BlockRiga, Kansas
14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Ogallah Township. It lies in ZIP code area 67637. The Survey maps it on the Ogallah quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 14 printed sheetsMatched 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.
- 1893 USGS Ellis quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
- 1955 USGS Great Bend quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Great Bend quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Great Bend quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1961 USGS Ogallah quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Hays quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
6 since 2016Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 6 fires within 5 miles of Riga between 2016 and 2018, burning about 26 acres in total. None started naturally. None 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 |
|---|---|
| Equipment and vehicle use | 4 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 July 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1.0 acres | Kansas Forest Service | 201 |
| 12 June 2017 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Ellis County | 1700014 |
| 8 May 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Ellis County | 1700009 |
| 20 March 2017 | Equipment and vehicle use | 4.0 acres | Ellis County | 017-084 |
| 1 December 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | 20 acres | Kansas Forest Service | 016-251 |
| 29 January 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Ellis County | 017-022 |
Storms near this place
47 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Riga in 47 storm reports between 1998 and 2024: 28 hail, 7 tornado, 7 heavy rain, 5 thunderstorm wind. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1998 | Tornado (F1) | Riga | $15,000 | Tornado marched on into Ellis county, producing a 26 mile long path. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Riga | - | Nickel Hail reported by the public. |
| May 2023 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | NWS rain gauge storm total rainfall 2.30 inches. |
| August 2021 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Rainfall of 7.50 was measured. |
| July 2020 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Rainfall of 2.52 inches was observed. |
| July 2020 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Rainfall of 2.61 inches was observed. |
| August 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Riga | - | The top of a small barn blew off from thunderstorm winds in excess of 65 MPH. |
| August 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Riga | - | A 95 year old barn was destroyed by the high wind with the debris scattered 250 to 300 yards away. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Riga | - | Winds were estimated to be 65 MPH. |
| March 2011 | Hail | Riga | - | Nickel to quarter sized hail covered the ground. |
| June 2010 | Hail | Riga | - | Hail fell for nearly an hour. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Riga | - | A few small tree limbs were also blown down with gusty winds. |
| August 2008 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Rainfall of 3.00 was measured and it was still raining hard at the time of the observation. |
| August 2008 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Rainfall of 3.20 was measured...mainly between midnight and 8 AM. |
| May 2008 | Tornado (EF1) | Riga | - | Power poles and trees were damaged by this tornado. It moved into Ellis county at 20:47 CDT. |
| May 2008 | Tornado (EF2) | Riga | - | This tornado moved over a sparsely populated area but did EF2 damage to trees. It moved northwest towards the end of it's life cycle. |
| May 2008 | Tornado (EF1) | Riga | - | This tornado did EF1 damage to outbuildings, a grain silo, an oil tank and trees. The tornado moved into Ellis county at 20:10 CDT. |
| August 2007 | Heavy Rain | Riga | - | Two inches of rain fell overnight. |
| May 2002 | Tornado (F2) | Riga | - | The tornado that developed 3.5 miles north and 5.5 miles east of Ogallah (north of Riga) moved slowly northeast reaching a width of 350 yards before crossing into Ellis county at 440 PM. A shed was destroyed near the starting point of the tornado. Along it's path, 1200 pound bales of hay were pushed into a group of trees with a few of the bales stripped to the core. Power poles were downed, tin sheets were wrapped around trees and a stick was impaled into a post. |
| April 2001 | Tornado (F1) | Riga | - | Rapidly moving tornado moved into Ellis county at 2209. Several outbuildings were damaged. |
| April 2001 | Tornado (F0) | Riga | - | Lasted 30 seconds. Semi overturned. |
| September 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Riga | - | The wind blew down two inch diameter tree limbs. |
| May 2024 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2024 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| July 2023 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2017 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2017 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| April 2017 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| July 2016 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| April 2012 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| August 2011 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| August 2011 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| August 2011 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2010 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2010 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| August 2009 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 2007 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| August 2002 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 1999 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
| May 1999 | Hail | Riga | - | no account filed |
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 | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ogallah | 5.2 miles | 14 | |
| WaKeeney | 13.2 miles | 13 | |
| Trego Center | 13.6 miles | 13 | |
| Fort Downer | 19.0 miles | 13 | |
| Voda | 20.7 miles | 8 | |
| Collyer | 25.5 miles | 8 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 484721. 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.