Barber County, Kansas severe weather history spans 742 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 57.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #356 nationally and #35 in Kansas.
742
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$1.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Barber County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Barber County, Kansas severe weather history averages 10.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 264 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 57 events fall before 1990 and 685 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $1.0M 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 Barber County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 426 | 0 | $50K | 4.5 | 1964–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 215 | 0 | $1.0M | 81 | 1956–2026 |
| Tornado | 42 | 0 | $588K | F4 | 1954–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 32 | 0 | $0 | 4.05 | 1998–2025 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $20K | 0 | 2008–2017 |
| Flash Flood | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2019 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $120K | 0 | 1999–2019 |
Decade by decade
Barber County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
46 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 43 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-04-17 | EF4 | 0 | 2 | 19.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-05 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 33.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-06-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 32.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-11-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1959-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-04-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 10.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-05-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 12.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-04-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 12.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-05-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Barber County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 17, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jun 16, 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | STUBBS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 27, 2009 | Lightning | (P28)MEDICINE LODGE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Microburst caused extensive damage to the Lake Arrowhead resort area. Several boat docks were destroyed. Part of a roof was taken off a cabin/house. A Garage under construction was completely destroyed. Damage was about 3 miles wide long starting near the resort and extending south and southwest. The length of the damage area was unknown due to range land extending beyond the resort. There were also six, very large-mature cottonwood trees uprooted with heavy damage to the remainder of the trees in the area.
A 14 year old male was struck and severely injured by a lightning bolt. He was going outside where some tents were pitch. CPR had to be performed as he had not pulse or respiration when rescuers reached him. Miraculously he made a full recovery after about 2 weeks in the hospital.
Widespread wind damage from Hardtner to east of Kiowa. One tree was blown down in Kiowa and many limbs of 3 to 4 inches in diameter were blown down. Power was out for 12 hours. Twenty-five power poles were blown down and extensive wheat damage was done by the wind and hail.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
4,069
Population (ACS)
$97K
Median home value
19
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 2025 | 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 20, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING,LANDSLIDES,AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Feb 25, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 19, 2018 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Medicine Lodge 150
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Barber County, Kansas?
742 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $1.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Barber County?
Hail, with 426 recorded events — 57.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Barber County?
46 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 43 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Barber County?
19 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Barber County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Barber County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Barber County as very low risk, placing it in the 40 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Barber 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
- Atchison County 270
- Barton County 1,099
- Anderson County 407
- Bourbon County 446
- Allen County 438
- Brown County 460
Cite this page
“Barber County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/barber-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.