PlainHazard

Kansas drought

Every recorded drought record since 1996 · 105 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 2,928 drought records in Kansas from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 176 a year since 2000. The costliest was the August 1, 2012 drought ($60.1 million in 2025 dollars). Kansas ranks 7th of 51 states and territories by count and 15th of 50 per square mile.

Drought in Kansas, 1996 to 2026

Drought records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $1 million
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
2,9281996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
176average
Deaths
00 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$301Mas filed
Busiest year
2012510 records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Are drought records common in Kansas?

Kansas averages about 176 drought records a year since 2000, 7th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2012 (510). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Kansas records 358 drought records since 1996, 15th of 50 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. Hawaii 2624
  2. 2. New Jersey 1205
  3. 3. Delaware 1062
  4. 4. Oklahoma 971
  5. 5. Georgia 900
  6. 6. Texas 711
  7. 7. New Mexico 528
  8. 8. Alabama 527
  9. 9. Tennessee 477
  10. 10. Iowa 466
  11. 15. Kansas 358

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in Kansas have the most drought records?

Per square mile, Wyandotte County leads Kansas: 21 days with a drought record since 1996, 138.5 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Wichita County has the most drought records (77 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Wyandotte County 138.5 (21)
  2. Harvey County 105.6 (57)
  3. Greeley County 91.2 (71)
  4. Wichita County 90.5 (77)
  5. Rice County 82.6 (61)
  6. Chautauqua County 78.3 (50)
  7. Ellsworth County 78.3 (56)
  8. Wilson County 71.9 (41)
  9. Elk County 71.4 (46)
  10. Woodson County 70.3 (35)
  11. Montgomery County 69.9 (45)
  12. Harper County 69.9 (56)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is drought season in Kansas?

Kansas's drought records by month. The busiest month is November (289 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 164 · Feb 179 · Mar 224 · Apr 237 · May 251 · Jun 253 · Jul 270 · Aug 283 · Sep 281 · Oct 254 · Nov 289 · Dec 243 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

The costliest drought records in Kansas

Kansas: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2012-08-01 DroughtCherokee County · forecast zone Cherokee One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $60M
2011-08-01 DroughtCherokee County · forecast zone Cherokee One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $59M
2022-12-01 DroughtCherokee County · forecast zone Cherokee One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $46M
2003-08-28 DroughtBarber County · forecast zone Barber 0 0 $32M
2011-07-01 DroughtHarper County · forecast zone Harper One storm episode: 16 records in 16 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $25M
2013-10-01 DroughtPhillips County · forecast zone Phillips One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $19M
2000-09-01 DroughtSmith County · forecast zone Smith One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $17M
2002-12-01 DroughtJewell County · forecast zone Jewell One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. 0 0 $16M

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are drought records becoming more frequent in Kansas?

Kansas's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

Drought: Kansas and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadeKansasUnited StatesKansas's share
1996-99505,6000.9%
2000s22718,5711.2%
2010s1,47731,4414.7%
2020-261,17430,1473.9%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent drought records in Kansas

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-01 DroughtReno County · forecast zone Reno 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtMcPherson County · forecast zone McPherson 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtRice County · forecast zone Rice 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtEllsworth County · forecast zone Ellsworth 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtKingman County · forecast zone Kingman 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtHarper County · forecast zone Harper 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtSumner County · forecast zone Sumner 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtRussell County · forecast zone Russell 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtBarton County · forecast zone Barton 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtNorton County · forecast zone Norton 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtDecatur County · forecast zone Decatur 0 0 –
2026-06-01 DroughtWichita County · forecast zone Wichita 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

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