Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2026

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 124, NWS Wichita, KS

April 26, 2026McPherson County, Marion County, Saline County, Kansas

NWS Wichita, KS issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 26, 2026, 11:17 PM CDT for McPherson County, Marion County, Saline County, Kansas. It was in force for 58 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: Apr 26, 2026, 11:17 PM CDT (04:17 UTC)
Expired: Apr 27, 2026, 12:15 AM CDT
In force: 58 min
Issued by: NWS Wichita, KS
Area: Storm-based polygon
Hail: 1.0 in
Wind: 50.0 mph

Counties Marion County, KS, McPherson County, KS, Saline County, KS

The radar

The Wichita radar (KICT), 95 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:19 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Apr 26, 9:11 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 4.3 hours before the alert went out and 167 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 99 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -92 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 644 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 49 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 236 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 443 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.1
Supercell composite: 1.4

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 Wichita, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 26, 6:51 PM CDT, 4 hours 26 minutes earlier. Its key messages:

Severe storms likely late this afternoon through tonight with potentially significant severe hazards.
Mostly dry conditions and mild temperatures are expected for Monday through Wednesday with possible rain chances returning late Wednesday night into Thursday.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 26, 6:51 PM CDT, 4 hours 26 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Wichita KS
651 PM CDT Sun Apr 26 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Severe storms likely late this afternoon through tonight with
  potentially significant severe hazards.

- Mostly dry conditions and mild temperatures are expected for
  Monday through Wednesday with possible rain chances returning
  late Wednesday night into Thursday.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 324 PM CDT Sun Apr 26 2026

Currently there is an upper shortwave moving into the Central
Rockies. This shortwave will continue to move east and likely eject
into KS late tonight to early hours of Monday morning. At the
surface, a warm front is over eastern KS and extends down into
western OK with an additional warm front stretched across southern
Oklahoma. Severe storms are actively pushing through eastern
KS. Portions of central and south-central KS continue to see low
clouds and patchy fog. As we move into later this afternoon and
evening, clouds will start to clear in northern OK and into
southern KS as the warm front across southern OK continues to
push north. Instability will increase to values between
2500-3000+ J/kg as moisture advection persists. This instability
combined with around 50 kts of effective shear and mid-level
lapse rates around 7.5 C/km are sufficient for additional severe
storm development with potential to be surface based. Large to
very large hail will be possible along with damaging winds and a
potential tornado given the increasing low-level SRH with this
threat mainly across southern and southeast KS. Then as the
upper wave approaches later tonight, additional elevated
convection will be possible. Destabilization is expected to
continue combined with increased 0-6km bulk wind shear over
50kts, and very steep mid-level lapse rates. This activity would
mainly be a hail threat across northern KS into central KS and
is anticipated to continue to move into northeast KS during the
overnight to early morning hours of Monday.

Showers and storms could linger into Monday morning in northern KS
and northeast KS with drier air moving in behind a cold front late
Monday afternoon. Rich moisture looks to stay well south of our area
through Wednesday, resulting in a break of active weather to start
the week. Flow aloft will shift to more zonal by Monday night and
likely continue through much of the work week. Rain chances may
return to the forecast late Wednesday night into Thursday as model
soundings hint at elevated showers. Strong to severe thunderstorms
are not anticipated given the limited instability. Mild temperatures
are progged through most of the week with high temperatures closer
to normal with much of the area seeing highs in the upper 60s and
70s.

&&

.AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z TUESDAY/...
Issued at 635 PM CDT Sun Apr 26 2026

A few isolated severe storms have developed across southeastern
Kansas and will mainly impact CNU this evening. Additional
thunderstorms are expected to develop tonight and move east
across most of central and eastern Kansas possibly impacting
all of our TAF sites through late tonight. These storms will be
capable of producing large hail, gusty and erratic winds,
frequent lightning, and heavy rainfall. Behind the storms, low
ceilings will expand across central, south central, and
southeast Kansas. These low ceilings and patchy fog will persist
through the late morning hours before dissipating and returning
our TAF sites back to VFR conditions. Northwest winds will also
become breezy late tomorrow morning at all of our sites and
remain breezy through around sunset.

&&

.ICT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
None.

&&

DISCUSSION...GC
AVIATION...WI

Hazardous weather outlook, Apr 26, 9:41 PM CDT, 1 hour 36 minutes before

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In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 26, 8:29 PM CDT, 2 hours 48 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Wichita KS
829 PM CDT Sun Apr 26 2026

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0826 PM     Hail             Longton                 37.38N 96.08W
04/26/2026  M1.00 Inch       Elk                KS   Fire Dept/Rescue

&&

Local storm report, Apr 26, 8:34 PM CDT, 2 hours 43 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Wichita KS
834 PM CDT Sun Apr 26 2026

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0832 PM     Tornado          Altamont                37.19N 95.29W
04/26/2026                   Labette            KS   911 Call Center

            report of tornado on the ground.

&&

Local storm report, Apr 26, 9:27 PM CDT, 1 hour 50 minutes before

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Local storm report, Apr 26, 9:50 PM CDT, 1 hour 27 minutes before

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Local storm report, Apr 26, 9:51 PM CDT, 1 hour 26 minutes before

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Local storm report, Apr 26, 10:04 PM CDT, 1 hour 13 minutes before

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The office that day

Everything else NWS Wichita, KS issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 26, 7:02 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ICT	Montgomery	43 min
Apr 26, 7:30 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threat	ICT	Labette, Montgomery, Neosho, Wilson	15 min
Apr 26, 7:33 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ICT	Labette, Montgomery	57 min
Apr 26, 8:16 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Wilson	44 min
Apr 26, 8:23 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Elk	23 min
Apr 26, 8:27 PM CDT	Areal Flood Warning	ICT	Labette	12 hr
Apr 26, 8:29 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ICT	Labette	46 min
Apr 26, 8:48 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threat	ICT	Neosho	57 min
Apr 26, 8:59 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threat	ICT	Wilson	31 min
Apr 26, 9:05 PM CDT	Areal Flood Warning	ICT	Neosho	12 hr
Apr 26, 9:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Labette	21 min
Apr 26, 9:14 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning Considerable damage threat	ICT	Labette	4 hr
Apr 26, 9:19 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ICT	Labette	14 min
Apr 26, 11:43 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Ellsworth, Lincoln, Saline	62 min
Apr 27, 12:33 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threat	ICT	Ellsworth, Lincoln, Saline	72 min
Apr 27, 12:51 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Lincoln, Russell	69 min
Apr 27, 12:55 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Cowley, Sumner	25 min
Apr 27, 1:48 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Harvey, Reno	22 min
Apr 27, 1:57 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Lincoln	18 min
Apr 27, 2:45 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Saline	23 min
Apr 27, 2:05 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Allen	25 min
Apr 27, 2:18 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Allen	42 min
Apr 27, 2:36 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Allen, Neosho, Wilson, Woodson	24 min
Apr 27, 3:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Neosho, Wilson	50 min
Apr 27, 3:54 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Neosho	20 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Kansas, 2026 Every 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.