McCreary County, Kentucky

What hazards hit McCreary County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 174 since 1969. 40% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1969 fell in June and July. The rank column places the county among Kentucky's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has McCreary County had?

NOAA records 10 tornadoes in McCreary County from 1967 to 2020, the strongest rated F4, with 2 deaths and 25 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 10 tornadoes whose track touched McCreary County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 10, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 2 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Kentucky.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in McCreary County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the March 12, 2020 tornado ($234,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

A supercell thunderstorm tracked across McCreary County during the late evening hours of March 12th. A National Weather Service Jackson survey team found intermittent damage along the entire path. There were three distinct areas of damage where the tornado touched down. On Chitwood Ridge Rd, several hardwood trees were snapped off. There was also a house with some roof damage. The next area of tornado damage was on the northern side of Whitley City along north Highway 1651, where more hardwood trees were snapped off along with some damage to a few two-story buildings. Finally, the third area of tornado damage was northeast of Whitley City on Stephens Farm Rd. A tree landed on a house, leading to major damage. There were also several more houses with roof damage and additional trees snapped off.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 872119)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for McCreary County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

40% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1969 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for McCreary County

FEMA's register lists 23 declarations that include McCreary County: 15 major disasters, 6 emergencies and 2 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (11) and snowstorm (3).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has McCreary County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 46 flood or flash flood records for McCreary County from 1996 to 2021, on 33 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), McCreary County ranks 2830th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $1,569 on 1 claim filed in McCreary County; the most in one year was 1 in 2021. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for McCreary County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates McCreary County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $4.8 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with McCreary County

1. Pulaski County 900
2. Laurel County 720
3. Whitley County 595
4. McCreary County 410
5. Wayne County 406
6. Campbell County, TN 356
7. Scott County, TN 334

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in KentuckyEvery Kentucky tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Severe thunderstorm wind in KentuckyThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, by county, year and month
• The Kentucky recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in McCreary CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download McCreary County's FEMA declarations (CSV)23 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis