Kentucky
Nighttime tornados in Kentucky have been deadly
Bill Burton: It’s time for us to take a look at the Science Behind the Forecast as I am joined by WAVE 3 meteorologist Tawana Andrew. Good morning, Tawana.
Tawana Andrew: Good morning. And today’s topic is really focused in on preparing for tornadoes, especially as we get closer to the core of the severe weather season.
BB: The tornado season is right around the corner, and unfortunately, the U.S. leads the world in tornadoes. It’s not a category you want to lead in, but we do. What do we need to know about them?
TA: Well, in terms of how many tornadoes we see in the U.S. on average, we see around 1,200 twisters per year. That’s our average.
The next country in that list is Canada, and they see on average around 60 tornadoes a year. So it is a big difference, and our geography plays a big role in why we see so many tornadoes, because you have the cold dry Canadian air meeting up with the Gulf’s warm, humid air right over what we call Tornado Alley, and that interaction creates atmospheric instability and creates the perfect conditions for us to see severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. So for tornadoes to form, you need a couple of things. You need warm, moist air near the ground, cool, drier air, about 10,000 to 30,000 ft in altitude, and you also need wind shear, which is the change in wind speed and direction with altitude. And the topography and geography of the United States helps with all of those things. There was a study that came out in 2024 that highlighted the impact of terrain. Hundreds of miles upwind of tornado formation downstream and it noted that the fact that we have that smooth flat expanse all the way from the Gulf straight on through to the plains helps to contribute to tornado potential because there’s nothing stopping the wind and really helping the wind to slow down in any of that space since it’s so flat.
BB: That makes sense.
TA: Plus you have, of course, the moisture coming off of the Gulf and in the Great Plains in the Mississippi River Valley, you also have a lot of the crops and vegetation that also puts off moisture and that helps to fuel a lot of the severe thunderstorms and tornadic storms that we see. Something else that contributes to the amount of tornado fatalities that we see in the U.S., the couple of things, of course, the topography, which we just touched on, and the time of day. That plays a big role as well.
A tornado, of course, can form at any time of the day, but specifically, we see them more often between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m., which if you think about it, is also the warmest part of the day. So you have all that fuel at that point as well. Some numbers that I was looking into when I was diving into the data, I found that, of course, a lot of us know that Texas and Kansas have the highest number of tornadoes in the country. Around 135 tornadoes are seen yearly in Texas, but Alabama actually has the highest annual tornado fatalities, averaging around 14 per year. In the past decade, however, Kentucky has seen the highest number of tornado fatalities in the country, with 75 deaths in between 2014 and 2023. 57 of those 75 were just from that long track tornado that hit Mayfield and that that was a nighttime tornado.
BB: Yeah, we will all remember December 2021.
TA: Which is why you’ll always hear me say have multiple ways to get alerts. Don’t just rely on your phone, have the TV, a weather radio, whatever you need to make sure that you can get alerts day and night as we get further into the severe weather season.
BB: Yeah, when you’re sleeping, it’s, it just becomes so much more dangerous. You can’t be prepared at that point, of course, but now we have a better understanding of why the US gets as many tornadoes as it does, and we have a better understanding of it thanks to this edition of Science Behind the Forecast with WAVE 3 meteorologist Tawana Andrew. Thanks for the knowledge, Tawana.
TA: Of course.
This transcript was edited for clarity.
Kentucky
Fayette County school board chair, KEA sue to block Kentucky law that would oust current members
LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX NEWS) — Fayette County Board of Education Chair Tyler Murphy and the Kentucky Education Association have filed a lawsuit challenging a newly enacted Kentucky law that would overhaul the governance structure of Fayette County Public Schools and force all current board members out of office at the end of 2026.
The lawsuit names the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the Fayette County Board of Elections and Fayette County election officials as defendants.
At the center of the legal challenge is Senate Bill 4, which lawmakers passed over Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto earlier this year.
Under the law, the seven-member Fayette County Board of Education would be reduced to five district-based seats, the lawsuit reads. The terms of all current board members would end Dec. 31, 2026, and new elections would be held for the restructured board.
The lawsuit argues the law is unconstitutional and asks the court to block its implementation, including any election-related actions tied to the measure.
Court filings contend the legislation unlawfully targets a single school district and interferes with the terms of duly elected local officials. Plaintiffs also argue the law violates provisions of the Kentucky Constitution governing local elections and public officeholders.
Attorneys included exhibits detailing criticism of Murphy and Fayette County Public Schools leadership from state lawmakers, including a petition seeking Murphy’s removal and a letter from state Sen. Chris McDaniel calling for the resignations of Murphy and Superintendent Demetrus Liggins.
The lawsuit seeks a declaration that the law is invalid and requests expedited review from the court due to upcoming election deadlines.
No hearing date had been announced as of Wednesday.
The lawsuit comes as Fayette County Public Schools continues to face scrutiny over budgeting decisions, district spending and governance issues that have drawn attention from state lawmakers over the past year.
In a statement, Representative Matt Lockett criticized Murphy as he highlighted what he stated are district failures under Murphy.
“This lawsuit is nothing more than an attempt to distract from the disaster that Fayette County Public Schools is under Tyler Murphy’s leadership as board chair. Under his watch, the district has spiraled into a financial crisis so severe that it is now seeking to borrow up to $110 million simply to keep the lights on and make it through the school year. Students have been failed. Families have been failed. Teachers and staff have been failed. Taxpayers have been failed. And the Lexington community has been left paying the price for years of mismanagement and poor oversight.
Rather than taking responsibility for the district’s financial failures and focusing on what is best for students, he has chosen to file a lawsuit challenging a law that was duly passed by the General Assembly and enacted through the constitutional process. He may be emboldened by recent rulings by activist judges, but there are no legitimate grounds for overturning a duly enacted statute simply because you can’t do the right thing by this community. The General Assembly has both the authority and the responsibility to establish standards for public offices and governance structures across the Commonwealth.
At a time when Fayette County schools are facing unprecedented financial turmoil, the focus should be on accountability, transparency, and fixing the problems that have brought the district to this point. The only filing Fayette County taxpayers should be expecting from Mr. Murphy is his resignation.”
LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has been causing fear around the world, and a Lexington doctor is preparing in the event a case is found in Kentucky.
According to the CDC, there have been 49 deaths and over 300 confirmed cases across the two countries, with more suspected cases still being investigated.
UK Healthcare is working to become a Level 2 Special Pathogen Treatment Center through the National Special Pathogen System, which would allow the facility to treat Ebola patients in-house.
Dr. Nicholas Van Sickels, an infectious disease physician at UK Healthcare, said the current outbreak is serious, but Kentucky residents are not at significant risk.
“Ebola scares people just because of the mortality, the death rate, associated with it and some of the long term consequences when you do survive. Fortunately, the strain that we’re seeing in Eastern (Democratic Republic of Congo) is thought to be not as deadly, but either way it’s a very serious disease. It carries a lot of stigma and fear,” Van Sickels said.
Here in Kentucky, however, is a very safe environment, Dr. Van Sickels said.
Currently, Dr. Van Sickels says UK Healthcare operates as an assessment hospital, meaning it can evaluate patients with symptoms who have traveled to regions with active outbreaks, coordinate testing with the state, and transfer patients to higher-level care centers if needed.
Once the Level 2 designation is complete, UK Healthcare will be the only facility in Kentucky with that capability.
“We’re the only facility in Kentucky that is able to have a level 2 designation once we finish this grant award and get approved,” Dr. Van Sickels said.
In January 2026, UK Healthcare received a grant from the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC), the governing body of the National Special Pathogen System.
“It’s approximately half a million dollars to transform our institution,” Van Sickels said.
The funding has been used to run simulation drills in coordination with Lexington Fire, EMS, and the state health department. The grant also enabled UK Healthcare to upgrade its protective outerwear, with all seam points covered to provide additional protection. Ebola is transmitted through bodily fluids.
During a recent site visit and simulation, evaluators identified vulnerabilities in the facility’s previous protective suits.
“When we had our site visit and had our stimulation, for example, they said that the seams that we had on our old suits, you could pull and stretch, and that they were rather porous,” Van Sickels said.
Van Sickels had been working on the preparedness project since the beginning of the year.
Citing lessons learned from the 2014 West Africa Ebola epidemic, which spread to the U.S. and resulted in 4 cases and 1 death.
“Ebola 2014 taught a lot of hospitals in the US about high consequence infections, established what is now NETEC, the educating body for our country, uh, about high consequence pathogens,” Van Sickels said.
“We’re constantly wanting to push preparedness, uh, because that is the key to success in evading further outbreaks,” Van Sickels said.
UK Healthcare expects to complete its Level 2 Special Pathogen Treatment Center designation by the end of summer.
The Kentucky Wildcats have had some fits with West Virginia over the past few days, as the baseball team was sent home by the Mountaineers on Monday night. Now, they have flipped a Wildcat commit.
Bryian Duncan Jr., a Cario, Georgia native, committed to the Wildcats in March and has now flipped to West Virginia. The 3-star running back had a recent visit to Morgantown, then announced his commitment to the Mountaineers.
Duncan, a 5-foot-9 player who can play out wide and at running back, is the No. 60-ranked ATH in the nation and the No. 89 player in Georgia, according to 247 Sports. He’ll play in the Big 12 with the Mountaineers, giving himself a good opportunity to become a true gadget guy with legit speed.
This isn’t a big disappointment for the Wildcats, as they’ll collect nearly 10 commitments as the summer rolls on and already have a pretty loaded RB room for the class of 2027. Kelsey Gerald and Mason Ball are two tailbacks who have already pledged their commitment to the program.
Head coach Will Stein and Co. have been stellar on the recruiting trail as they have the 13th-best class overall and the fourth-ranked class in the SEC, according to 247 Sports. Expect the Cats to pick up a few more commits here soon and rise in the rankings.
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