Tornadoes · United States · Kentucky

Tornadoes in Graves County, Kentucky

45 tornadoes have crossed Graves County since 1950, 3 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 3rd of the 120 counties in Kentucky with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 58 people and injured 548. 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
45
Deaths
58
Injuries
548
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, December 10, 2021

The deadliest in Graves County

  1. EF4 Mayfield tornado, KentuckyDecember 10, 202157 killed, 515 injured
  2. F3, Graves, Calloway, Marshall and Lyon counties, KentuckyNovember 15, 20051 killed, 20 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Mayfield tornado, KentuckyDecember 10, 2021EF4, 168.5 mi (271 km)
  2. F3, Graves, Calloway, Marshall and Lyon counties, KentuckyNovember 15, 2005F3, 44.0 mi (71 km)
  3. EF3, Graves and Marshall counties, KentuckyMay 10, 2016EF3, 19.0 mi (31 km)
  4. F2, Fulton, Hickman and Graves counties, KentuckyApril 19, 1973F2, 35.4 mi (57 km)
  5. F2, Hickman and Graves counties, KentuckyMay 7, 1961F2, 22.1 mi (36 km)
  6. F2, Graves and Marshall counties, KentuckyDecember 15, 1971F2, 10.3 mi (17 km)
  7. EF2, Graves County, KentuckyMarch 1, 2017EF2, 1.6 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 29 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Graves County. Each year links to every tornado in Kentucky that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20263EF1
20251EF1
20241EF1
20231EF1
20221EF1
2021557515EF4
20202EF1
20191EF0
20183EF1
20173EF2
2016110EF3
20151EF0
20133EF0
201211EF1
20112EF1
20101EF0
20091EF0
20081EF1
20061F0
20051120F3
20033F1
19981F1
19941F0
19731F2
197212F1
19711F2
19701F1
19671F1
19611F2

Every tornado that crossed Graves County

45 tornadoes, newest first. 4 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Kentucky. The 3 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 7, 20269:47 AM CSTEF0Graves0.710
August 19, 202611:47 PM CDTEF1Carlisle1.575
August 19, 202611:59 PM CDTEF1Graves0.350
April 2, 20259:17 PM CDTEF1Weakley to KY17.1200$980,000
May 26, 20248:10 AM CDTEF1Graves4.750$10,000
July 1, 20236:30 PM CDTEF1Graves27.4100$245,000
April 13, 20224:23 PM CDTEF1Graves3.1100$60,000
December 10, 20218:54 PM CSTEF4Mayfield tornado168.52,60057515$25,000
December 6, 20213:34 AM CSTEF1Graves9.6500$229,000
December 6, 20213:23 AM CSTEF0Graves5.9100$25,000
May 4, 20213:59 AM CDTEF1Graves0.5100$15,000
May 4, 20213:55 AM CDTEF1Graves4.7125$165,000
October 23, 20203:18 PM CDTUnratedGraves0.330
January 11, 20205:17 AM CSTEF1Graves2.0230$2.0 million
March 14, 201911:27 AM CDTEF0Graves0.775$2,000
April 3, 20187:36 PM CDTEF1Graves0.875$20,000
February 24, 20187:42 PM CSTEF1Graves1.2100$50,000
February 24, 20187:37 PM CSTEF1Calloway8.3125$450,000
April 26, 20177:12 PM CDTEF1Hickman12.3150$500,000
March 1, 20175:25 AM CSTEF2Graves1.6200$170,000
February 28, 201710:35 PM CSTEF0Calloway8.830$70,000
May 10, 20162:44 PM CDTEF3Graves19.045010$3.5 million
June 19, 20151:30 PM CDTEF0Graves1.8150$4,000
April 18, 20138:54 PM CDTEF0Marshall3.6150$43,000
April 18, 20138:31 PM CDTEF0Graves3.2100$3,000
April 18, 20138:24 PM CDTEF0Graves0.3100$10,000
October 14, 20126:42 AM CDTEF1Graves2.31501$350,000
April 25, 201111:45 PM CDTEF1Weakley to KY15.4225$150,000
February 24, 20116:32 PM CSTEF1Hickman7.2100$80,000
May 2, 20101:47 AM CDTEF0Graves2.440$15,000
April 30, 20097:11 PM CDTEF0Graves0.140$1,000
April 4, 20081:20 AM CDTEF1Graves3.6170$50,000
September 22, 200612:06 AM CDTF0Graves0.240
November 15, 20051:45 PM CSTF3Graves44.0500120$8.6 million
May 6, 200311:32 PM CDTF1Graves1.0100
May 6, 200311:32 PM CDTF1Hickman22.050
May 6, 200311:22 PM CDTF1Graves0.5125
April 13, 199811:13 PM CDTF1Graves7.0100$200,000
August 20, 19944:20 PM CDTF0Graves0.810$5,000 to $50,000
April 19, 19731:30 PM CSTF2Fulton35.410$5,000 to $50,000
April 21, 19726:30 PM CSTF1Weakley to KY10.7102$500 to $5,000
December 15, 19713:50 AM CSTF2Graves10.310$5,000 to $50,000
April 1, 19704:00 PM CSTF1Graves6.950$500 to $5,000
December 11, 196712:45 PM GMT-6F1Graves0.110
May 7, 19619:15 AM GMT-5F2Hickman22.110$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Graves CountyThe forecast for Graves CountyThe live radar over Graves 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.