As I write this, a massive storm has just rolled through, leaving me with only the minimal light that’s coming through the window. As I await the return of the electricity, I thought I’d do a little digging into the history of July storms in Kentucky.
Recent Kentucky Floods
When it comes to this time of year, the main culprit with most bad storms is usually flooding. And that was the case in July of both 2022 and 2023. The Weather Channel’s data indicates the ’22 flood in Eastern Kentucky was the nation’s deadliest non-tropical flash flood in 45 years.
Major Flooding Ravages Eastern Kentucky After Heavy Rains
Michael Swensen/Getty Images
In 2023, July brought extraordinary flooding to WESTERN Kentucky.
The Worst July Storm in Kentucky’s History
But it was back in 1939 when Kentucky incurred the wrath of what would come to be classified by the National Weather Service as the worst July storm in the Commonwealth’s history. Devastating flash flooding occurred on July 4th and 5th of that year, and during those overnight hours, up to 9 inches of rain fell in a relatively short period of time. Mind-boggling, terrifying. This home in Rowan County was upended by the Triplett Creek flood that summer.
Department of the Interior
Department of the Interior
In fact, in Rowan County, it only took less than a half-hour for water to rise 10 to 15 feet. Additionally, the rapidly rising waters destroyed the Kentucky Mountain Bible Institute which was rebuilt as the Kentucky Mountain Bible College.
All tolled, according to the Red Cross, 79 lives were lost across the 21 counties affected by the flooding. A 1939 account of the storm by the Department of the Interior can be found at weather.gov/media/jkl/1939FloodPaper.
LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades
Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.
Gallery Credit: KATELYN LEBOFF
LOOK: The most extreme temperatures in the history of every state
Stacker consulted 2021 data from the NOAA’s State Climate Extremes Committee (SCEC) to illustrate the hottest and coldest temperatures ever recorded in each state. Each slide also reveals the all-time highest 24-hour precipitation record and all-time highest 24-hour snowfall.
Keep reading to find out individual state records in alphabetical order.
Gallery Credit: Anuradha Varanasi
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