $50,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:10 PM EDT | EF0 | Dearborn, IN | 1.0 | 150 | $40,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:11 PM EDT | EF0 | Ohio, IN | 0.1 | 60 | $20,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:13 PM EDT | EF0 | Ohio, IN | 5.3 | 200 | $20,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:13 PM EDT | EF0 | Ohio, IN | 5.7 | 450 | $50,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:22 PM EDT | EF0 | Hamilton, OH | 6.2 | 300 | $100,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:27 PM EDT | EF0 | Gallatin, KY | 0.5 | 50 | $30,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:37 PM EDT | EF0 | Hamilton, OH | 3.3 | 350 | $45,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:40 PM EDT | EF1 | Grant, KY | 2.4 | 500 | $35,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:42 PM EDT | EF0 | Kenton, KY | 1.2 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:47 PM EDT | EF1 | Grant, KY | 19.2 | 400 | $45,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:50 PM EDT | EF0 | Clermont, OH | 8.8 | 200 | $40,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:53 PM EDT | EF0 | Clermont, OH | 0.8 | 75 | $25,000 | ||
| April 8 | 10:56 PM EDT | EF0 | Brown, OH | 2.4 | 50 | $15,000 | ||
| April 8 | 11:01 PM EDT | EF0 | Clinton, OH | 0.9 | 50 | $5,000 | ||
| April 8 | 11:16 PM EDT | EF0 | Robertson, KY | 1.0 | 50 | $25,000 | ||
| April 8 | 11:20 PM EDT | EF1 | Nelson, KY | 4.0 | 45 | $200,000 | ||
| April 8 | 12:33 AM EDT | EF1 | Vinton, OH | 0.3 | 125 | $200,000 |
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.