Haskell County, Oklahoma · Stigler
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Pipes freeze in Haskell County on about 9 nights a year, mostly December to February. Older homes, 17% of the stock here, are most at risk.
May brings the most downpours to Haskell County, part of 15 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
17% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
Haskell County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 6.11 inches, and about 54 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
19% of occupied homes in Haskell County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Oklahoma county median of 12.5%.
With 108 muggy nights a year, mold in Haskell County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Haskell County covers 577 square miles of eastern Oklahoma, with about 11,683 residents and 5,704 homes. The county seat is Stigler, and Whitefield, McCurtain and Keota round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1984, half after.
50/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Haskell County ranks 39 of 77 Oklahoma counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Haskell County ranks highest compared with other Oklahoma counties.
Winters here are on the gentler end for Oklahoma, and pipes still freeze. From 2015–2024 it averaged 9 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 57 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 58th of 77 counties.
On February 17, 2021 the low fell to about -9°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 10 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from December 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 Nov 10 and end around Mar 23.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Oklahoma. The county gets about 52.3 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 15 days of an inch or more (7th of 77). Those downpours cluster in April, May and October, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 6.11 inches on September 22, 2018. The worst three-day stretch dropped 8.17 inches, ending December 28, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 54 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
45% of homes in Haskell County predate 1980, below the Oklahoma county median of 54.8%, which ranks 56th of Oklahoma's 77 counties.
27% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Oklahoma. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps 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.
21% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Oklahoma county median of 12.3%. 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 20% of homes as vacant, above the Oklahoma county median of 17.1%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 108 times a year here, above the Oklahoma county median of 98. Keep indoor humidity under 60%, as the EPA advises, and dry any leak within 24 to 48 hours; in a humid month a wet basement left alone won't dry by itself.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Haskell County it's 30% utility gas, 49% electric, 16% propane and 2% wood. Propane heat is more common here than in most Oklahoma counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Haskell County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Muskogee and Sequoyah get more pipe-freeze nights than Haskell. Muskogee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 55% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Haskell | Oklahoma median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 17% | 24% | 56 of 77 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 45% | 55% | 56 of 77 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 27% | 22% | 20 of 77 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 21% | 12% | 8 of 77 |
| Vacant homes | 20% | 17% | 27 of 77 |
| Wood or propane heat | 19% | 13% | 19 of 77 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 9/yr | 13/yr | 58 of 77 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 15/yr | 11/yr | 7 of 77 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 54/yr | 65/yr | 63 of 77 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 108/yr | 98/yr | 11 of 77 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Oklahoma county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Haskell County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in April, May 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