The National Weather Service (NWS) has released more information on the tornadoes that struck Kentucky over the weekend.
Storm surveys are ongoing in western Kentucky, the area hardest hit by tornadoes, while surveys in central Kentucky have mostly been completed.
The preliminary report indicates seven, not four, tornadoes impacted the commonwealth, according to the NWS.
The initial tornado entered Kentucky at 8:56 p.m. Friday night in Fulton County, in the Jackson Purchase. The tornado did not lift off the ground until reaching Muhlenberg County at 11:10 p.m. That tornado traveled 128 miles on the ground, surveyors said, moving at about 96 miles per hour.
(Gov. Andy Beshear relayed information earlier this week that the tornado traveled 227 miles on the ground in Kentucky. If that is proven to be true by further surveying, it would be the longest long-track tornado in history, breaking a 96-year-old record)
After leaving Fulton County, the tornado cut a path through Hickman, Graves, Marshall, Lyon, Caldwell, Hopkins, and Muhlenberg counties. The cities hard hit by the tornado were Dawson Springs, Mayfield and Bremen. Of course, all three cities suffered catastrophic damage and multiple deaths.
Wind speeds for the tornado were between 158 and 206 miles per hour, surveyors said. That places the tornado alternating between an EF3 (136 to 165 miles per hour) and EF5 (over 200 miles per hour).
The maximum width of the twister was about three-fourths of a mile, the NWS said.
The tornado that struck Bowling Green also touched down in Logan, Edmonson, Taylor, Green, and Marion counties. That tornado has been labeled an EF3.
The NWS says a second tornado touched down in Bowling Green. Wind speeds of the second twister were between 111 and 135 miles per hour, making the tornado an EF2. Those tornadoes caused calamitous damage and over a dozen deaths in Bowling Green alone.
Surveying work is still be completed in Warren, Hart and Green counties, officials said.
The tornado that struck Ohio, Grayson and Breckinridge counties has been categorized an EF3. That tornado struck hardest in Olaton, Hartford and Falls of Rough (in both Grayson and Breckinridge counties).
Officials said two twisters hit Boyle County, the first tornadoes to ever touch down in that county, the NWS said. The Danville-Boyle County Airport experienced considerable damage.
An EF1 (wind speeds between 86 and 110 miles per hour) tornado touched down in Spencer County, and an EFO tornado hit Monroe County, with wind speeds between 65 and 85 miles per hour.
(Aerial photo: Tornado damage in Falls of Rough, courtesy of Bob Jones)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
