Baxter Springs Independent Oil and Gas Service Station · Photo: Vanessa Ezekowitz · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Baxter Springs faces more hazard damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter Springs gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns, #144 of 151 in Kansas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%). Flood insurance has paid 23 claims here since 1985.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What stands out about Baxter Springs’ natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Baxter Springs faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
Strong wind
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Baxter Springs’ grade
River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Baxter Springs, and Baxter Springs’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 10%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #144 of 151 in Kansas; higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Baxter Springs’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Kansas town has higher expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Baxter Springs has more expected damage per building than 95% of Kansas towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.7M a year in losses across Baxter Springs: $1.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Baxter Springs flood? Sometimes: 23 flood claims since 1985
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Baxter Springs, from FEMA’s records: 12.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 77% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Baxter Springs isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cherokee County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Baxter Springs
Disasters that paid out in Baxter Springs itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Baxter Springs), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$16K to the City of Baxter Springs for repairs
- 2007Severe Winter Storms$301K to the City of Baxter Springs for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding4 households applied for aid$6K aid approved
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes$15K to the City of Baxter Springs for repairs
- 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$13K aid approved
Cherokee County has had 23 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Baxter Springs after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Baxter Springs archive →Baxter Springs and its neighbors
Baxter Springs is 3rd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garden Township | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Spring Valley Township | C−more damage than 78% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Baxter Springs | C−more damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Baxter Springs faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Baxter Springs
Is Baxter Springs at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter Springs has higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #144 of 151 in Kansas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and tornadoes (10%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Baxter Springs flood?
Flood insurance has paid 23 claims in Baxter Springs since 1985, $325K in all, or 12.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 77% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Baxter Springs in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Cherokee County, 6% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Baxter Springs?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Baxter Springs’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Baxter Springs?
By FEMA money that reached Baxter Springs, Severe Winter Storms (2007): $301K to the City of Baxter Springs for repairs.
Is Baxter Springs at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Baxter Springs’ rate for it is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baxter Springs.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Baxter Springs’ residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.