6 confirmed tornadoes throughout state April 5

Published 1:30 pm Tuesday, April 11, 2023

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The National Weather Service wrapped up their surveys over the weekend of damage from the severe weather that struck April 5, and confirmed six tornadoes in western and central Kentucky.

The NWS Paducah office says there was an EF-1 tornado, on the scale which goes from EF-0 to EF-5 with EF-5 being the strongest, in Ballard County near the Gage community.  It touched down shortly before 1:30 p.m. (CT) and was on the ground for about a half-mile, with a maximum width of 25 yards and top winds of 95 miles per hour.  The most severe damage was to a home along Kentucky-286, 10 miles east of Wickliffe.  It suffered significant shingle, gutter, and fascia damage as well as damage to an air conditioning unit and an attached porch.

They also confirmed an EF-0 tornado northwest of Murray in Calloway County.  It was on the ground a little over five miles, starting around 2 p.m. (CT).  It had a maximum width of 50 yards, and top winds of 85 mph.  Several homes had shingle damage, and one garage slid off its foundation.  Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted.  There was also roof damage and windows blown in at a commercial site.

The NWS office in Louisville says they determined there were three tornadoes in Jefferson County, all of which were of EF-1 strength and struck around 5 p.m. (ET).

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One hit the Pleasure Ridge Park area in southwest Jefferson County.  Its path was just over ¾ mile long, and 100 yards wide, with peak winds of 110 mph.  while there were numerous reports of roof damage and powerlines down, the most substantial damage was at an apartment complex where the roof was torn off, forcing 50 people to seek other housing.  A photo of that damage accompanies this story.

Two more crisscrossed in the Watterson Park neighborhood, just south of the Watterson Expressway, between Poplar Level and Bardstown Roads.  They both had paths of less than a mile, with top winds around 95 mph and were 75-100 yards wide.  Several buildings had wall damage, and numerous trees were uprooted.

Another tornado struck Meade County near the Garrett community, about 15 minutes before the Jefferson County ones.  It had a path that was 2 ½ miles long, and 100 yards wide, with top winds of 100 mph.  Several tractor-trailers were blown over, as was a camper, along with tree damage.  Several car ports were also destroyed.

While there were reports of one death in Jefferson County, the NWS has not confirmed that.