Tornadoes · United States · Kentucky

Tornadoes in Cumberland County, Kentucky

12 tornadoes have crossed Cumberland County since 1950, 53rd of the 120 counties in Kentucky with a tornado on record, an average of one every 6.3 years. They have killed 32 people and injured 178. 1 was rated F4 or EF4 and above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    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.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    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.

  7. 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.

Now

Tornadoes
12
Deaths
32
Injuries
178
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, April 3, 1974

The deadliest in Cumberland County

  1. EF3, Sumner, Trousdale, Macon, Monroe and Cumberland counties, Tennessee and KentuckyFebruary 5, 200822 killed, 63 injured
  2. F4 Burkesville tornado, KentuckyApril 3, 197410 killed, 113 injured

The strongest

  1. F4 Burkesville tornado, KentuckyApril 3, 1974F4, 38.4 mi (62 km)
  2. EF3, Sumner, Trousdale, Macon, Monroe and Cumberland counties, Tennessee and KentuckyFebruary 5, 2008EF3, 50.3 mi (81 km)
  3. F3, Cumberland County, KentuckyApril 20, 1986F3, 3.0 mi (5 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 8 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Cumberland County. Each year links to every tornado in Kentucky that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20244EF1
20151EF0
20141EF1
20111EF1
200812263EF3
20001F1
198622F3
1974110113F4

Every tornado that crossed Cumberland County

12 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Kentucky.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
July 9, 20242:00 PM CDTEF0Cumberland0.9200
May 26, 202411:48 PM CDTEF1Cumberland10.4100
May 26, 202411:44 PM CDTEF0Cumberland0.240
May 26, 202411:30 PM CDTEF1Monroe1.1100
July 13, 20156:13 PM CDTEF0Cumberland0.7100$50,000
October 6, 20146:02 PM CDTEF1Cumberland0.2100
April 27, 20117:02 AM CDTEF1Monroe5.9550
February 5, 200810:02 PM CSTEF3Sumner to KY50.38802263$28 million
November 9, 20001:40 PM CSTF1Cumberland2.070$150,000
April 20, 19865:10 PM CSTF1Cumberland8.0150$5,000 to $50,000
April 20, 19864:45 PM CSTF3Cumberland3.04002$50,000 to $500,000
April 3, 19746:40 PM CDTF4Burkesville tornado38.41010113$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Cumberland CountyThe forecast for Cumberland CountyThe live radar over Cumberland CountyEvery county in Kentucky

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.