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Miami County, Kansas severe weather history spans 412 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 45.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,207 nationally and #98 in Kansas.
412
Recorded events
6
Direct deaths
31
Direct injuries
$23.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Miami County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Miami County, Kansas severe weather history averages 6.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 114 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 63 events fall before 1990 and 349 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Miami County, Kansas record is tornado, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $16.0M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Miami County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 187 | 0 | $855K | 4.5 | 1958–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 162 | 0 | $203K | 75 | 1960–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 27 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2023 |
| Tornado | 22 | 4 | $6.4M | F5 | 1957–2026 |
| Flood | 9 | 1 | $16.0M | 0 | 1996–2018 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $358K | 0 | 1996–2011 |
Decade by decade
Miami County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
24 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 21 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-05-20 | EF5 | 44 | 207 | 69.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1968-05-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-04-15 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 8.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-05-11 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 11.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-04-04 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 18.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-04-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-05-27 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 27.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1954-03-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-09-18 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 9.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Miami County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 1957 | Tornado | 4 | 20 | $2.5M | |
| Oct 10, 2018 | Flood | PAOLA | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 22, 2017 | Flash Flood | NEW LANCASTER | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| May 17, 1995 | Tornado | Beagle to | 0 | 5 | $500K |
| Apr 16, 1960 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Sep 19, 2015 | Tornado | PAOLA MAJESKI ARPT | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 21, 1996 | Lightning | PAOLA | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Feb 12, 1984 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
From FOX 4 Kansas City: Miami County Sheriff���s Office confirmed to FOX4 that a missing 78-year-old woman has been found dead. Authorities found Hazel Phillips inside her vehicle near Hospital Drive south of 327th Street Friday morning. According to deputies, someone noticed the roof of a silver car showing after flood waters in the area receded and alerted authorities. Osawatomie Fire Department pulled the car from the water and determined it belonged to Phillips. Phillips was still inside. Phillips��� family reported her missing Wednesday. They said they last spoke to her Tuesday night when she told them she was going to Drexel, Missouri, on Wednesday morning. ||https://fox4kc.com/2018/10/12/missing-78-year-old-miami-county-woman-found-dead-in-vehicle-pulled-from-flood-waters/ .
The Marais Des Cygnes River at Osawatomie experienced the second highest|flood crest on record. The crest was at 49.19 feet on July 1st at 20:27|CST, or 21.19 feet above flood stage. Numerous homes and businesses suffered total loss, or severe damage.
Severe thunderstorms dropped dime-size hail and knocked down large tree limbs in the Hillsdale area. The storm continued east to Louisburg where it dropped hail up to golf ball size. The hail punched fist-sized holes in vinyl siding and smashed windows on a few homes. Just north of town, the hail covered the ground several inches deep. A car dealership had damage to nearly every car on the lot, and five sheriff's department vehicles were damaged. Winds knocked down tree limbs and power lines, and nearly 1200 customers were without power.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
34,938
Population (ACS)
$288K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 20, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING,LANDSLIDES,AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Jul 20, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 10, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Mar 9, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Miami County, Kansas?
412 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 6 direct deaths and $23.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Miami County?
Hail, with 187 recorded events — 45.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Miami County?
24 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 21 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Miami County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Miami County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Miami County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Miami County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 43 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Miami County, Kansas severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Meade County 747
- Mitchell County 578
- Marshall County 634
- Montgomery County 796
- Marion County 709
- Morris County 483
Cite this page
“Miami County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/miami-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.