A tragic year for weather: Kentuckians reeling from three deadly storms in 2025

Tornadoes and strong storms that ripped through southern Kentucky on Friday night have killed at least 18 people, Gov. Andy Beshear said Saturday.

First responders and those on the ground in hard-hit Laurel and Pulaski counties cautioned early Saturday morning that the number of deaths could climb as wreckage from the storm is cleared.

It’s been a deadly year for extreme weather in Kentucky.

Prior to Friday night storms, at least 29 people —including two children —were killed during flooding in February and April.

Combined, at least 47 have died in the commonwealth so far this year because of punishing storm systems that have wreaked havoc across Kentucky.

February snow and flooding

In February, significant rain fall and snow brought heavy flooding to multiple areas of the commonwealth, resulting in at least 22 deaths. All 120 counties reported flooding during that time period.

Some of the deaths from that storm included:

• A mother and her 7-year-old child who died after they were swept away by floodwaters in Hart County.
• An elderly man who died after his vehicle was carried away by floodwaters in Clay County.
• Three men lost their lives in Pike County due to flooding.
• Additional deaths occurred in Washington, Hardin, Floyd, and Nelson counties.
• Two individuals in Jefferson County, believed to be homeless, died from hypothermia following the flooding.

Severe flooding in April

Just two months later, the state was hit by another round of heavy flooding on April 2-6, resulting in multiple areas flooding near the state’s rivers, including severe flooding in downtown Frankfort.

The Kentucky River in Frankfort reached 48.27 feet, nearly surpassing the record set in 1978. Seven deaths were reported during that bout of severe flooding including:

• 9-year-old Gabriel Andrews who was swept away in flood waters while walking to his school bus stop
• A Nelson County woman who was swept away in floodwaters
• Additional deaths were reported in Trigg, Bullitt and McCracken counties

This story was originally published May 17, 2025 at 10:51 AM.

Beth Musgrave

Lexington Herald-Leader

Beth Musgrave has covered government and politics for the Herald-Leader for more than a decade. A graduate of Northwestern University, she has worked as a reporter in Kentucky, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois and Washington D.C. Support my work with a digital subscription