NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Burlington, KS
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Burlington, Kansas since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 90 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 90
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
50 deaths in all
What the records show for Burlington
The strongest of the 90 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on May 20, 1957; its path came within 21 miles, and it killed 44 people. Of the 90, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 38 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 34. The most recent tornado was on June 28, 2024. Of the 171 Kansas cities on this site, 91% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Burlington. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 106 times since 1977, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 171 Kansas cities, 91% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Burlington.
Compare Burlington's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Burlington
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s14(1 EF3+)
- 2000s17(1 EF3+)
- 1990s4(1 EF3+)
- 1980s15
- 1970s4
- 1960s11(1 EF3+)
- 1950s18(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 1957 | F5 | 21 mi | 69.4 mi | 44 / 207 |
| Apr 12, 1964 | F4 | 25 mi | 19.4 mi | 3 / 9 |
| Apr 2, 1956 | F4 | 11 mi | 108.3 mi | 2 / 29 |
| May 21, 2011 | EF3 | 25 mi | 10.11 mi | 1 / 5 |
| May 8, 2003 | F3 | 19 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 26, 1991 | F3 | 21 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 20, 1956 | F3 | 14 mi | 69.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 16, 2024 | EF2 | 22 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 1986 | F2 | 19 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 1982 | F2 | 21 mi | 30 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 20, 1973 | F2 | 5 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 13, 1973 | F2 | 22 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 90, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Burlington
The Storm Prediction Center has 106 hail reports within 10 miles of Burlington since 1977, made on 74 separate days. Of these, 62 were 1 inch across or larger, and 10 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on July 4, 1992. The most recent report is from July 30, 2023. April has the most reports, 27.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Burlington
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is John Redmond Lake, KS, 3 miles north of Burlington at 1,092 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 41°F and 19°F. May is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.9 inches; the year adds up to 37.3 inches over 55 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 43 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 115 nights a year. That 37.3 inches is more than at 65 of the 103 Kansas stations used on this site (63%). Yates Center, 23 miles south, has its own station (Yates Ctr, KS): 41.9 inches a year, 4.6 more than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 41 | 19 | 0.9 | 2 |
| Feb | 46 | 23 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Mar | 57 | 33 | 2.2 | 4 |
| Apr | 67 | 44 | 3.7 | 5 |
| May | 76 | 55 | 5.3 | 7 |
| Jun | 85 | 64 | 4.6 | 6 |
| Jul | 90 | 69 | 4.5 | 6 |
| Aug | 90 | 67 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Sep | 82 | 58 | 3.8 | 5 |
| Oct | 70 | 46 | 3.4 | 4 |
| Nov | 56 | 34 | 1.9 | 3 |
| Dec | 45 | 24 | 1.6 | 3 |
| Year | 67 | 45 | 37.3 | 55 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at John Redmond Lake, KS (1,092 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Burlington
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 103 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Burlington: 87 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 2 floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $648,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on April 23, 2026. June has had the most flash floods, 8 of 13. Of the 169 Kansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 78 have had fewer than Burlington.
September 10, 2011: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Burlington — 1 killed.
NWS: “The Emporia Gazette reported that Patty Gilliam, a Spanish teacher from Emporia High School died on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 from injuries sustained from a lightning strike that occurred on Saturday September 10, 2011.”
December 27, 2008: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Burlington — $230,000 damage.
NWS: “Several reports of damage from New Strawn. The Southern Coffey County Middle School had a portion of it's roof torn off.”
June 3, 2025: flash flood 2 miles from the centre of Burlington — $150,000 damage.
NWS: “Storm Spotter in Burlington reports that Rock Creek is overflowing into several homes.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Coffey County, which includes Burlington, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 13 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on September 11, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Coffey County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.5 million a year, the 47th highest of 105 Kansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.8 million (45%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. 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).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets 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).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Burlington
- Yates Center, KS23 mi
- Garnett, KS27 mi
- Iola, KS27 mi
- Osage City, KS28 mi
- Emporia, KS28 mi
- Pomona, KS32 mi
- Humboldt, KS33 mi
- Ottawa, KS38 mi
- Eureka, KS40 mi
- Overbrook, KS41 mi
- Chanute, KS41 mi
- Carbondale, KS43 mi
All Kansas cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Burlington with another place →