Rawlins County, Kansas severe weather history spans 844 recorded events between 1950 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 56.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #253 nationally and #24 in Kansas.
844
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$2.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Rawlins County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Rawlins County, Kansas severe weather history averages 11.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 252 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 72 events fall before 1990 and 772 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $790K in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Rawlins County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 480 | 0 | $356K | 4 | 1955–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 273 | 0 | $674K | 87 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 52 | 0 | $790K | F3 | 1950–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 22 | 0 | $173K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Lightning | 7 | 0 | $104K | 0 | 2008–2019 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2007–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Rawlins County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
54 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 54 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971-10-17 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1951-05-14 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1951-05-20 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-04-27 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-07-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-07-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1951-08-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-05-26 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Rawlins County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 15, 1951 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $3K | |
| Jun 23, 2008 | Lightning | ATWOOD | 0 | 2 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Tornado developed near Roads C, 19 and dissipated near Roads M, 22 in Rawlins county. This was a high end EF1 tornado producing significant damage to a home, removing the roof and destroying many outbuildings, grain bins and trees near Roads C, 19. Other farms were affected with outbuilding and irrigation system damage.
Torrential rainfall brought 5-6 inches of precipitation in several hours throughout the eastern half of Rawlins county, resulting in culverts and roads washed out and bridge damage in several locations. Railroad tracks just south of Herndon on Hwy 117 suffered damage, and Ash and Beaver Creeks were reported out of their banks near Herndon.
An intense microburst produced damage in the town of McDonald. Debris was blown mainly east to east-southeast. Four power poles were snapped resulting in power outages to McDonald and Bird City. A trailer home was blown over and destroyed. A large garage/storage building was destroyed. Numerous tree limbs down and minor roof damage occurred.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
2,516
Population (ACS)
$104K
Median home value
10
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 26, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 29, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 16, 2017 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 9, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Atwood 287
- Herndon 131
- Mc Donald 115
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Rawlins County, Kansas?
844 events are on record between 1950 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $2.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Rawlins County?
Hail, with 480 recorded events — 56.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Rawlins County?
54 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 54 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Rawlins County?
10 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Rawlins County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Rawlins County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Rawlins County as very low risk, placing it in the 5 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Rawlins 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
- Pratt County 1,000
- Reno County 1,397
- Pottawatomie County 740
- Republic County 646
- Phillips County 585
- Rice County 645
Cite this page
“Rawlins County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/rawlins-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.