Lexington, KY Tornado History — 78 Tornadoes Since 1950
How many tornadoes has Lexington, KY had?
Lexington has had 78 tornadoes on record within 25 miles since 1950, including 6 violent (EF3+) tornadoes.
When was the most recent tornado near Lexington?
The most recent tornado within 25 miles of Lexington was an EF1 on October 19, 2025.
When is tornado season in Lexington?
April is historically the peak month for tornadoes near Lexington, with 21 on record. Spring through early summer (April–June) generally sees the highest activity across most of the central and southern United States.
At a Glance
Recent Tornado Activity Near Lexington
The last 20 years of confirmed tornadoes within 25 miles — 28 total, averaging 1.4 per year over this window.
Preliminary tornado reports near Lexington since December 29, 2025
These is a preliminary report, not confirmed tornadoes. It has not yet been through an NWS damage survey, and is not counted in the confirmed totals above.
Preliminary reports are revised, merged, and sometimes withdrawn — historically about 23% are consolidated downward once surveys complete. Ratings are omitted until a survey assigns one.
Confirmed records above are complete through December 29, 2025. NOAA publishes the confirmed archive annually, so tornadoes after that date appear here first and move into the totals above once finalized.
Within 25 miles of Lexington. Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center preliminary storm reports, updated daily.
Tornadoes by Decade
Tornadoes by Enhanced Fujita Rating
F0–F5 ratings (pre-2007) are grouped with their EF equivalents. The Enhanced Fujita scale replaced the original Fujita scale in February 2007.
Tornadoes by Month
Casualties on Record Near Lexington
12 fatalities have been recorded within 25 miles of Lexington since 1950, across 3 events. 284 injuries have been reported across all events. 1974 was the deadliest year on record.
The deadliest single event was a F4 on April 3, 1974, which caused 7 fatalities along a 31.9-mile track.
Notable Tornadoes Near Lexington
About Tornadoes in Lexington
This overview was written August 10, 2026. The tornado counts and notable-event figures elsewhere on this page reflect the latest data and may differ from this summary.
Severe-weather season in Lexington keeps a spring calendar. The threat builds as April opens and holds through May into June, when moist Gulf of Mexico air surges north across central Kentucky and collides with cold fronts and jet-stream disturbances dropping in from the northwest. The gentle pastures and low hills of the Bluegrass do little to break up these collisions, so storms organized farther west and south often arrive with tornado potential intact. By midsummer the pattern usually relaxes — a rhythm the NOAA Storm Prediction Center record for the area traces across decades from the 1950s through the 2020s.
The April 1974 outbreak dominates local memory. On April 3, 1974, an F4 carved a 79.4-mile track, killing 4 people and injuring 122, while a companion F3 that day injured 27. On April 4, 1974, another F4 killed 7 and injured 28. Earlier springs carried the threat too: an F2 on June 15, 1964 ran 49.3 miles and injured 1 person. It has continued since — an F2 on March 10, 1986 injured 20, an F2 on May 11, 2003 killed 1 person and injured 8, and an F3 on May 28, 2004 injured 6. The event list elsewhere on this page fills in the rest.