LEXINGTON, Ky (LEX 18) Tornadoes and Oklahoma are synonymous in the Spring, so it’s surprising to hear that Oklahoma has yet to record a tornado this year. What’s also surprising is where Kentucky stakes up next to other states in Tornado Alley this year.
Oklahoma is in the middle of a tornado drought. The Sooner State has yet to record or report a tornado in 2018. The latest date for Oklahoma’s first tornado of the year was April 26. That record was set in 1962.
While Oklahoma is experiencing a tornado drought, Kentucky is looking more like Tornado Alley. Since January 1, twenty tornadoes have been confirmed across the Commonwealth. Locally, an EF-1 was confirmed in Garrard County during a round of severe storms in late February. The National Weather Service confirmed another EF-1 earlier this month in Boyle County.
So far this year, only Alabama has reported more tornadoes than Kentucky. It has also been a quiet season in other Tornado Alley states like Texas, Kansas, and Nebraska have reported a combined 11 tornadoes.
Of course, these stats are subject to change. Previous slow starts have quickly turned busy and violent in Oklahoma. Large-scale pattern and Storm Track changes will have to occur to spark the season for severe-prone areas across the country.
