Drought in Kansas, September 1 to 30, 2002

Name: Drought in Kansas, September 1 to 30, 2002
Start: 2002-09-01T00:01
End: 2002-09-30T23:59
Location: Kansas

September 1 to 30, 2002 · NWS TOP · 23 events in 23 counties and zones

The drought conditions that started in July continued through September. Many crops and pasturelands over the area were greatly affected.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 23 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 23

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 TOP wrote it up.

The drought conditions that started in July continued through September. Many crops and pasturelands over the area were greatly affected. Farm ponds were void of ample water for cattle and crops were either plowed up or made into fodder for farm animals. No actual crop damage figures were available but estimates for all of northeast Kansas were likely to exceed 25 million dollars.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Topeka, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 31, 1:15 PM CST, 10 hours 46 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 1:15 PM CST, 10 hours 46 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
215 PM CDT SAT AUG 31 2002

FORECAST CHALLENGES ARE PRECIP CHANCES LATE SUNDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY
AND AGAIN AROUND SATURDAY AS WELL AS TEMPERATURES NEARLY ALL PERIODS.

MORNING UPPER AIR DATA AND SATELLITE LOOPS SHOWING UPPER LEVEL
ENERGY EXITING THE DAKOTAS WITH ANOTHER WAVE ON ITS HEELS IN MONTANA
AND ANOTHER MORE VIGOROUS WAVE ENTERING NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA.
BEST PRESSURE GRADIENT IN A WHILE HAS SET UP FROM THE TEXAS
PANHANDLE TO MINNESOTA WITH EARLY AFTERNOON CU FIELD AND ISOLATED
SHOWERS OVER FAR EASTERN KANSAS WHERE BEST 850MB DEWPOINTS LIE BUT
WEAK FLOW KEEPING THEM VERY UNORGANIZED.

MONTANA WAVE PUSHES OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS TONIGHT WITH TRAILING
SURFACE TROF PUSHING EAST. SOUTHERLY WINDS SHOULD STAY UP A LITTLE
MORE THAN LAST NIGHT AND WILL GO WITH LOWS A LITTLE WARMER THAN THIS
MORNING. PLAN TO KEEP PRECIP OUT BUT WILL MONITOR COVERAGE THIS
AFTERNOON FOR POSSIBLE EVENING INCLUSION.

NEXT WAVE COMES INTO THE NORTHERN ROCKIES SUNDAY. BETTER
SOUTHWESTERLY LOW LEVEL FLOW FROM EXITING WAVE SHOULD PUSH HIGHS
INTO THE LOWER 90S. REMNANTS OF THE UPPER WAVE SLIDE INTO THE
NORTHERN ZONES SUNDAY NIGHT. WITH SOME MID LEVEL MOISTURE PRESENT
AND YESTERDAYS WESTERN KANSAS SHOWERS IN MIND, SEE LITTLE REASON TO
REMOVE GOING SMALL POPS. GUIDANCE LOWS SEEM REASONABLE.

MODIFIED PACIFIC FRONT SHOULD PUSH SOUTH INTO THE NORTHWESTERN ZONES
MONDAY AFTERNOON AS B.C. WAVE SLIDES EAST OVER SOUTHERN CANADA.
SHOULD BE ENOUGH CONVERGENCE FOR A FEW STORMS WITH THE FRONT AND
WILL CONTINUE CHANCE POPS HERE. ETA SOUNDINGS SUPPORT TEMPS INTO THE
UPPER 90S AHEAD OF THE FRONT. WILL TREND TEMPERATURES UP BUT WONT
GO QUITE THAT FAR YET.

WITH MAIN WESTERLIES WELL NORTH OF THE CENTRAL PLAINS, FRONTAL
SHOULD STALL OUT SOMEWHERE NEARBY TUESDAY. UPPER RIDGING ALOFT
SHOULD HELP SUPPRESS LIFT, BUT WILL MENTION SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FOR
TUESDAY. NEXT WAVE BEGINS TO DEVELOP OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
WEDNESDAY WITH WARM AIR PUSHING BACK ACROSS THE PLAINS. TIMING OF
THIS SYSTEM EJECTING HAS BEEN ANYTHING BUT CERTAIN OVER THE PAST 36
HOURS DESPITE RECENT DAY 5 MODEL SKILL SCORES AT RELATIVELY HIGH
LEVELS. YESTERDAYS 12Z AVN EXTENSION SLOWED THE WAVES/COLD FRONTS
EASTWARD PROGRESSION FROM YESTERDAYS 00Z GFS MUCH MORE THAN TODAYS
12Z DID OVER THE 00Z WITH THE CURRENT 12Z RUN KEEPING THE FRONT
OVER THE NORTHERN HIGH PLAINS SATURDAY MORNING. A CONTINUED SLOWING
TREND SEEMS IN ORDER AT THIS TIME WITH NO UPSTREAM KICKER IN SIGHT
AND WILL CONTINUE THE DRY FORECAST PAST TUESDAY. WILL WARM
TEMPERATURES THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH THIS IN MIND BUT STILL STAY
ABOVE CLIMO SATURDAY.

.TOP...NONE.

65

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

23 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Nemaha

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Nemaha forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.784, -96.014 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Osage

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Osage forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.652, -95.727 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Ottawa

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Ottawa forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.133, -97.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Pottawatomie

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Pottawatomie forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.379, -96.342 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Republic

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Republic forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.828, -97.651 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Riley

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Riley forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.297, -96.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Shawnee

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Shawnee forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.042, -95.756 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Wabaunsee

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Wabaunsee forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.953, -96.205 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Washington

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.784, -97.087 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Anderson

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Anderson forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.214, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Brown

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Brown forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.827, -95.564 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Clay

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.350, -97.165 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Cloud

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Cloud forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.480, -97.649 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Coffey

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Coffey forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.237, -95.734 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Dickinson

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Dickinson forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.867, -97.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Douglas

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Douglas forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.885, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Franklin

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.565, -95.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Geary

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Geary forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.002, -96.752 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Jackson

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jackson forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.417, -95.794 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Jefferson

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.236, -95.383 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Lyon

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lyon forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.456, -96.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Marshall

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Marshall forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 39.784, -96.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Morris

When: September 1, 12:01 AM CST to September 30, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Morris forecast zone
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 38.687, -96.650 (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

Every storm in Kansas in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Kansas, September 2002

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: 5316854, 5316855, 5316856, 5316857, 5316858, 5316859, 5316860, 5316861, 5316862, 5318348, 5318349, 5318350, 5318351, 5318352, 5318353, 5318354, 5318355, 5318356, 5318357, 5318358, 5318359, 5318360, 5318361.