States › Kentucky › Mercer County

Mercer County, Kentucky

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 21167 · 22,850 residents (2021) · 249 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 26Tornado · 15Flood · 29Wind · 139Winter · 31

Mercer County within Kentucky. Dots: HailTornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Mercer County, Kentucky, has 249 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950, most of them damaging wind.

That is 100.0 events per 100 square miles, below the Kentucky figure of 140.0, and 109.0 per 10,000 residents against 122.6 statewide.

8 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 2 deaths and 18 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $24M.

FEMA has designated the county in 26 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides (major disaster, 1 Sep 2026).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 187 claims since 1978, of which 177 were paid, totalling $5.0M (about $28K per paid claim). FEMA counts 73 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Very Low" and its expected annual loss as "Very Low" ($12M a year across 18 hazards).

6 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 0 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

8events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

249events since 19502 deaths, 18 injuries recorded

26disaster declarationslast 1 Sep 2026

187NFIP flood claims$5.0M paid

Compared with Kentucky and the United States

Measure	Mercer County	Kentucky	US
Recorded events since 1950	249	55,285	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	100.0	140.0	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	109.0	122.6	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	8	1,254	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	2	599	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$24M	$3.5B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	8.2	6.2	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$28K	$22K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	47.9	37.3	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Wind: 1

Hail: 2Tornado: 2Wind: 4

Hail: 1Tornado: 1Wind: 17

Hail: 3Tornado: 6Flood: 7Wind: 20Winter: 4Lightning: 1

Hail: 10Tornado: 3Flood: 3Wind: 38Winter: 6Lightning: 2

Hail: 3Tornado: 1Flood: 15Wind: 36Winter: 12Cold: 4Other: 1

Hail: 7Tornado: 2Flood: 4Wind: 23Winter: 9Cold: 1

01950s11960s81970s191980s411990s622000s722010s462020s

Recorded events in Mercer County by decade and hazard group. HailTornadoFloodWindWinterColdLightningOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 141 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 79 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Wind139

Winter31

Flood29

Hail26

Tornado15

Cold5

Lightning3

Other1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	139	1	0.6%	detail
■ Winter	31	—	0.4%	detail
■ Flood	29	—	0.3%	detail
■ Hail	26	—	0.4%	detail
■ Tornado	15	1	1.0%	detail
■ Cold	5	—	0.2%
■ Lightning	3	—	1.3%
■ Other	1	—	0.1%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
11 May 2003	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$15M	—	1	8	County
26 May 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	85 mph	—	—	1	—	County
18 May 1995	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$5.0M	—	—	8	County
2 Jul 1980	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	1	County
24 Nov 2014	Strong Wind	Wind	52 mph	$18K	—	—	1	Forecast zone
6 Feb 2008	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$1.0M	—	—	—	County
15 Feb 2003	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$800K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
14 Nov 1993	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$500K	—	—	—	County
2 Mar 1997	Flood	Flood	—	$400K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
21 Apr 1972	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	—	County
3 Apr 1974	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	—	County
5 May 1996	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	69 mph	$200K	—	—	—	County
29 Jan 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	81 mph	$200K	—	—	—	County
2 May 2010	Flood	Flood	—	$100K	—	—	—	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
1 Sep 2026	DR-4937	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Public assistance
24 Jan 2026	EM-3633	Emergency	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
24 Apr 2025	DR-4864	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Individual assistance, Public assistance
3 Apr 2025	EM-3626	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
16 Feb 2025	EM-3624	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, And Landslides	Public assistance
10 Apr 2023	DR-4702	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Public assistance
31 Mar 2021	DR-4592	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storms, Landslides, And Mudslides	Public assistance
28 Mar 2020	DR-4497	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3469	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
4 May 2011	DR-1976	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
11 May 2010	DR-1912	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, And Tornadoes	Individual assistance
5 Feb 2009	DR-1818	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm And Flooding	Public assistance
28 Jan 2009	EM-3302	Emergency	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
21 Feb 2008	DR-1746	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And	Individual assistance, Public assistance
10 Sep 2005	EM-3231	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina	Public assistance
3 Jun 2003	DR-1471	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud And Rock Slides, And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
14 Mar 2003	DR-1454	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Ice And Snow Storms, Heavy Rain, Flooding, Tornadoes, And Mud And	Public assistance
3 Mar 1998	DR-1207	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
4 Mar 1997	DR-1163	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storm, Flooding, And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Jan 1996	DR-1089	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Blizzard Of 96	Public assistance
13 Jun 1995	DR-1055	Major disaster	Tornado	Tornadoes, Severe Winds, Hail	Individual assistance
16 Mar 1994	DR-1018	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Severe Weather, Freezing Rain, Sleet, Snw	Public assistance
16 Mar 1993	EM-3104	Emergency	Snowstorm	Severe Snowfall & Winter Storm	Public assistance
24 Feb 1989	DR-821	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
12 Dec 1978	DR-568	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
4 Apr 1974	DR-420	Major disaster	Tornado	Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Mercer County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 1978187

Paid claims177

Total paid$5.0M

Average paid claim$28K

Repetitive-loss properties227 severe

Residential policies in force730.7% of 10,474 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2026	5	5	$89,495	$17,899
2025	23	23	$1,393,280	$60,577
2024	1	1	$13,023	$13,023
2023	1	1	$10,292	$10,292
2021	3	3	$70,205	$23,402
2018	2	1	$7,954	$7,954
2015	2	2	$23,425	$11,713
2013	2	1	$1,374	$1,374
2011	1	1	$2,250	$2,250
2010	35	33	$1,688,915	$51,179
2003	4	4	$62,555	$15,639
2002	11	11	$203,464	$18,497
1997	28	26	$596,454	$22,941
1994	12	9	$199,766	$22,196
1993	1	1	$7,500	$7,500
1992	1	1	$3,685	$3,685
1991	1	1	$10,920	$10,920
1990	4	4	$25,700	$6,425
1989	24	24	$366,522	$15,272
1988	1	0	$0	—
1984	12	12	$61,017	$5,085
1982	1	1	$267	$267
1979	3	3	$1,233	$411
1978	9	9	$189,839	$21,093

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskVery Lowscore 41.4 of 100

Expected annual loss$12MVery Low

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Moderate

Community resilienceRelatively High

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Low	$6,775,481
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$2,285,886
Strong wind	Relatively Moderate	$1,048,020
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$653,073
Earthquake	Very Low	$389,865
Hail	Relatively Low	$345,947
Lightning	Relatively Low	$213,600
Ice storm	Relatively Moderate	$140,299
Heat wave	Very Low	$103,319
Winter weather	Relatively Low	$77,585
Drought	Very Low	$17,626
Hurricane	Very Low	$17,062
Wildfire	Very Low	$3,298
Landslide	Very Low	$309

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

Tracks within 100 miles6

Tracks within 50 miles1

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Helene	2024	70 mi	46 mph
Opal	1995	89 mi	46 mph
Frederic	1979	60 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	91 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1892	76 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1888	15 mi	52 mph

HURDAT2 best-track positions at tropical-storm strength (34 kt) or more, measured from the county's Census centre point; through the 2025 season. Distance from a track is not the same as the extent of the storm's wind, rain or surge.

ZIP codes with flood claims

40330 165
40310 25

ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Mercer County, KY?

NCEI records 26 hail events in Mercer County since 1950, in 15 different years; that is about 0.3 recorded events a year. 6 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Mercer County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 15 tornadoes in Mercer County since 1950, 5 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 1.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Mercer County?

1 Sep 2026: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides, a major disaster declaration for severe storm. The county appears in 26 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Mercer County, and how much was paid?

187 NFIP claims since 1978, 177 of them paid, for $5.0M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Mercer County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Very Low" for overall risk, "Very Low" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Moderate" for social vulnerability and "Relatively High" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Mercer County compare with the rest of Kentucky?

100.0 recorded events per 100 square miles against 140.0 statewide, and 8.2 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 6.2. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.