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Smith County, Kansas severe weather history spans 507 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 53.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #849 nationally and #82 in Kansas.
507
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$21.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Smith County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Smith County, Kansas severe weather history averages 7.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 128 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 93 events fall before 1990 and 414 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $12.4M 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 Smith County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 271 | 0 | $3.3M | 4 | 1955–2024 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 159 | 0 | $3.7M | 87 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 42 | 0 | $12.4M | F4 | 1955–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 15 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 1998–2019 |
| Flash Flood | 10 | 0 | $875K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $1.1M | 0 | 2006–2015 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2008 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
Smith County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
44 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 40 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985-05-10 | EF4 | 0 | 2 | 56.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-05-27 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 5.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 14.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-09-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 27.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-03-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 17.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-25 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1963-06-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Smith County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 28, 2013 | Tornado | LEBANON | 0 | 1 | $1.4M |
| May 25, 1965 | 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
This tornado affected two counties in north central Kansas, touching down north of Lebanon in Smith County and lifting north of Esbon in Jewell County. The maximum wind speed was estimated to be near 140 MPH, with a maximum path width of 1580 yards. Along its path, this tornado caused minor to major tree damage, overturned irrigation pivots, snapped power poles and damaged or destroyed grain bins and outbuildings. Four homesteads suffered damage, with the hardest hit locations approximately 3 miles northeast of Lebanon in Smith County. Two homes in this area were heavily damaged or destroyed, with one losing its entire second level. This location also completely lost grain bins, a large outbuilding and newly constructed garage. One person suffered minor injuries and was treated and released from an area hospital.
Wind gusts estimated at 80 MPH resulted in 17 power poles being damaged or destroyed in the area of the intersection of Highways 9 and 281 just east of Gaylord. Further south near Harlan along Highway 281, a couple grain bins were destroyed and a church suffered minor roof damage.
Strong thunderstorms dropped as much as 4 to 6 inches of heavy rain across the area. Rural roads in the area were affected by running water, as were a portion of Highway 78/128 near the border of Webster County, NE and Jewell County, KS and a portion of Highway 281 in Smith County, KS. Some of the highest measured rain totals included: 5.62 inches from nine miles north-northwest of Burr Oak, KS; 5.61 inches from three miles east of Guide Rock, NE; 5.60 inches from six miles north of Esbon; 4.84 inches from four miles north-northwest of Bostwick.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
3,552
Population (ACS)
$94K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND WILDFIRES | DR |
| Feb 17, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND STRAIGHT LINE WINDS | DR |
| 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 |
| Apr 26, 2013 | Snowstorm | SNOWSTORM | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Smith County, Kansas?
507 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $21.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Smith County?
Hail, with 271 recorded events — 53.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Smith County?
44 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 40 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Smith County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Smith County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Smith County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Smith County as very low risk, placing it in the 21 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Smith 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
- Sherman County 1,450
- Stafford County 703
- Sheridan County 593
- Stanton County 601
- Shawnee County 1,457
- Stevens County 472
Cite this page
“Smith County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/smith-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.