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Jackson County, Missouri severe weather history spans 1,605 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #27 nationally and #2 in Missouri.
1,605
Recorded events
48
Direct deaths
209
Direct injuries
$63.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Jackson County, Missouri severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Jackson County, Missouri severe weather history averages 21.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 486 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 327 events fall before 1990 and 1,278 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Jackson County, Missouri record is tornado, responsible for 37 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $21.5M 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 Jackson County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 692 | 0 | $13.2M | 103 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 669 | 0 | $15.3M | 5.5 | 1955–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 143 | 10 | $21.5M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Tornado | 50 | 37 | $11.6M | F5 | 1952–2025 |
| Flood | 28 | 0 | $960K | 0 | 1996–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 11 | 0 | $237K | 0 | 2007–2017 |
| Lightning | 8 | 1 | $326K | 0 | 2005–2018 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2011 |
Decade by decade
Jackson County, Missouri 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: 45 touched down inside it and 4 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-05-20 | EF5 | 44 | 207 | 69.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1977-05-04 | EF4 | 0 | 5 | 12.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-01-24 | EF3 | 2 | 18 | 14.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-04-12 | EF3 | 1 | 10 | 19.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-03-06 | EF3 | 0 | 12 | 17.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-06-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-05-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-09-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-26 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 4.9 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Jackson County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 1957 | Tornado | 37 | 176 | $2.5M | |
| Oct 4, 1998 | Flash Flood | KANSAS CITY | 9 | 0 | $20.0M |
| Jul 5, 2018 | Lightning | CEMENT CITY | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 23, 1999 | Flash Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $50K |
| Mar 7, 2017 | Tornado | TARSNEY LAKES | 0 | 12 | $0 |
| May 27, 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | LEE'S SUMMIT | 0 | 9 | $10.0M |
| May 26, 1965 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250K | |
| Aug 6, 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | GRANDVIEW | 0 | 3 | $150K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
From the KC Star article: A man who was struck by lightning while working on a roof Thursday afternoon in eastern Kansas City has died. Leonel Sanchez, 23, and another man fell from a roof at a residence near 49th Street and Raymond Avenue. They were taken to a hospital, where Sanchez passed away. Time of occurrence was estimated by radar. https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article214483719.html .
This hail event, left over a thousand homes in Lee's Summit with various degrees of hail damage. Damage included roofs, gutters, and siding. Automobiles at area dealerships and private automobiles also suffered numerous reports of damage.
Large hail fell at various locations in the eastern Kansas City suburbs, including along Interstate 435, Highway 350, and near Blue Ridge Mall. Numerous car dealerships along Noland Road in Independence reported substantial damage to automobiles. Many city owned vehicles had damage, including broken windows and dents.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively High
FEMA NRI risk rating
719,976
Population (ACS)
$231K
Median home value
26
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jul 9, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 7, 2015 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 30, 2011 | Flood | FLOODING | EM |
| Feb 3, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Kansas City 270
- Lees Summit 127
- Blue Spgs 120
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Jackson County, Missouri?
1,605 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 48 direct deaths and $63.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Jackson County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 692 recorded events — 43.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Jackson County?
49 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 45 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Jackson County?
26 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Jackson County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Jackson County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Jackson County as relatively high risk, placing it in the 97 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Jackson County, Missouri 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
- Iron County 222
- Jasper County 1,115
- Howell County 957
- Jefferson County 654
- Howard County 228
- Johnson County 644
Cite this page
“Jackson County, Missouri.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/missouri/jackson-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.