Pawnee County, Oklahoma · Pawnee
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Pawnee County averages 17 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to February, and 23% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 9.5 times a year here, most often in May. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Pawnee County gets about 9.5 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
In Pawnee County, 7.1 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
19% of occupied homes in Pawnee County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Oklahoma county median of 12.5%.
With 95 muggy nights a year, mold in Pawnee County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 15,795 people live in Pawnee County, 568 square miles in northeast Oklahoma, in roughly 7,326 homes. The county seat is Pawnee, and Cleveland, Westport and Jennings round out the largest towns. Half the homes here were built before 1978, half after.
50/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Pawnee County ranks 44 of 77 Oklahoma counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Pawnee County ranks highest compared with other Oklahoma counties.
Pawnee County gets more hard-freeze nights than most of Oklahoma. It averaged 77 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 17 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 77 Oklahoma counties that's 19th.
On February 17, 2021 the low fell to about -16°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 12 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs December to February, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 1 and end around Apr 7.
Rainfall is about average for Oklahoma. About 9.5 days a year bring an inch or more (51st of 77), most often in May, out of 37 inches of total precipitation. On May 21, 2019, 7.1 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 8.19 inches, ending May 21, 2019, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 70 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
55% of homes in Pawnee County predate 1980, close to the Oklahoma county median of 54.8%, which ranks 37th of Oklahoma's 77 counties.
Housing age is mixed: 23% of homes are pre-1960 and 22% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 23% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
23% 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.
Beyond water
Pawnee County averages 95 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in May. 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 Pawnee County it's 36% utility gas, 43% electric, 14% propane and 4% wood. Wood and propane heat are 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 Pawnee County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Osage gets more pipe-freeze nights than Pawnee. Noble County has the oldest housing nearby, with 60% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Pawnee | Oklahoma median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 23% | 24% | 42 of 77 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 55% | 55% | 37 of 77 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 22% | 22% | 41 of 77 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 23% | 12% | 4 of 77 |
| Vacant homes | 17% | 17% | 42 of 77 |
| Wood or propane heat | 19% | 13% | 19 of 77 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 17/yr | 13/yr | 19 of 77 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 9.5/yr | 11/yr | 51 of 77 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 70/yr | 65/yr | 24 of 77 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 95/yr | 98/yr | 48 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 Pawnee 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