Ellis County, Kansas severe weather history spans 1,026 recorded events between 1951 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 52.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #131 nationally and #13 in Kansas.
1,026
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$9.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Ellis County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Ellis County, Kansas severe weather history averages 13.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 348 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 107 events fall before 1990 and 919 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Ellis County, Kansas record is lightning, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $5.1M 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 Ellis County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 539 | 0 | $2.2M | 4 | 1955–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 306 | 0 | $2.2M | 100 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 66 | 0 | $5.1M | F3 | 1951–2021 |
| Heavy Rain | 59 | 0 | $0 | 340 | 2004–2021 |
| Flash Flood | 27 | 0 | $105K | 0 | 1998–2021 |
| Flood | 17 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2021 |
| Lightning | 7 | 1 | $5K | 0 | 1997–2010 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2021 |
Decade by decade
Ellis County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
69 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 60 touched down inside it and 9 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-10-16 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 26.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1990-04-25 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 37.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1980-10-16 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-05-13 | EF3 | 0 | 5 | 140.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-08-31 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 8.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-10-11 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 8.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-05-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2001-04-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 40.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1974-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 17.7 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Ellis County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 22, 1999 | Lightning | PFEIFER | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 10, 2003 | Lightning | HAYS | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 6, 1998 | Tornado | SCHOENCHEN | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Apr 11, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| May 24, 2008 | Tornado | ELLIS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 8, 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | HAYS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Oct 16, 1998 | Tornado | YOCEMENTO | 0 | 1 | $1.2M |
| Jul 13, 1986 | Hail | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
An eleven year old girl was killed and a twelve year old girl was injured from a lightning bolt. The girls were in the yard behind the house near their horses, when the lightning strike occurred. The deceased was struck by the bold while the injured girl was standing within inches. CPR was unsuccessful. What makes this event even more sadening was the fact that no other lightning or thunder were reported.
The most expensive damage was at Fort Hays State University, where the high winds blew off most of the roof from Weist Hall. Vehicles in an adjacent parking lot were damaged by roof debris. Extensive water damage occurred to the interior of the building. Some students and offices were relocated as a consequence of the damage. |The rainfall was so heavy that drains on Lewis Field were overwhelmed, and water accumulated under the special astro turf covering the field and lifted it from the field. |salvaged.
Tornado that began in eastern Trego county, steadily moved northeast before dissipating north of Hays. The tornado hit several farms in rural Ellis county and slammed into sparsely populated Yocemento. After leaving Yocemento, the tornado tore through a feedyard and on across other parts of rural Ellis county. Fortunately, the tornado stayed just west and north of populated Hays where a high school football game was in progress. The tornado damaged or destroyed 10 homes, a grain elevator, many outbuildings, a tractor and a feedlot. During the weaker moments of the tornado, it moved a 14,000 pound tractor 30 yards. One modular constructed home on a concrete slab was completely destroyed with the remains carried 1/2 of a mile. A steel I-beam from a concrete building travelled several hundred yards, eventually crashing into a grain elevator. Three empty anhydrous ammonia tanks were moved causing a leak of a benign amount of vapour. An injury occurred to a male driving a tractor-trailer rig on Interstate 70.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
28,920
Population (ACS)
$216K
Median home value
15
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND WILDFIRES | DR |
| May 25, 2022 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | 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 |
| Oct 20, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Hays 237
- Ellis 199
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Ellis County, Kansas?
1,026 events are on record between 1951 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths and $9.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Ellis County?
Hail, with 539 recorded events — 52.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Ellis County?
69 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 60 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Ellis County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Ellis County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Ellis County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Ellis County as very low risk, placing it in the 33 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Ellis 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
- Elk County 345
- Ellsworth County 685
- Edwards County 579
- Finney County 1,315
- Douglas County 894
- Ford County 1,772
Cite this page
“Ellis County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/ellis-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.