Kansas City

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Flood insurance figures are for Wyandotte County, the county that contains Kansas City.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges in Wyandotte County, the county that contains Kansas City.

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

The drought index is for Wyandotte County, the county that contains Kansas City.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the city centre.
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Mapped landslides

Landslides mapped in Wyandotte County.

Mapped by NASA (1).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 4, 2003Tornado$15.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tornado touched down just north-northwest of the Kansas Speedway around 318 pm CST. This tornado initially produced F0 to F1 damage, but produced F3 damage to 2 homes, just south of Parallel Parkway near I-435. The tornado grew to a width to near 500 yards in Kansas City, Kansas, where some marginal F4 damage was noted around 91st and Leavenworth Road. The tornado continued some F2 to F3 damage northeast near 84th Terrace north of Leavenworth Road. This is the location where an 82 year old man was killed in his residence. The tornado continued northeast through Wyandotte county, where another instance of marginal F4 damage was noted near 79th Street and Cernech. Considerable…

2. Jan 30, 2002Ice Storm, Wyandotte$3.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A long-lived major ice and snow storm blasted much of eastern Kansas, January 29th through January 31st. Ice accumulations of 1 to 2 inches were observed with snow accumulations of 6 to 10 inches in Atchison and Doniphan counties. The results of the storm were devasting to many communities. A tremendous amount of people were without power for extended periods of times, due to downed trees and tree limbs crippling power supplies in the affected areas.

3. Oct 4, 1998Flash Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorms on the evening of October 4th produced very heavy rainfall resulting in major flash flooding over the Kansas counties of the Kansas City metropolitan area. Up to 3 to 5 inches of rain fell in a three hour period between 6:00 PM and 9:00 PM CDT. In Lenexa, KS, over 5 inches of rain fell between 7:00 PM and 8:15 PM. The heavy rainfall with these evening thunderstorms fell on top of an already rain soaked soil from 1 to 3 inches of rain that had fallen over the region earlier in the day. Rain also fell on 6 of the 7 days during the week prior to the flash flood.In Johnson County, a 27 year old male was killed in Lenexa when his car was swept of the road near the…

4. Jun 28, 1999Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Damaging flash flooding occurred in and around Kansas City, Kansas on the morning of June 28. Emergency crews rescued residents from approximately 30 flooded cars and 15 to 20 flooded homes. Dozens of homes were evacuated due to the flood waters. A bridge in Kansas City was damaged by the fast-moving flood waters, and sections of Interstates 35 and 635 were closed due to high water. Three buildings in Kansas City collapsed, as walls and foundations gave way under the force of the water.

5. Aug 27, 2004Flash Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous homes and businesses reported water damage due to heavy rains in the area. Nearly 6 inches of rain feel across the town.

6. Aug 27, 2004Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   4 to 6 inches across the area produced the worst flooding since 1998. Numerous water rescues were needed. Numerous businesses and homes had water damage.

7. Oct 22, 1996Heavy Snow, Wyandotte$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy wet snow from an record setting early season snowfall downed numerous power lines and foliage filled trees. An estimated 20,000 Kansas Power and Light customers lost power during the storm and up to a quarter million dollars in property damage was estimated.Snowfall amounts ranged from around 6 inches in Kansas City to 4 inches in Bonner Springs.

8. Mar 12, 2006Hail$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A significant tornado outbreak occurred over portions of eastern Kansas and western Missouri on March 12, 2006. Three distinct rounds of severe weather occurred on March 12th, one in the morning, the second in the mid-afternoon hours, and the last round which occurred after sunset. In addition to the seventeen tornado touchdowns in the Pleasant Hill forecast area, 203 reports of large hail and/or damaging winds were also received from virtually every county in the Pleasant Hill service area. To put the March 12th outbreak into perspective, an average severe weather season in our local area brings approximately 11 tornadoes, and around 400 reports of hail and/or damaging wind to…

9. Mar 12, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm wind damage to the Great Wolf Lodge.

10. Mar 12, 2006Hail$150,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A significant tornado outbreak occurred over portions of eastern Kansas and western Missouri on March 12, 2006. Three distinct rounds of severe weather occurred on March 12th, one in the morning, the second in the mid-afternoon hours, and the last round which occurred after sunset. In addition to the seventeen tornado touchdowns in the Pleasant Hill forecast area, 203 reports of large hail and/or damaging winds were also received from virtually every county in the Pleasant Hill service area. To put the March 12th outbreak into perspective, an average severe weather season in our local area brings approximately 11 tornadoes, and around 400 reports of hail and/or damaging wind to…

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

113°FAug 14, 1936

All-time low

−19°FDec 22, 1989

Warmest night

89°FJul 10, 1980

Coldest day

−4°FDec 22, 1989

Wettest day

7.45 inAug 15, 1969

Snowiest day

11.8 inJan 18, 1962

Hottest year

2012mean 61.2°F

Coldest year

1951mean 53.5°F

Wettest year

196160.25 in

Driest year

198819.17 in

Station Kansas City Dwtn Airport (USW00013988), 742 ft elevation, 8.2 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1934 to October 27, 2026; 98.9% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

Declarations for Wyandotte County.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00013988.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.