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Chase County, Kansas severe weather history spans 380 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 46.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,334 nationally and #100 in Kansas.
380
Recorded events
6
Direct deaths
13
Direct injuries
$6.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Chase County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Chase County, Kansas severe weather history averages 5.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 127 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 56 events fall before 1990 and 324 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Chase County, Kansas record is flash flood, responsible for 6 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $5.4M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Chase County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 178 | 0 | $10K | 4 | 1956–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 120 | 0 | $694K | 87 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 47 | 0 | $5.4M | F3 | 1950–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 13 | 6 | $286K | 0 | 1998–2023 |
| Flood | 10 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 2007–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 10 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2023 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2017–2019 |
Decade by decade
Chase County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
49 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 44 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956-04-02 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 127.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-05-10 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 52.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1950-05-18 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 14.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-04-26 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 21.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1987-05-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 25.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Chase County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31, 2003 | Flash Flood | GLADSTONE | 6 | 0 | $250K |
| May 8, 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | MATFIELD GREEN | 0 | 6 | $380K |
| Oct 9, 2017 | Lightning | MATFIELD GREEN | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| May 19, 1950 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Apr 20, 2023 | Tornado | STRONG CITY | 0 | 1 | $20K |
| Apr 20, 2023 | Tornado | ELMDALE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Severe thunderstorm winds derailed 38 cars of a 118-car Burlington Northern Santa Fe freight train. One of the derailed freight cars, a unibody tank car filled with sulphur dioxide, forced the evacuation of an estimated 250 residents. Six firemen and law enforcement officers, exact number of each unknown, were treated at the scene for respiratory ailments.
Winds estimated around 56 knots/65 mph pulled a 50 foot by 30 foot pole barn from the ground and lifted it. The pole barn landed in a nearby pasture. Posts had been inserted 3 feet deep but did not have concrete support. There was an 8-foot opening to the north and a 15-foot opening to the west. A small lawn tractor that had been parked on the east side of the building was pushed onto its right side.
This was the eighth tornado documented by the NWS Wichita damage Survey Team. This tornado mainly produced EF0 damage to mainly trees. There was one minor injury close to the initial touchdown along Highway 50, when a car was thrown 30 yards off the highway. The person was treated and released.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
2,561
Population (ACS)
$110K
Median home value
22
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 24, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 28, 2024 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Cottonwood Falls 100
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Chase County, Kansas?
380 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 6 direct deaths and $6.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Chase County?
Hail, with 178 recorded events — 46.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Chase County?
49 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 44 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Chase County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Chase County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Chase County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Chase County as very low risk, placing it in the 9 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Chase 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
- Butler County 1,844
- Chautauqua County 475
- Brown County 460
- Cherokee County 743
- Bourbon County 446
- Cheyenne County 873
Cite this page
“Chase County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/chase-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.