Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2026

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 91, NWS Hastings, NE

May 17, 2026Jewell County, Mitchell County, Kansas

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 17, 2026, 6:12 PM CDT for Jewell County, Mitchell County, Kansas. It was in force for 48 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 17, 2026, 6:12 PM CDT (23:12 UTC)
Expired
May 17, 2026, 7:00 PM CDT
In force
48 min
Issued by
NWS Hastings, NE
Area
Storm-based polygon
Hail
1.5 in
Wind
60.0 mph

Counties Jewell County, KS, Mitchell County, KS

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 84 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:13 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 17, 3:16 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 12:00Z, 11.2 hours before the alert went out and 231 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2026-05-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 343 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2026-05-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 286 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
343 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-358 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
860 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
36 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
286 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
460 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
2.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 17, 1:18 PM CDT, 4 hours 54 minutes earlier. Its key messages:

  • Severe weather is likely this afternoon and evening, mainly in areas along/east of Highway 281. All severe threats are possible (large hail, damaging wind, and a few tornadoes), mainly in the 5pm-10pm window.
  • Portions of northern Kansas and perhaps the Highway 81 corridor in Nebraska have one more chance for severe storms on Monday afternoon. The rest of the area will be noticably cooler with only a few showers expected.
  • Cooler-than-normal conditions are expected through midweek. Then we gradually trend warmer (with more rain chances) late in the week.
Area forecast discussion, May 17, 1:18 PM CDT, 4 hours 54 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Hastings NE
118 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Severe weather is likely this afternoon and evening, mainly in
  areas along/east of Highway 281. All severe threats are
  possible (large hail, damaging wind, and a few tornadoes),
  mainly in the 5pm-10pm window.

- Portions of northern Kansas and perhaps the Highway 81
  corridor in Nebraska have one more chance for severe storms on
  Monday afternoon. The rest of the area will be noticably
  cooler with only a few showers expected.

- Cooler-than-normal conditions are expected through midweek.
  Then we gradually trend warmer (with more rain chances) late
  in the week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 1235 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

The main concern in this forecast revolves around severe
convection today and on Monday.

Currently, most of the area is in the warm sector, with a cold
front pushing in from the west, and a dryline/triple-point
expected to push in from the southwest this afternoon. The
eastern half of the area should be quite unstable by late
afternoon, the MLCAPE values likely in the 2000-4000 J/kg range.
If anything, CAMs have trended a bit further west with storm
initiation...possibly as early as 4pm...but becoming more likely
by around 5pm in the Highway 281 corridor. Strong deep-layer
shear will be supportive of supercells, potentially merging into
multiple line segments later into the evening hours. Confidence
in coverage is highest in northern parts of the area and
southern portions of the area, areas to the south and east of
Hastings may not

Generally the entire area near/east of Highway 281 has some
threat for tornado today, although the highest risk is expected
to be north and east of Grand Island where low-level shear is
maximized. Sig-tor parameter (STP) values of 5-7+ are forecast
by the RAP/mesoanalysis, which is a quite substantial indicator
of tornado potential.

A storm or two may approach western areas later this evening,
but are expected to weaken as the move into the area in the
8-10pm timeframe. Most of our Nebraska counties should be
storm-free by 8-9pm, but southern portions of the area have
potential for a longer-duration event, with storms continuing
to build near and just north of I-70. If this occurs, localized
flooding is possible (mainly Mitchell/Osborne counties),
although this will depend exactly on where storms setup.

Monday will start off cloudy and relatively cool, with
potentially some showers/drizzle in the morning and early
afternoon. An additional round of convection is expected to
develop along the stalled front. Less of the area is expected to
be impacted than today and Saturday, but nevertheless, portions
of northern KS, along with the Hwy 81 corridor could see severe
storms in the 3-8pm timeframe.

A Red Flag Warning remains in effect until 9pm today for
southwestern zones that are expected to see a quick burst of dry
air behind the dryline this afternoon. After today, the overall
fire weather threat is relatively low for the rest of this
week.

Not much time was spent on the longer-range forecast. Temperatures
remain below-normal through midweek, then gradually warm back
up into the Memorial Day weekend. Rain/t-storm chances also
return to the forecast by the end of next week.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z MONDAY/...
Issued at 1159 AM CDT Sun May 17 2026

For KGRI/KEAR Airports:

A broken line of thunderstorms is expected to develop over
central Nebraska later this afternoon, although this is more
likely to impact GRI than EAR. Winds also shift to the north-
northwest as a cold front moves into the the area.

Ceilings are expected to fall through tonight, likely becoming
IFR by shortly after sunrise on Monday and persisting through at
least midday. A few showers are also possible Monday morning,
but any additional thunderstorms should remain south/west of
GRI/EAR Monday afternoon.

&&

.GID WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NE...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM CDT this evening for NEZ083-084.
KS...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM CDT this evening for KSZ005-006-
     017-018.

&&

DISCUSSION...Mangels
AVIATION...Mangels
Hazardous weather outlook, May 17, 1:26 PM CDT, 4 hours 46 minutes before
Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Hastings NE
126 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

KSZ005>007-017>019-NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087-
181200-
Phillips-Smith-Jewell-Rooks-Osborne-Mitchell-Valley-Greeley-Nance-
Sherman-Howard-Merrick-Polk-Dawson-Buffalo-Hall-Hamilton-York-
Gosper-Phelps-Kearney-Adams-Clay-Fillmore-Furnas-Harlan-Franklin-
Webster-Nuckolls-Thayer-
126 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for south central Nebraska and
portions of north central Kansas.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight.

The threat for severe weather returns late this afternoon and
evening, primarily for areas near and east of Highway 281. Threats
include hail to the size of baseballs, damaging wind gusts near
70 MPH, and a few tornadoes. The main timeframe for severe storms
will be 5pm to 10pm, although a few storms could develop earlier
than that window or persist a bit later than that.

In addition to the severe weather potential today, near critical
to critical fire weather conditions are expected, and a Red Flag
Warning is in effect for portions of the area from 1PM to 9PM.
Please refer to the warning statement for more specific
information.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Monday through Saturday.

Severe weather concerns continue on Monday as a cold front moves
across the area. The best potential for severe weather will be in
northern Kansas and along and east of the Highway 81 corridor in
Nebraska. The main timeframe of concern is 3PM to 8PM.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotters are encouraged to report any hail, damaging wind, or
tornadoes to the National Weather Service.

&&

More information may be obtained at the following web page:
   https://www.weather.gov/hastings

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 17, 6:00 PM CDT, 12 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 17, 6:01 PM CDT, 11 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 17, 6:02 PM CDT, 10 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 17, 6:06 PM CDT, 6 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 17, 6:08 PM CDT, 4 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 17, 6:09 PM CDT, 3 minutes before
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The office that day

Everything else NWS Hastings, NE issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 16, 7:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDBuffalo, Kearney26 min
May 16, 7:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDGreeley, Valley28 min
May 16, 7:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDDawson, Gosper, Phelps52 min
May 16, 7:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDAdams, Buffalo, Hall, Kearney50 min
May 16, 7:39 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningGIDBuffalo6 hr
May 16, 7:48 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryGIDHall, Howard6 hr
May 16, 8:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDBuffalo, Dawson, Phelps50 min
May 16, 8:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDBuffalo, Hall48 min
May 16, 8:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDAdams, Franklin, Kearney, Webster44 min
May 16, 8:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDFurnas, Gosper, Harlan50 min
May 16, 8:46 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHall, Hamilton, Howard, Merrick44 min
May 16, 9:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDAdams, Clay, Nuckolls, Webster38 min
May 16, 9:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDFranklin, Gosper, Harlan, Phelps48 min
May 16, 9:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHamilton, Merrick, Nance, Polk, York46 min
May 16, 9:25 PM CDTTornado WarningGIDNuckolls, Webster27 min
May 16, 9:28 PM CDTTornado WarningGIDFranklin, Harlan32 min
May 16, 9:46 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDAdams, Franklin, Harlan, Kearney, Phelps, Webster59 min
May 16, 9:46 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDAdams, Clay, Nuckolls, Webster44 min
May 16, 9:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDFillmore, Polk, York39 min
May 16, 9:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Fillmore, Nuckolls, Thayer33 min
May 16, 10:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Destructive damage threatGIDAdams, Franklin, Kearney23 min
May 16, 10:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDAdams, Clay, Kearney, Nuckolls, Webster58 min
May 16, 10:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Fillmore, Nuckolls, Thayer52 min
May 16, 10:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDFillmore, York26 min
May 16, 10:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDBuffalo, Hall, Hamilton, Howard, Merrick53 min
May 16, 10:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Fillmore, Hamilton, Merrick, Polk, York61 min
May 16, 11:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDClay, Fillmore, Nuckolls, Thayer51 min
May 17, 1:58 AM CDTRed Flag WarningGIDFranklin, Harlan18 hr
May 17, 3:58 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementGIDMerrick32 min
May 17, 4:09 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementGIDSherman51 min
May 17, 4:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDBuffalo, Hall, Howard, Sherman49 min
May 17, 4:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHoward, Sherman40 min
May 17, 4:36 PM CDTTornado WarningGIDHall, Howard, Merrick39 min
May 17, 4:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDGreeley, Howard, Merrick, Nance, Sherman50 min
May 17, 4:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDNuckolls, Webster50 min
May 17, 5:07 PM CDTTornado Warning Tornado observedConsiderable damage threatGIDHoward, Merrick, Nance, Polk53 min
May 17, 5:21 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Nuckolls, Webster24 min
May 17, 5:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Destructive damage threatGIDNance47 min
May 17, 5:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDNuckolls, Thayer52 min
May 17, 5:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Fillmore, Hamilton, Nuckolls, York36 min
May 17, 5:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Destructive damage threatGIDNance23 min
May 17, 6:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDMerrick, Nance45 min
May 17, 6:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDClay, Hamilton, Polk, York27 min
May 17, 6:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDHamilton, Polk, York52 min
May 17, 6:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDFillmore, Nuckolls, Thayer50 min
May 17, 6:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDMerrick, Nance35 min
May 17, 6:41 PM CDTTornado WarningGIDThayer37 min
May 17, 6:48 PM CDTTornado Warning EmergencyTornado observedCatastrophic damage threatGIDThayer13 min
May 16, 9:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Destructive damage threatGIDRooks43 min
May 16, 9:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatGIDOsborne, Rooks67 min
May 16, 10:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDMitchell54 min
May 17, 4:45 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementGIDJewell30 min
May 17, 5:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDMitchell50 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Kansas, 2026Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2026

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.