Girdler, KY Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Girdler is about the same as Kentucky average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Girdler is lower than Kentucky average and is lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #134
| Girdler, KY | 0.29 |
| Kentucky | 0.24 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Girdler, KY | 0.0000 |
| Kentucky | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #636
| Girdler, KY | 77.28 |
| Kentucky | 136.89 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 3,852 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Girdler, KY were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 1 | Cold: | 37 | Dense Fog: | 27 | Drought: | 17 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 551 | Hail: | 825 | Heat: | 23 | Heavy Snow: | 78 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 0 | Ice Storm: | 15 | Landslide: | 2 | Strong Wind: | 41 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 2,012 | Tropical Storm: | 0 | Wildfire: | 3 | Winter Storm: | 26 | Winter Weather: | 57 |
| Other: | 137 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Girdler, KY.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 1 historical earthquake event that had a recorded magnitude of 3.5 or above found in or near Girdler, KY.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 5.9 | 1976-01-19 | 4 | 5 | 36.88 | -83.83 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 34 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Girdler, KY.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 12.4 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 36°58'N / 84°07'W | 37°11'N / 83°57'W | 17.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 22 | 2.5M | 0 | Laurel |
| 16.7 | 1984-05-06 | 2 | 37°08'N / 84°05'W | 37°10'N / 84°01'W | 5.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 8 | 2.5M | 0 | Laurel |
| 16.9 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 37°11'N / 83°57'W | 37°13'N / 83°55'W | 2.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Clay |
| 17.1 | 1973-06-29 | 3 | 37°08'N / 84°05'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Laurel | |
| 17.1 | 2001-06-02 | 2 | 37°08'N / 84°05'W | 37°08'N / 84°05'W | 7.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 10 | 17.1M | 0K | Laurel |
| Brief Description: A strong F2 tornado with wind estimates between 135 and 155 miles per hour ripped through downtown London during the evening hours. The Carnaby Square shopping center was hard hit. The tornado was reported by eye witnesses to have been nearly stationary in the parking lot for nearly 4 minutes. During this time several automobiles including a large moving van were overtured. A 20 by 30 foot chunk of 4 inch thick blacktop from the parking lot was torn up and thrown approximately 100 feet. Merchandise from one of the stores was later found 25 miles to the east. The tornado lifted before crossing U.S. Highway 25. The tornado touched down again along Bellinger Street between 6:15 and 6:20 pm where several homes received major damage. One duplex lost its entire roof as a mother and her two sons took shelter on the second floor. A mobile home used for storage was demolished. One block over on Morgan Street several brick and framed homes lost their entire roofs. A framed home placed on a block foundation was blown 15 feet away from the foundation. The storm lifted as if approached the Rolling Acres Subdivision. Witnesses reported seeing two funnel clouds at this time as the storm continued moving east. Damage was confined to large trees and some shingle damage on roofs of homes. The storm again dropped a tornado as it approached a ball park just northwest of the intersection of Kentucky Highway 192 and 80. Three of the four teams in the park took refuge in the concession stand and the fourth team remained in the dugout where parents covered the children while laying on the ground. One mid sized truck was tossed from the parking lot approximately 150 feet. Fencing from both ball diamonds was blown away. The last major damage occurred at a mobile home sales lot near the intersection of Kentucky Highway 192 and the Daniel Boone Parkway. Eight mobile homes weighing 8 to 12 tons were totaled. Emergency management officials reported that there were 10 minor injuries with the most serious being a broken arm. Eighteen residences were destroyed, 21 received major damage while 84 received minor damage. Twenty-six businesses suffered major damage. One church received major damage with another receiving minor damage. Thirty vehicles were destroyed and three 18 wheel tractor trailers were overturned. | |||||||||||
| 25.0 | 1967-03-12 | 3 | 36°40'N / 84°07'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Whitley | |
| 25.1 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 36°51'N / 84°18'W | 36°52'N / 84°17'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Whitley | ||
| 26.5 | 1988-05-09 | 3 | 36°36'N / 83°45'W | 36°36'N / 83°39'W | 5.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 1 | 15 | 25.0M | 0 | Bell |
| 27.1 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 37°09'N / 84°17'W | 37°17'N / 84°11'W | 10.70 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Laurel |
| 27.2 | 1967-03-12 | 3 | 36°45'N / 84°20'W | 36°40'N / 84°08'W | 12.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 5 | 250K | 0 | Whitley |
| 28.1 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 37°02'N / 84°24'W | 37°09'N / 84°17'W | 10.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 6 | 30 | 2.5M | 0 | Pulaski |
| 28.6 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 37°17'N / 84°11'W | 37°18'N / 84°10'W | 1.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 1 | 10 | 2.5M | 0 | Rockcastle |
| 29.1 | 1954-06-01 | 2 | 37°17'N / 84°07'W | 37°27'N / 83°54'W | 16.40 Miles | 67 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Laurel |
| 29.7 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 36°48'N / 84°26'W | 36°51'N / 84°18'W | 8.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 33.7 | 1967-03-12 | 3 | 36°49'N / 84°31'W | 36°45'N / 84°20'W | 11.10 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 33.8 | 1977-10-01 | 2 | 37°31'N / 83°53'W | 37°23'N / 83°43'W | 12.80 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Owsley |
| 36.7 | 1973-05-10 | 2 | 36°40'N / 84°26'W | 36°40'N / 84°23'W | 2.70 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 5 | 25K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 38.9 | 2009-05-08 | 2 | 36°27'N / 83°34'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Claiborne | |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF-2 tornado with maximum wind speed of 110 miles an hour occurred around five miles southwest of Tazewell. The tornado initially touched down along Cole Road and quickly produced 110 mph winds. It lifted the roof off of a home on Cole Road moved east across the road and moved east across the road and destroyed two large wooden barns carrying debris up to a half mile away. Several trees were also snapped off at mid trunk level. The tornado continued in a 2.2 mile path and dissipated near Neely Road. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A highly organized mesoscale convective vorticity maximum with strong low to mid tropospheric flow coupled with moderate instability resulted in the development of discrete supercellular thunderstorms. These storms produced a long-lived tornado across Northeast Tennessee late in the afternoon and another long duration tornado across Southwest Virginia later in the evening. | |||||||||||
| 39.3 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 36°53'N / 84°36'W | 36°56'N / 84°32'W | 5.10 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Pulaski |
| 42.3 | 1980-04-08 | 2 | 36°43'N / 84°28'W | 36°34'N / 84°33'W | 11.20 Miles | 200 Yards | 2 | 9 | 250K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 44.7 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 36°47'N / 84°42'W | 36°53'N / 84°36'W | 8.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 2 | 40 | 2.5M | 0 | Wayne |
| 45.2 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 37°01'N / 84°52'W | 37°15'N / 84°26'W | 28.80 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Russell |
| 46.3 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 36°29'N / 84°36'W | 36°35'N / 84°24'W | 13.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 21 | 250K | 0 | Scott |
| 46.4 | 1974-04-03 | 4 | 36°40'N / 84°44'W | 36°45'N / 84°32'W | 12.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 47.0 | 1974-04-03 | 2 | 36°36'N / 84°46'W | 36°48'N / 84°31'W | 19.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 11 | 25K | 0 | Mccreary |
| 47.1 | 1980-07-06 | 2 | 36°35'N / 83°15'W | 36°25'N / 83°13'W | 11.50 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Hancock |
| 47.1 | 1998-04-16 | 2 | 36°38'N / 84°45'W | 36°42'N / 84°30'W | 15.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 30K | 0 | Mccreary |
| Brief Description: The path of the tornado was intermittent. It first touched down in extreme southeast Wayne County, and then moved northeast across McCreary County. The tornado downed numerous trees in both Wayne and McCreary Counties. In Wayne County the tornado damaged a barn and several outbuildings, and overturned a vehicle. Before lifting the tornado hit Smithtown in McCreary County and damaged several mobile homes, houses and outbuildings. | |||||||||||
| 47.5 | 1965-04-25 | 2 | 37°12'N / 84°39'W | 37°16'N / 84°39'W | 4.60 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Pulaski |
| 47.8 | 2010-05-02 | 2 | 36°53'N / 84°43'W | 0 | 0 | 50K | 0K | Wayne | |||
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF2 tornado touched down 1 mile south of Betsey in the Meadow Creek area. The tornado had a path length of 1/4 of a mile and a path width of 100 yards. The estimated wind speeds associated with the tornado were 110 to 120 mph. The tornado downed numerous trees. The twister also blew part of the roof off of a brick home, causing the corner of an outside wall to collapse. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A multiple lines and clusters of intense showers and strong to severe thunderstorms brought a variety of severe weather to eastern Kentucky on May 2nd and 3rd. During the late morning and late afternoon hours of May 2nd, multiple thunderstorms formed ahead of an approaching frontal boundary. These storms eventually merged into a line that stretched across the entire forecast area late in the day on the 2nd. During the overnight hours a large area of intense showers and thunderstorms dumped anywhere from 2 to over 7 inches of rainfall. Flooding was the primary issue during the overnight and early morning hours of May 3rd. Some areas felt the affects of the flooding as late in the week as May 7th. | |||||||||||
| 47.9 | 1974-04-03 | 3 | 36°58'N / 84°45'W | 37°00'N / 84°42'W | 3.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 5 | 0K | 0 | Pulaski |
| 48.3 | 1996-04-20 | 2 | 37°34'N / 84°18'W | 37°34'N / 84°18'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 10 | 12.8M | 0 | Madison |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down on the on the East side of interstate 75 at the Ky 21 exit at 445 am est. There the tornado destroyed a Sunoco gasoline station and ripped the roof of a Howard Johnson's motel. The tornado moved East-Northeast across the South side of Berea to just East of Ky 25 before dissapating around 450 am est. The tornado damaged around 800 homes and 40 businesses. 35 houses were destroyed or eceived major damage, while 26 business were destroyed or received major damage. Home damage was estimated at 6.7 million dollars...while damage to businesses was estimated at 6.1 million dollars. There were only minor injuries reported with the most serious being a broken collar bone. The tornado caused a storage tank to topple on the Parker Seal plant which produces O-rings for the space shuttle mission. Also damaged were parts of Berea College. Most of the damage there was due to fallen and uprooted trees. The "Old Town" section of Berea, where craftspeople make and sell high quality furiniture and other goods saw several businesses badly damaged. The roof of the town's old train depot, now a tourist center, caved in. Many homes were reported as flattened. The Red Cross, Salvation Army and 130 members of the National Guard were sent to aid the cleanup effort. The National Weather Service storm survey the damage path revealed an F2 tornado embedded in straight-line winds. | |||||||||||
| 48.6 | 1961-06-09 | 3 | 37°40'N / 83°50'W | 37°40'N / 83°48'W | 1.30 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 38 | 2.5M | 0 | Estill |
| 48.7 | 1972-08-19 | 2 | 37°34'N / 84°19'W | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Madison | |||
| 48.7 | 1961-06-09 | 3 | 37°40'N / 83°48'W | 37°40'N / 83°46'W | 1.30 Miles | 150 Yards | 1 | 25 | 2.5M | 0 | Lee |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.