Frankfort Continues Recovery One Year After Historic Flooding

The Kentucky River crested at nearly record levels, causing extensive damage to homes, businesses, and government buildings.

Apr. 7, 2026 at 10:05pm

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A sweeping, atmospheric landscape painting depicting a flooded riverfront, with the swollen Kentucky River dominating the scene and dwarfing any remaining structures or landmarks in the distance.One year after historic flooding devastated Frankfort, the community continues to rebuild and prepare for future natural disasters.Frankfort Today

One year after historic flooding in Frankfort, Kentucky, where the Kentucky River crested at 48.3 feet, the city is still recovering from the extensive damage caused to homes, businesses, and government buildings near the riverfront. While downtown Frankfort looks much different now, the impact of the flood has not fully gone away, with the Franklin County Courthouse still undergoing repairs and Buffalo Trace Distillery working to implement new flood response measures.

Why it matters

The 2026 Frankfort flood was one of the largest the city has ever seen, highlighting the increasing threat of extreme weather events due to climate change. The recovery efforts showcase the resilience of the community, but also the long-term challenges faced by cities in rebuilding after natural disasters.

The details

The Kentucky River crested at 48.3 feet during last year's historic flooding, damaging homes, businesses, and government buildings near the riverfront. The Franklin County Courthouse is still not back to normal, with the clerk's office still under reconstruction and one courtroom unusable due to damaged files. At Buffalo Trace Distillery, the flood waters covered nearly the entire campus and filled some buildings to the roof, but the distillery was able to resume bottling and welcoming visitors back within a week through the resilience of its staff.

  • The Kentucky River crested at 48.3 feet on April 7, 2026.
  • The flooding occurred one year ago, in April 2026.

The players

Kristin Gonzalez

An attorney who notes that the Franklin County Courthouse is still not back to normal after the flood.

Tyler Adams

The general manager of Buffalo Trace Distillery, who says the distillery has changed its flood response plan and added waterproof fixtures and moved electronics to better protect the property during future flooding.

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What they’re saying

“Well, the clerk's office is still down to the studs. They've had to rebuild everything. One of the courtrooms we still can't use because all of the files that they had to try and save at, like, two in the morning are in Courtroom A, but the rest of it's in pretty good shape.”

— Kristin Gonzalez, Attorney

“It would've been easy just to be overwhelmed by it, but there wasn't time to just sit back and be like, 'Oh my gosh, what are we going to do?'”

— Tyler Adams, General Manager, Buffalo Trace Distillery

“This is the oldest continuously operating distillery in the country. It's survived, you know, tornadoes, floods, prohibition, the Great Depression, and so we really think about the resilience of the distillery and the people that work here and this community.”

— Tyler Adams, General Manager, Buffalo Trace Distillery

What’s next

Buffalo Trace Distillery has added waterproof fixtures and moved electronics to better protect the property during future flooding, showcasing the ongoing efforts to prepare for the increasing threat of extreme weather events.

The takeaway

The recovery efforts in Frankfort after the historic 2026 flood highlight the resilience of the community, but also the long-term challenges faced by cities in rebuilding after natural disasters. As climate change continues to drive more extreme weather, communities like Frankfort will need to find innovative ways to protect critical infrastructure and support residents in the face of these growing threats.