Severe Storms Pummel Kansas City Metro with Confirmed Tornado, 80 MPH Winds
Confirmed tornado strikes Raymore as destructive storms with 80 mph winds and flash flooding pummel Kansas City metro area Thursday evening.
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI — A destructive weather system unleashed confirmed tornadoes, 80 mph winds, and flash flooding across the Kansas City metropolitan area Thursday evening, prompting multiple warnings from the National Weather Service and bringing dangerous conditions to millions of residents.
A confirmed tornado was spotted over Raymore at 5:26 PM CDT, moving east at 40 mph toward Lee’s Summit, Grandview, Belton, and Pleasant Hill, according to the National Weather Service. The radar-confirmed tornado prompted immediate warnings for residents to seek shelter as flying debris posed life-threatening dangers.
The most severe conditions struck southern Jackson and northern Cass counties, where the National Weather Service reported destructive storms packing 80 mph wind gusts. Emergency management officials confirmed the extreme wind speeds, with the Kansas City Downtown Airport recording a 63 mph gust at 4:54 PM CDT.
Flash Flooding Threatens Metro Area
The National Weather Service issued a Flash Flood Warning until 9:00 PM CDT covering northeastern Johnson County in Kansas, Wyandotte County, and portions of Clay, Jackson, and Platte counties in Missouri. Doppler radar showed thunderstorms producing heavy rainfall with 0.5 to 1 inch already fallen and an additional inch possible.
Major highways faced dangerous conditions, including Interstate 70 between mile markers 1 and 28 in Missouri, Interstate 470 between mile markers 0 and 16, and Interstate 435 between mile markers 64 and 74. Interstate 49 also saw impacts between mile markers 1 and 179.
Widespread Severe Weather Impacts
The severe weather system generated numerous warnings across Missouri and neighboring states. In western Missouri, storms produced golf ball-size hail and tornado warnings near Lewistown and Canton, with rotations moving northeast at 50 mph.
Butler, Adrian, Rich Hill, Urich, Deepwater, Montrose, Hume, Rockville, Foster, Passaic, Worland, Ballard, Hartwell, and La Due all faced severe thunderstorm conditions with 60 mph winds and penny-size hail. Interstate 49 between mile markers 118 and 146 experienced hazardous driving conditions.
Communities throughout north central Missouri, including Chillicothe, Hamilton, Gallatin, Breckenridge, Wheeling, Utica, Chula, Mooresville, Lock Springs, Dawn, Spring Hill, and Avalon, faced destructive storm conditions with 80 mph winds threatening mobile homes and causing extensive tree damage.
Multiple Counties Under Threat
The National Weather Service issued severe thunderstorm warnings for Cass, Henry, Bates, Clay, Ray, Carroll, Caldwell, Lafayette, Jackson, and Johnson counties in Missouri. Additional warnings covered Clark County in northeastern Missouri and southwestern Lee County in Iowa.
Weather spotters reported a rotating wall cloud southwest of South Gifford Missouri, leading to tornado warnings for the area. The storms moved northeast at speeds ranging from 35 to 60 mph, bringing quarter-size to golf ball-size hail and destructive wind speeds.
Residents in affected areas were advised to avoid flooded roadways and seek immediate shelter from the severe weather conditions. The tornado watch remained in effect until 9:00 PM CDT for west central Missouri.
