Drought, Ellis
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Ellis forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.915, -99.317 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought in Kansas, March 1 to 31, 1996
March ended another month of extreme dryness. The period from July 1995 through March was the driest period ever at many locations accross western Kansas, with records dating back 120 years.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 27 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 27
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS DDC wrote it up.
March ended another month of extreme dryness. The period from July 1995 through March was the driest period ever at many locations accross western Kansas, with records dating back 120 years. The wheat crop was almost completely wiped out by the drought.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
27 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Drought, Trego
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Trego forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.914, -99.873 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Scott
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Scott forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.482, -100.907 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Lane
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Lane forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.481, -100.466 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Ness
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Ness forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.479, -99.916 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Rush
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Rush forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.523, -99.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Hamilton
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Hamilton forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.999, -101.791 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Kearny
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Kearny forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.000, -101.320 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Finney
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Finney forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.044, -100.737 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Hodgeman
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Hodgeman forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.088, -99.898 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Pawnee
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Pawnee forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.181, -99.237 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Stafford
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Stafford forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.031, -98.717 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Stanton
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Stanton forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.563, -101.784 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Grant
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Grant forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.562, -101.308 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Haskell
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Haskell forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.562, -100.871 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Gray
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Gray forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.738, -100.438 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Ford
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Ford forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.692, -99.888 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Edwards
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Edwards forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.888, -99.312 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Kiowa
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Kiowa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.558, -99.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Pratt
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Pratt forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.648, -98.740 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Morton
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Morton forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.191, -101.799 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Stevens
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Stevens forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.192, -101.312 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Seward
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Seward forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.193, -100.851 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Meade
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Meade forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.238, -100.366 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Clark
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Clark forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.236, -99.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Comanche
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Comanche forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.191, -99.272 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Barber
- When
- March 1, 12:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Barber forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 37.229, -98.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Drought
- A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Drought in New Mexico, March 1 to 31, 1996
- Winter Storm in Virginia, March 1 to 2, 1996
- High Wind in Nebraska, March 1, 1996
- High Wind in Wyoming, March 1, 1996
- Winter Storm in Maryland, March 1 to 2, 1996
- Heavy Snow in South Dakota, March 1 to 2, 1996
- Blizzard in Wyoming, March 1, 1996
- Blizzard in Wyoming, March 1, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, March 1 to 2, 1996
- High Wind in Alaska, March 1 to 2, 1996
- High Wind in Alaska, March 1 to 2, 1996
- Flood in Ohio, March 1, 1996
More
Every storm in Kansas in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, March 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5574663, 5574664, 5574665, 5574666, 5574667, 5574668, 5574669, 5574670, 5574671, 5574672, 5574673, 5574674, 5574675, 5574676, 5574677, 5574678, 5574679, 5574680, 5574831, 5574832, 5574833, 5574834, 5574835, 5574836, 5574837, 5574838, 5574839.