How Likely Is a Tornado in Neosho County, KS?
Neosho County's tornado history, by the numbers
Neosho County has recorded 31 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 2.5 years - our Elevated band. Put another way: Neosho County sees more tornado activity than 70% of US counties. Kansas has 105 counties in this dataset; Neosho County ranks 84 of them by frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
21 weak and 10 significant tornadoes make up Neosho County's 31-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Neosho County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Kansas has no state rebate program confirmed here; FEMA's underlying 75% cost-share exists nationwide, but applying through a state program is what usually makes it real, and none was found for Kansas this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
15,552 people live in Neosho County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Kansas than the tracks themselves touch. A portable battery unit is the faster, no-fuel way to bridge that outage.
What this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Neosho County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 571 square miles, so a single touch counts the same as one in a county a fraction of that size. Weaker pre-1990s tornadoes are also documented as undercounted in NOAA's own record. Neosho County has about 15,552 residents.