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Douglas County, Kansas severe weather history spans 894 recorded events between 1951 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 42.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #216 nationally and #17 in Kansas.
894
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
81
Direct injuries
$62.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Douglas County, Kansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Douglas County, Kansas severe weather history averages 11.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 308 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 127 events fall before 1990 and 767 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Douglas County, Kansas record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $39.0M 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 Douglas County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 376 | 0 | $10.7M | 100 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 373 | 0 | $5.5M | 3 | 1958–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 62 | 0 | $6.6M | 0 | 1996–2026 |
| Tornado | 40 | 1 | $39.0M | F4 | 1951–2021 |
| Lightning | 27 | 0 | $264K | 0 | 1996–2004 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $255K | 0 | 1999–2024 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2007 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1998–2007 |
Decade by decade
Douglas County, Kansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
45 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 39 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-05-28 | EF4 | 0 | 4 | 29.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-05-22 | EF4 | 0 | 3 | 26.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-06-19 | EF3 | 1 | 33 | 7.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-05-04 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 31.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-04-12 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 33.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-08-06 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-05-28 | EF2 | 0 | 12 | 10.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-05-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-05-31 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 6.6 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Douglas County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 1981 | Tornado | 1 | 33 | $25.0M | |
| May 28, 2019 | Tornado | GLOBE | 0 | 12 | $0 |
| May 9, 2003 | Tornado | LAWRENCE | 0 | 6 | $6.4M |
| Oct 4, 1998 | Flash Flood | LAWRENCE | 0 | 5 | $1.1M |
| May 28, 2019 | Tornado | LONE STAR | 0 | 4 | $0 |
| Mar 12, 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | LAWRENCE | 0 | 3 | $8.0M |
| Jun 6, 1996 | Flash Flood | LAWRENCE | 0 | 3 | $2.0M |
| Apr 12, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $2.5M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado touched down in the southwest part of Lawrence and did considerable damage to the area. An apartment complex suffered major damage as did several other homes and residences in the area. Six people were injured and treated at a Lawrence hospital.
Between 8:50 pm cst and 9:03 pm cst, many reports of hail ranging from 0.75" to 2.50" in diameter were received from the city of Lawrence as a supercell thunderstorm moved through. The largest reported hail fell on the campus of Kansas University. State Farm Insurance reported an expected $1.8 million in auto claims for damaged vehicles; American Family Insurance was expecting up to 600 auto claims and 300 home claims to be filed.
A 1.5 mile wide swath of very strong straight line or downburst winds moved west to east across the southern section of the county, just south of US Highway 56. Numerous homes, buildings, farms and barns reported varying degrees of damage. Crops in the area were also damaged or destroyed. This supercell storm also produced a brief tornado near Baldwin City (see other entries for details).
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
120,302
Population (ACS)
$309K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| May 28, 2019 | Severe Storm | TORNADOES AND FLOODING | EM |
| Mar 9, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Dec 12, 2007 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Lawrence 327
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Douglas County, Kansas?
894 events are on record between 1951 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $62.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Douglas County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 376 recorded events — 42.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Douglas County?
45 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 39 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Douglas County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Douglas County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Douglas County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Douglas County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 75 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Douglas 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
- Doniphan County 202
- Edwards County 579
- Dickinson County 851
- Elk County 345
- Decatur County 614
- Ellis County 1,026
Cite this page
“Douglas County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/douglas-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.