Gove County, Kansas severe weather history spans 754 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 59.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #338 nationally and #31 in Kansas.
754
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$11.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Gove County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Gove County, Kansas severe weather history averages 9.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 235 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 57 events fall before 1990 and 697 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $5.7M 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 Gove County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 447 | 0 | $5.7M | 5 | 1961–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 200 | 0 | $1.0M | 100 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 62 | 0 | $4.2M | F2 | 1950–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 30 | 0 | $121K | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $34K | 0 | 2008–2018 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2001 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $750 | 0 | 2003–2005 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $9K | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Gove County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
66 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 64 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-05-23 | EF4 | 0 | 2 | 11.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-05-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 13.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-05-13 | EF3 | 0 | 5 | 140.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-10-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 18.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 14.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-08-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1950-08-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-10-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-10-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-05-09 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Gove County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 23, 2008 | Tornado | QUINTER | 0 | 2 | $2.5M |
| May 6, 1964 | 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
A large wedge tornado developed about 9 miles SSW of Quinter and moved north, then northwest, eventually dissipating 2 miles SE of Park. This tornado caused extensive damage to several homes, including EF4 damage to one home which was completely destroyed. A car and a pickup truck were tossed or bounced 200 yards at the residence. Nearby, two other homes suffered extensive damage. This tornado caused two injuries, including the driver of a vehicle which was thrown off Interstate 70, and an older male attempting to get into his storm cellar when he was struck by flying debris.
Storm chaser videotaped a large wedge tornado just north of Quinter, which moved into Sheridan county along a path just west of a second tornado occurring simultaneously. This tornado caused extensive utility pole damage from northern Gove into southern Sheridan county, and impacted several homesteads with roof and outbuilding damage.
About a dozen reports of large, damaging hail were received from the NSSL SHAVE project. Windows were broken, and some roof damage occurred. Hail was embedded 1-2 inches into the ground in some locations. The hail occurred with a supercell thunderstorms tracking north through the area.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
2,799
Population (ACS)
$118K
Median home value
12
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 22, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| 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 16, 2017 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Gove 268
- Quinter 192
- Grinnell 115
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Gove County, Kansas?
754 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $11.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Gove County?
Hail, with 447 recorded events — 59.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Gove County?
66 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 64 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Gove County?
12 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Gove County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Gove County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Gove County as very low risk, placing it in the 5 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Gove 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
- Geary County 482
- Graham County 696
- Franklin County 588
- Grant County 552
- Ford County 1,772
- Gray County 861
Cite this page
“Gove County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/gove-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.