Morgan County, Missouri · Versailles
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Pipes freeze in Morgan County on about 27 nights a year, mostly November to February. Older homes, 18% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 9.7 times a year here, most often in April. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Morgan County spike on heavy-rain days, about 9.7 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 76 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
31% of occupied homes in Morgan County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
With 66 muggy nights a year, mold in Morgan County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Morgan County covers 598 square miles of central Missouri, with about 21,717 residents and 15,176 homes. Versailles is the county seat; Stover, Laurie and Syracuse are the next largest communities. Half the homes here were built before 1983, half after.
39/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Morgan County ranks 96 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Morgan County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Morgan County sits near the middle of the state. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 27 nights a year at or below 20°F (59th of 114) and 92 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 13 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near -12°F on February 16, 2021.
Most freezing nights fall from November to February, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 28 and end around Apr 10.
Rainfall is about average for Missouri. Of roughly 41.4 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 9.7 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 66th of 114. April, August and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 4.38 inches, April 30, 2017. The worst three-day stretch dropped 5.45 inches, ending December 29, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 76 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
Roughly 45% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Morgan among the newer housing stocks of Missouri's 114 counties.
Since 2000 the county has added enough housing that 27% of homes are that new. Modern PEX and copper rarely fail on their own; the leaks come from connections, appliances and storms.
28% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
16% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Missouri county median of 9.8%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
The Census counted 43% of homes as vacant, above the Missouri county median of 15.3%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
About 66 nights a year in Morgan County stay at 65°F or warmer, a sign of muggy summer air (50th of 114 counties). May is the wettest month. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Morgan County it's 14% utility gas, 54% electric, 19% propane and 12% wood. Wood heat is more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Morgan County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Cooper and Pettis get more pipe-freeze nights than Morgan. Cooper County has the oldest housing nearby, with 59% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Morgan | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 25% | 92 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 45% | 53% | 87 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 27% | 21% | 26 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 16% | 9.8% | 15 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 43% | 15% | 2 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 31% | 25% | 42 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 27/yr | 28/yr | 59 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 9.7/yr | 10/yr | 66 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 76/yr | 77/yr | 61 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 66/yr | 65/yr | 50 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 Morgan County: freezing from November to February, heavy rain in April, August and October.
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