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Clearwater, Kansas

14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1889 and the latest in 1990. It stands in Ninnescah Township. It lies in ZIP code area 67026. The Survey maps it on the Clearwater quadrangle. 2,653 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,286 feet above sea level.

Clearwater within Sedgwick County

Population over time

2 figures

Clearwater grew from 2,481 to 2,653 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
20102,481
20202,653+172 (+7%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 14 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

42 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 42 fires within 5 miles of Clearwater between 2015 and 2020, burning about 143 acres in total. None started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined20
Debris and open burning13
Equipment and vehicle use5
Arson/incendiarism1
Power generation/transmission/distribution1
Smoking1
Misuse of fire by a minor1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2017Debris and open burning2.0 acresSedgwick County44
23 September 2017Debris and open burningunder an acreSedgwick County6843
26 July 2020Missing data/not specified/undetermined10 acresKansas Forest Servicenot named
22 July 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreKansas Forest Service41
23 June 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresKansas Forest Service35
5 May 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreKansas Forest Service3529
14 May 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreKansas Forest Service36
26 April 2018Arson/incendiarismunder an acreKansas Forest Service34

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Sedgwick County

Storms near this place

60 of 109 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Clearwater in 109 storm reports between 1995 and 2026: 51 hail, 44 thunderstorm wind, 5 flood, 4 flash flood. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
September 1999HailClearwater1 hurt, $500,000Quarter to tennisball-sized hail pummeled Clearwater, breaking windows and inflicting widespread damage to roofs and vehicles. One tennisball-sized hailstone struck a man in the head rendering him unconscious.
September 2016Flash FloodClearwater$100,000Three water rescues occurred near Clearwater, Kansas due to rising water from the Ninnescah River getting close to homes.
November 1998Tornado (F0)Clearwater$50,000The tornado touched down breifly prior to hitting one home and lifted after about a mile.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindClearwater$50,000Several farm buildings damaged as well as a large scoreboard blown over at a sports complex. A few homes sustained damage from falling trees.
July 2001Thunderstorm WindClearwater$25,000Power lines downed.
October 2008FloodClearwater$10,000Numerous roads were reported to have water over them including 167th Street West and Kellogg, 95th Street South and 263rd Street West and MacArthur at 135th Street West and 151st Street West. Rain of 2 to nearly 3.5 inches were reported in western Sedgwick County.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindClearwater$9,000Estimated 70 mph winds lifted the roof off a machine shed, which came down and demolished a childrens play area. A trampoline was also thrown over three fences. A nearby homestead also had a barn destroyed.
July 2009Thunderstorm WindClearwater$5,000A KWCH storm chaser reported numerous tree limbs down and the power knocked out in the Clearwater area.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindClearwater$3,000A 15-inch diameter tree and 6-inch diameter tree limbs were downed near K-42.
October 2018FloodClearwater$100An NWS employee reported water over 103rd Street, approximately 2 feet deep along the Ninnescah River.
October 2018FloodClearwater$100Water was reported over the roadway at 151st Street and west Deer Trail Circle.
September 2016Flash FloodClearwater$100A National Weather Service Employee reported a rainfall amount of 9.13 inches, which caused water to flow across 71st Street just south of 135th Street.
August 2013FloodClearwater$100Numerous rural and county roads were water covered along the Ninnescah River and its tributaries.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Several tree limbs were reported down with the sizes unknown. Wind speeds were estimated between 65 and 70 mph.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Wind speeds were estimated along with half-inch hail.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-A four inch diameter limb was down.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Estimated wind gusts around 60 mph.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Estimated wind gusts around 60 mph.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Wind gusts were estimated between 65 to 70 mph winds.
September 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-The employee estimated 60 to 65 mph wind gusts.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Wind gusts were measured to be at 60 mph for around 10 minutes.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindClearwater-There were reports of large tree limbs down and no power in parts of Clearwater.
September 2024Thunderstorm WindClearwater-A report called into dispatch of a power line down on a tree that set a tree on fire. The report was relayed via emergency management. Time of occurrence was estimated by radar.
February 2023Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Off duty firefighter reported a 67 mph wind gust.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindClearwater-This was an estimated wind gust.
November 2022Heavy RainClearwater-A public report via social media reported 3.20 inches.
June 2022Heavy RainClearwater-A Cocorahs station 4 miles north of Clearwater reported 1.36 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.
June 2022HailClearwater-The hail was dime to quarter size.
June 2022HailClearwater-Dime to quarter size hail was reported.
May 2021Thunderstorm WindClearwater-This was a measured gust.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Large tree limbs of five to six inches in diameter were reported to be down around town.
June 2019Thunderstorm WindClearwater-No damage was reported.
May 2018Thunderstorm WindClearwater-No damage was reported.
March 2017HailClearwater-An off-duty NWS employee reported the event.
September 2017Thunderstorm WindClearwater-The gust was measured by an in-house weather station.
April 2016Flash FloodClearwater-Flooding occurred around the 183rd W./71st St. S. Intersection.
April 2016Thunderstorm WindClearwater-No damage was reported.
April 2016Flash FloodClearwater-A creek in Clearwater overflowed its banks. Vehicles were being moved.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Power lines were blown down in the Clearwater area. This was received via social by KFDI.
April 2015Thunderstorm WindClearwater-An off duty NWS employee measured the gust.
July 2015FloodClearwater-Water was reported over the roads of 183rd St. West between 71st and 79th Streets South as well as 55th Street South between 183rd and 199th Streets West.
August 2015HailClearwater-The spotter reported the golf ball sized hail occurred along with hail of various other sizes that eventually covered the ground.
June 2013Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Winds were sustained for approximately 10 minutes.
May 2013Tornado (EF2)Clearwater-A large tornado moved across rural areas in Sedgwick county causing damage to a few farmsteads. None of the major structures took a direct hit from the tornado. Most of the damage was limited to power poles, barns, silos, and farm equipment. A horse trailer was thrown for approximately 220 yards by the tornado. The Doppler on Wheels was also in the vicinity and recorded 155 mph winds at 70 meters above ground level. This would be an EF3, however, based on damage it did not appear that wind speeds at that level reached the surface. Hence the EF2 rating.
June 2013Thunderstorm WindClearwater-A tree with an 8-inch diameter trunk was uprooted. This was a delayed report from an NWS employee.
February 2012Thunderstorm WindClearwater-A fence was damaged and several trees were blown down.
April 2012Thunderstorm WindClearwater-The wind gust was estimated by a trained spotter.
May 2012Thunderstorm WindClearwater-No damage reported.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Power lines and a few power poles downed caused some power outages in the area.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Tree limbs up to 18 inches in diameter were snapped. Clearwater was without power.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Thunderstorm wind gusts were estimated at the Elementary School.
September 2008Heavy RainClearwater-A trained spotter reported 8.00 inches of rainfall for the storm.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindClearwater-Small branches downed. (Possible over-estimate on speed).
June 2000HailClearwater-Reported by KWCH Channel 12.
September 1999HailClearwater-Hailstone diameters ranged from 0.75-0.88 inch. reports also received from amateur radio operators.
September 1999HailClearwater-Hailstone diameters ranged from 1.00-1.25 inches.
April 2026HailClearwater-no account filed
April 2024HailClearwater-no account filed
June 2021HailClearwater-no account filed
April 2019HailClearwater-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Sedgwick County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Bayneville4.8 miles20
Clonmel4.9 miles14
Viola7.5 miles19
Murray Gill8.1 miles20
Schulte8.5 miles20
Haysville9.1 miles19
Wego-Waco9.1 miles19
Prospect9.6 miles20

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on ClearwaterAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2318575The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 474315. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.