Strong Wind — Hardin, Kentucky

2023-01-19 · Hardin, Kentucky

Event narrative

A restaurant sign fell on top of a vehicle in Elizabethtown, causing total destruction of the vehicle. Three people were inside the vehicle when the sign fell on it, with two fatalities and one injury occurring as a result of the incident.

Wider weather episode

During the late morning and afternoon hours on January 19th, a strong low pressure system and attendant cold front passed through the Ohio Valley. Behind the cold front, a strong low-level pressure and height gradient promoted the development of 50 knot winds a few thousand feet off the ground. Dry air working in behind the front also allowed for mostly sunny skies, which promoted greater low-level mixing, facilitating downward momentum transfer. Widespread gusts of greater than 40 miles per hour were observed, with isolated pockets of wind damage occurring across central Kentucky.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1078472. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.