Atchison County, Missouri · Rock Port
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Atchison County averages 47 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to March, and 54% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 7.4 times a year here, most often in June. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Atchison County gets about 7.4 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 93 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
18% of occupied homes in Atchison County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 50 times a year in Atchison County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
About 5,187 people live in Atchison County, 547 square miles in northwest Missouri, in roughly 2,726 homes. The county seat is Rock Port, and Tarkio, Fairfax and Westboro round out the largest towns. It has some of the oldest housing in the state: the median home went up in 1957.
61/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Atchison County ranks 17 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Atchison County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Atchison is on the colder side of Missouri for pipes. It averaged 122 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 47 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 114 Missouri counties that's 4th.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about -23°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 15 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs November to March. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 20 and the last spring freeze around Apr 15.
Atchison gets fewer downpours than most Missouri counties, but they still fill basements. About 7.4 days a year bring an inch or more (114th of 114), most often in June, out of 32.7 inches of total precipitation. On September 3, 2018, 2.62 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 4.03 inches (through June 26, 2021).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 93 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
Missouri's 114 counties range widely in housing age; Atchison ranks 1st, with 82% of its homes built before 1980.
In Atchison County 54% of homes are older than 1960. If yours is one of them and the plumbing has never been replaced, expect galvanized steel supply pipe and cast iron drain lines, the two materials most likely to fail quietly.
Beyond water
Atchison County averages 50 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Atchison County homes break down as 40% utility gas, 37% electric, 16% propane and 2% wood. Most homes here heat with gas or electricity, so cooking and electrical faults are the likelier fire sources. Even a contained kitchen fire can send soot through the ductwork to every room.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Atchison County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Atchison gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Atchison | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 54% | 25% | 1 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 82% | 53% | 1 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 7.5% | 21% | 114 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 3.4% | 9.8% | 106 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 16% | 15% | 53 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 18% | 25% | 78 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 47/yr | 28/yr | 4 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 7.4/yr | 10/yr | 114 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 93/yr | 77/yr | 1 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 50/yr | 65/yr | 97 of 114 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Missouri county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Atchison County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in June, July and August.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024); weather from NOAA nClimGrid-Daily county averages (EpiNOAA), 2015–2024, averaged across the county; county boundaries from Census TIGER. Reviewed 2026-10-21. Methodology