NWS confirms Sunday tornado in Christian County

The tornado had maximum wind speeds of 115 mph. It began in Trigg County and traveled 19.1 miles.

The Paducah office of the National Weather Service confirmed Thursday afternoon that an EF-2 tornado traveled 19.1 miles Sunday morning through parts of Trigg and Christian counties. 

The tornado started at 8:59 a.m. near Kentucky 525 southeast of Cadiz, according to the NWS report. It traveled east with peak wind speeds of 115 mph, crossing the county line at PeeDee, then crossing Interstate 24, the Pennyrile Parkway and Fort Campbell Boulevard near the Silo Event Center at John Rives Road. 

tornado path graphic for christian and trigg counties
A National Weather Service map shows the path of an EF-2 tornado on Sunday, May 26, that traveled from southeast of Cadiz in Trigg County to just northwest of Pembroke in Christian County.

From there, the tornado continued east and ended at 9:14 a.m. just northwest of Pembroke.

The tornado, with a maximum width of 250 yards, snapped and uprooted numerous trees, the report states. It also brought down utility poles, including dozens on Fort Campbell Boulevard between Lovers Lane and I-24. Two homes were “directly impacted by tornadic winds” and had roof damage, the NWS reported. Several farm buildings were damaged. 

There were no injuries reported in the tornado. 

It was one of 12 tornadoes on Sunday in Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky and Indiana identified by officials in the Paducah office. 

tornado damage in christian county
Trees cover a lawn on John Rives Road at or near the path of an EF-2 tornado that traveled east through southern Christian County shortly after 9 a.m. Sunday, May 26. (Hoptown Chronicle photo by Jennifer P. Brown)

Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. She spent 30 years as a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition.