Tornadoes and Hail in Kansas, September 21, 1993

A slow moving supercell thunderstorm moved northwest to southeast across much of Pottawatomie County during the early afternoon. Numerous reports of large hail and winds of 55 to 65 knots were common with the storm. Heavy rainfall also caused minor low land flooding. A large well defined rotating wall cloud produced two small brief tornadoes that will be discussed separately.

A small weak tornado hit briefly in an open field.

A slow moving supercell thunderstorm moved across the southern half of the county during the early afternoon producing numerous reports of large hail and winds as highs as 65 knots. The hail and high winds caused widespread damage to crops in the area. Damage was also inflicted to several buildings and vehicles on the Potawatomi Indian reservation west of Mayetta. Several windshields and windows were blow out by the combined effects of wind and hail. Heavy rain accompained the storm and produced localized flooding, especially near Soldier Creek.

A small tornado hit in open area with minor damage to crops.

A small tornado hit in open area with minor damage to crops.

A slow moving supercell thunderstorm that formed north of Manhattan moved across southern Jefferson county during the mid afternoon producing numerous reports of large hail and winds up to 75 knots. Widespread damage was inflicted to crops, vehicles and buildings by the combined effects of hail and high wind. Heavy rainfall of 3.00 to 5.00 inches temporarily flooded low lying and poor drainage areas, especially roads and highways.

A small tornado hit again in open county with no reports of damage.

A large well defined rotating wall cloud produced several funnel clouds as it moved southeast across the extreme northeast section of the county.

The supercell thunderstorm that moved across parts of northeast Kansas hit the northern half of Douglas County including the city of Lawrence at late afternoon. Numerous and widespread reports of large hail and winds clocked at 66kts caused significant and large scale damage from near Le Compton to Lawrence to Eudora. Many power lines were brought down along with trees and large limbs. Hail damage was common across Lawrence. Torrential rainfall in a short time flooded many roads. In some areas, winds were estimated at 100 mph. The storm briefly stalled across the northwest part of the county before regenerating and moving slow east again.

A small tornado touched down briefly northeast of Lawrence in the Midland area along Highway 24. No damage was observed or reported.

Severe storms repeatedly moved to the southwest of Reno producing up to baseball-size hail and 60 knot winds. Damage from the hail was estimated at $200,000 to homes and cars. Windows were also broken in Linwood where tennis ball-size hail was reported.

A short lived tornado hit about 0.5 mile south of the Lawrence Airport causing only minor damage to some outbuildings.

Severe thunderstorms produced hail up to the size of baseballs and 60 knot winds throughout parts of western and southern Johnson County. Hail broke numerous windows and heavily damaged roofs and automobiles. Damage was also reported in Clare.