Tornado of March 10, 1986

DEM Blogger

March 10, 2014

As we mention on our tornado information page, Fayette County is susceptible to tornadoes, with one touching down here every 13 years on average. Our most recent damaging strike was the EF-3 that struck the Masterson Station neighborhood in 2004, but today is the anniversary of a far more destructive tornado that ripped across the east side of Lexington in 1986. That F2 tornado damaged 845 homes, for a total of $11 million in damages (in 2011 dollars), and injured 20 people. The twister touched down near the intersection of Tates Creek Road and Man O’War Boulevard and tracked northeast, lifting as it approached Richmond Road at St. Joseph East Hospital. The image below is the National Weather Service’s record of the damage track, overlaid on a modern Google Maps street map. The NWS site has full event history, photos, and firsthand accounts from survivors.