Chase County, Kansas

What hazards hit Chase County most?

The most frequent records are hail reports: 180 since 1956. 53% of its hail reports since 1956 fell in April and May. The rank column places the county among Kansas's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Chase County had?

NOAA records 47 tornadoes in Chase County from 1950 to 2023, the strongest rated F3, with 0 deaths and 4 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 50 tornadoes whose track touched Chase County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 47: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Kansas.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Chase County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the April 19, 2023 tornado (1 injury).

This is the third tornado which initially caused the loss of roof material on an outbuilding. The tornado crossed U.S. Highway 50, and a semi was blown over resulting in one injury. Several small road signs were taken out. A one to two foot diameter tree was snapped before the tornado lifted. This tornado was rated an EF0.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1089745)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Chase County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

53% of its hail reports since 1956 fell in April and May. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Chase County

FEMA's register lists 22 declarations that include Chase County: 19 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (15) and biological (2).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Chase County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 25 flood or flash flood records for Chase County from 1998 to 2023, on 22 days, with 6 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Chase County ranks 1928th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $260,000 on 29 claims filed in Chase County; the most in one year was 14 in 1998. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Chase County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Chase County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $5.1 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Chase County

1. Butler County 2,021
2. Lyon County 1,047
3. Marion County 861
4. Greenwood County 678
5. Morris County 638
6. Chase County 497

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in KansasEvery Kansas tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Hail in KansasThe state's hail reports, by county, year and month
• The Kansas recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Chase CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Chase County's FEMA declarations (CSV)22 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis