This story has been updated with additional details from the Saturday press conference.
With strong storms rolling through the Louisville area and risks of flooding, officials announced on Saturday that Thunder Over Louisville, the Kentucky Derby Festival‘s marquee event set for April 12, has been canceled.
“This weather event and flooding is like nothing we’ve faced before, especially this close to Thunder,” Matt Gibson, Kentucky Derby Festival President & CEO, said in a news release. “While we’d love to bring everyone together on Saturday to watch one of the best air shows and fireworks shows in the country, we know it’s not logistically possible and would not be safe to do so.”
The theme for the Kentucky Derby Festival’s 36th Thunder Over Louisville was supposed to be “Happy Thunder: It’s Glow Time!”
Across the commonwealth, communities were facing days of rain leading to historic levels of flooding. The storm, deemed a “a life-threatening situation,” had at least two confirmed fatalities in Kentucky as of Saturday morning and water rescues in some areas.
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For Louisville and communities in Southern Indiana just across the Ohio River, this storm system will rival the February 2018 flooding, one of the worst in recent history.
By noon on Saturday, the Ohio River had already risen five feet in 24 hours with Mayor Craig Greenberg saying the city is expecting to see one of the “top 10 flooding events in our recorded history” by the time the system concludes.
The Ohio River is expected to crest at 35.6 feet by Wednesday morning, according to data collected by the National Weather Service at a gauge at the Ohio River at McAlpine Upper. During the 2018 flooding the river reached a crest of 35.72 feet.
The flood waters create multiple challenges for the production of the show, according to the release from KDF.
“Rising water will prevent crews from accessing the barges to install the fireworks and keep the barges from being moved and placed in their traditional spots on either side of the bridge for the show. The height and speed of the river will not allow the Festival to have a center marker, which is critical to have an air show. The location needed for staging the drone show will also be inaccessible,” the press release states.
Officials added that it’s not possible to move Thunder Over Louisville to a new date because it “is such a large-scale event and massive logistical undertaking involving partners at local, state and federal levels,” according to the release.
Thunder Over Louisville, the nation’s largest annual fireworks event and one of the top five air shows in the country, was canceled once before, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Thunder Over Louisville will return on April 18, 2026.
More: Kentucky weather updates: NKY towns evacuating, Nelson death reported, more rain expected
“I want to emphasize, the Kentucky Derby Festival is not canceled. We still have a full schedule of more than 70 events planned leading up to the first Saturday in May, including Friday’s They’re Off! Luncheon. Our mission is to bring the community together in celebration and that is still our plan,” Gibson said in the release.
Information for those who purchased tickets to the Festival’s Thunder Over Louisville VIP Rooftop Party will be forthcoming.
The first official Thunder Over Louisville took place in 1991. The year prior, the “opening ceremonies” were hosted at then Cardinal Stadium to kick off the celebration for the Kentucky Derby. Over time, the event has evolved into one of the nation’s best fireworks displays and air shows and the official community kick off for the two weeks of the Kentucky Derby Festival’s 70 plus events leading up to the Kentucky Derby.
The 2025 Kentucky Derby will be held at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 3.
This story will update.
Reporters Kirby Adams and Marina Johnson contributed to this report. Contact business reporter Olivia Evans at [email protected] or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter at @oliviamevans_.
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