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Tornadoes slam northeast Kansas; 1 killed

Cowboy

Wait for it.
I couldn't help but think of a few FF members last nite as I was listening to the reports on the radio last night . This is northeast of us but I beleive its close to Erik & Danang Sailor , So I hope they all including friends , family and neighbors made it though the storms unscaithed , As well as CG in Oklahoma and Jerry (ki0ho)in Missouri also effected by severe storms . :flowers:

We have really been lucky ourselves this year unlike many who have dealt with wildfires, floods and tornados , But I think and pray for all of those effected in other areas of the US everyday , sure makes one thankfull when all I have to bitch about was a lack of rain and a little wind damage now and then . I hope everyone stays safe . :flowers:


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43124039/ns/weather/
TOPEKA, Kansas — A tornado swept through the small eastern Kansas town of Reading, killing one person and destroying at least 20 homes and damaging 200 other properties, a state emergency management official said early Sunday.
One person died as a result of injuries sustained in the storm and several others received minor injuries, though an exact number of injured was not immediately available, Kansas Division of Emergency Management spokeswoman Sharon Watson told NBC News. A hospital in nearby Emporia told The Associated Press that the victim was a man and other people were brought in with injuries, but it didn't release further details.
The fatality in Reading is the first death associated with the series of storms and subsequent tornadoes that swept through parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri Saturday evening. Violent storms, funnel clouds, rain and hail the size of baseballs also pummeled the affected areas.
Witnesses reported uprooted trees, damaged homes and downed power lines in Reading, a town of about 230 people about 20 miles northeast of Emporia. Reports said the downtown post office and fire station also were damaged.
Officials in the town converted the local elementary school into a makeshift shelter for those made homeless by the storm, Watson told NBC, noting that state officials will work with staff from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Sunday morning to begin evaluating the full extent of the damage.
A Facebook group was set up to support Reading residents and post information about residents' whereabouts and reports of damage.
A state highway leading into Reading was closed and officials asked volunteers to hold back, The Emporia Gazette reported.
In Oskaloosa, winds knocked down fences and trees. One fell on a trailer but officials got the occupants out, TV station KMBC reported.
Tornado warnings remained in effect in Osage, Douglas and Franklin counties late Saturday as baseball size hail was reported by local media.
Two tornadoes touched down earlier in the Topeka area, NBC Station KSHB reported.
Residents reported seeing baseball-sized hail and downed tree limbs across the city, and staff at the Topeka Capital-Journal's downtown office heard storm sirens throughout the storm and found cars' windows had been blown out in the parking lot, the newspaper reported.
Topeka police Lt. Scott Gilchrist told the Capital-Journal that there were reports of downed power lines and trees, but that flooding wasn't an issue.
"We came out fairly well off," he told the newspaper.
A tornado was confirmed on the ground about 7:05 p.m. in Perry in Jefferson County where debris was reported flying, but damage reports were minimal.
 
Saw that on the morning news. Those storms came together very quickly according to the NWS and folks did not have much warning time.
 
We survived intact - haven't been out to look for damaged trees yet.
We were planting blueberry bushes in bright sunlight when the thunder started.
10 minutes later we tossed everything in the back of the truck and headed for the garage as the downpour started.
The storms were pretty intense, but we didn't have any tornadoes in our area (20 miles N of Topeka). Largest hail I saw was a bit over an inch in diameter.
One of my nieces posted on FB that she'd seen her first tornado -- it was probably the one that hit Reading.
 
First, everyone here is okay; the tornado action was mostly to the south of town. However, we had a LOT of hail, some of it tennis ball sized; there are more leaves laying in our yard than are left on the trees. Our car and pickup got some minor damage, but they were largely protected by the trees. On the other hand, our son's car wasn't under cover - it looks like a demented troll attacked it with a ball peen hammer!

Here's a sample of what hit us:
 

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Erik & Danang, good to hear ya'll are safe. Sounds like it's still rough out in that general area.
 
Just got a call from Joplin, MO. Friend's wife called me. seems their house took off for parts unknown. Just the foundations left. She didn't know of anyone hurt or killed close to her, but said there were some deaths in the general area.
 
Probably getting the last end of that storm right now.
Thank God the worst part is just north of here, and to the south.
Getting a nice light show right now.. and thunder.
 
Just got a call from Joplin, MO. Friend's wife called me. seems their house took off for parts unknown. Just the foundations left. She didn't know of anyone hurt or killed close to her, but said there were some deaths in the general area.
Yup I been following the Joplin tornado all night long . 75% of the entire city is wiped out and 100 confirmed dead . I dont beleivre I have ever heard of a city that size being hit by a tornado of this size since it wiped Greensburg KS of the map , But it was a much smaller town .


Thoughts and prayers out to all affected , the damage and storys still coming out are unbeleivable . :flowers:

Thanks Erik and DS for checking in , glad things wern't any worse for Ya'll . :wink:
 
I am watching the Joplin coverage this morning. I can't begin to put it into words. The devastation is catastrophic.
 
As soon as they open the roads into Joplin back up to non-residents, I'll be on the way down there with tools and a couple chainsaws.
Family is all fine, but my aunt's house got "clipped" and my eldest cousin on that side of the family has a LOT of trees down.

last I heard, only 25% of the town is flat, but 75% of it is damaged in some way.
this was "only" an F3 tornado (roughly 1/2 mile wide) -- the one that hit Greensburg a couple of years ago was an F5X (over a mile wide)
 
It looks like we are in for a rough 24 hours or so . I dont remember the weather media ever giving so much of a notice to prepare for tornados before . The way they are right now its not just when but where they will hit in south central KS and Oklahoma . :unsure:

I sure hope everyone else takes the warnings serious and stays safe, I know we will be prepared. :wink:
 
will definitely be an interesting next 48 hours -- I may sleep in the basement "Dorothy room" tonight. (poured concrete walls & 5" thick concrete ceiling with #4 rebar on 12" centers -- it's not going anywhere)
 
will definitely be an interesting next 48 hours -- I may sleep in the basement "Dorothy room" tonight. (poured concrete walls & 5" thick concrete ceiling with #4 rebar on 12" centers -- it's not going anywhere)
Yup same here , we been busy setting up a candle buisness for the wife in the basement and everything I built is perty much bullet proof ( as much as posibble anyway ) to where it will be used for our safe room .

I ussually dont sweat the warnings much but I have an erie feeling this time for some reason . Might be because of the Joplin incident or the fact that the Udall tornado happened on May 25th 1955 which is the worst one I can ever remember , allthough I was perty young at the time . Sadly a lot of areas are included as well including Joplin . :unsure:



http://weather.weatherbug.com/weath...s.html?zcode=z6286&region=8&region_name=North

Destructive Storm Outbreak Likely Across Plains Today

UPDATED 8:30 AM CDT, May 24, 2011

UPDATED By WeatherBug Sr. Meteorologist, James West



Enlarge



An extremely dangerous severe storm threat is developing across the central and southern Plains and Ozarks, and a widespread tornado outbreak will likely occur. In addition to the tornadoes, hail to the size of softballs and damaging winds are likely today.


Conditions are nearly perfect for quick development of widespread severe thunderstorms starting early this afternoon and lasting through this evening in a wide zone of the southern Plains and western Ozarks. This zone of severe storms will extend east from a line reaching from the Red River Valley of Oklahoma and Texas northward into southeastern Kansas, including the highly populated Oklahoma City area.


WeatherBug Meteorologist Bay Scroggins has the latest on today's severe storm threat in this exclusive WeatherBug Video.


Feeding these storms is a warm and very humid air mass in place across the southern and central Plains, and daytime heating today will help push temperatures into the upper 80s. A storm system barreling out of the Rockies today will push a cold front eastward across the southern Plains. The combined storm will drive cooler and drier air into the High Plains, close enough to clash with the muggy air mass.


The battleground between these two air masses, across central Kansas and eastern Oklahoma, is where severe storms will fire this afternoon. A unusually strong jet stream for this time of year will help produce very strong shear or spinning of air at varying layers of the atmosphere. This will produce massive rotating thunderstorms capable of dropping large and powerful tornadoes.


The threat is sufficient enough that the national Storm Prediction Center considers it a High Risk for severe storms and tornadoes across southern Kansas and central Oklahoma. Residents of cities such as Wichita, Kan., and Oklahoma City, Norman, and Tulsa, Okla., need to pay particularly close attention to the weather throughout the day.


A lesser but still quite potent Moderate Risk surrounds the zone of high risk. Central Kansas, the rest of eastern Oklahoma and adjacent portions of western Arkansas and northern Texas will be within this zone of activity.


Along the low coming out of the Rockies and into the High Plains, storms are already forming. A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect across central Kansas. More watches are expected later today.


Much of this area was punished on Monday by thunderstorms, as Gotebo, Okla., reported baseball-sized hail, as did Apache and Okarche, Okla. Wind gusts to 60 mph were reported near Mulhall, Okla., and power line and property damage was reported in Arkoma, Okla.


The storm threat will shift a little further to the east on Wednesday, with dangerous storms likely to strike the Mid-South and Mississippi Valley.
 
The first tornado warning I have heard of today was issued in far SW Kansas while I was home for lunch from 1:15 to 2:15 central time...
 
both of you need to keep your heads down this evening!

Sound advice - don't want to lose either of you. Erik, we might want to be a bit paranoid ourselves. As we found over the weekend this area is not immune from catching hell even on the fringes of these things. Be especially careful if you head to Joplin; it looks they are sitting on the bulls-eye for this next storm as well. We still haven't gotten back together for that second burger!

 
Close enough warning for me , Just saying we were going to be under a high risk of large hail, damaging winds and a very good posibility of multiple tornados when I first heard it at 2 am this morning . My Momma might have raised a dummy but he lives in Alaska :wink:

At any rate whatever it is its here , or at least the start of it . Stay safe folks and dont wait untill its to late to take cover . I'm shuttin down here . :flowers:

http://www.wunderground.com/US/KS/083.html#TOW

Sedgwick

Tornado Watch
Statement as of 4:03 PM CDT on May 24, 2011

Tornado Watch 360 remains in effect until 1100 PM CDT for the
following locations


KS
. Kansas counties included are

Allen Barton Butler
Chase Chautauqua Cowley
Elk Ellsworth Greenwood
Harper Harvey Kingman
Labette Lincoln McPherson
Marion Montgomery Neosho
Reno Rice Russell
Saline Sedgwick Sumner
Wilson Woodson







Severe Thunderstorm Warning
Statement as of 4:27 PM CDT on May 24, 2011

The National Weather Service in Wichita has issued a

* Severe Thunderstorm Warning for...
Harvey County in south central Kansas...
northeastern Kingman County in south central Kansas...
Reno County in south central Kansas...
western Sedgwick County in south central Kansas...

* until 515 PM CDT

* at 425 PM CDT... National Weather Service meteorologists were
tracking a severe thunderstorm capable of producing quarter size
hail... and damaging winds in excess of 60 mph. This storm was
located 6 miles southwest of Goddard... or 18 miles west of downtown
Wichita... and moving north at 65 mph.

* Locations impacted include...
Hutchinson... Newton... Goddard... Pretty Prairie... west Wichita...
Arlington... Andale... Colwich... Maize... Mount Hope... Abbyville...
Haven... Partridge... Sedgwick... South Hutchinson... Burrton...
Halstead... Nickerson... Buhler and Hesston.

Precautionary/preparedness actions...

Severe thunderstorms produce damaging wind in excess of 60 miles per
hour... destructive hail... deadly lightning... and very heavy rain. For
your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of your
home or business. Heavy rains flood roads quickly so do not drive
into areas where water covers the Road.


Lat... Lon 3817 9846 3818 9822 3816 9821 3816 9815
3818 9813 3817 9726 3748 9751 3748 9763
3760 9785 3767 9823
time... Mot... loc 2127z 194deg 54kt 3763 9765
wind... hail 60mph 1.00in


Cook








Special Weather Statement
Statement as of 4:14 PM CDT on May 24, 2011

... The National Weather Service in Wichita has issued a significant
weather advisory for Kingman... Reno and Sedgwick counties...

At 411 PM CDT... satellite imagery and National Weather Service
Doppler radar indicated that thunderstorms were rapidly developing
near Conway Springs... or 20 miles northwest of Wellington... and
moving north at 50 mph.

Be prepared to take shelter in the event the storms intensify and
become severe, or a warning is issued by the National Weather
Service.


Cook
 
Looks like we got lucky at our location again at least so far , mainly wind , rain and small hail. Others areas around us not so lucky as several smaller tornados have been reported with some damage , as well as the ones in Oklahoma I haven't heard very much about yet as far as injuries or worse .

There were two deaths reported north west of us from someone pulling over because they couldn't see to drive safely and sadly a tree fell on their vehicle and they both were killed .

I dont think its over yet for a lot of folks , so I sure hope everyone stays safe and dont ignore the warnings . Some folks never get the oportunity as we had today .
 
thunder just stopped - rain started. no hail yet.
Skies went from black to greenish and we're in a tornado watch.
Here's our current radar image -- not pretty for anything west of US 81.
Yep its far from over for sure Erik for a lot of the KS and the surrounding states . I just hope everyone is as lucky as we have been so far . Stay safe Ya'll . :flowers:
 
Seems the threat has move east for today after tearing up Arkansas overnight. Keep an eye on the forecasts and stay safe. Those storms make our mud seem like a minor PITA.
 
working in KC today - sirens went off at 11:15, got the all clear at 12:15.
had touchdowns each about 2 miles away on 3 sides of the office building.
 
Just heavy rain here - no hail and no high wind. We're doing fine compared to a lot of others.

Eric, keep your head down over there in KC, and be extra careful on the Turnpike when you head back!

 
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