Thunderstorms developed over the area the afternoon of the 4th and many became severe, eventually producing a large tornado outbreak in the Kansas City area. Large hail occurred along with 2 funnel cloud sightings.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS TOP wrote it up.
Thunderstorms developed over the area the afternoon of the 4th and many became severe, eventually producing a large tornado outbreak in the Kansas City area. Large hail occurred along with 2 funnel cloud sightings. Strong winds spread away from the thunderstorms over several counties and produced power line damage.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Topeka, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 4, 1:25 PM CST, 4 hours 20 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KANSAS 225 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003 RAIN CHANCES FROM WEDNESDAY THROUGH THE WEEKEND IS THE MAIN FORECAST CONCERN. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL SHOULD END BY EARLY EVENING AS DRY LINE MOVES EAST OF THE CWA. WRAP-AROUND COLD POOL ALOFT MAY SPARK A FEW SHOWERS DURING THE EVENING BUT GENERALLY DRIER WEATHER EXPECTED FOR THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEK. COLD FRONT WILL PUSH TO THE SOUTH ON MONDAY...THEN BEGIN ITS TREK BACK NORTH AS A WARM FRONT ON WEDNESDAY. CONVECTION IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE IN THE CWA THEN. HAVE KEPT CHANCE POPS GOING FOR THIS. FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK...ANOTHER UPPER TROUGH WILL DROP INTO THE WESTERN U.S. A SERIES OF VORT LOBES EJECTING NORTHEAST FROM THE BASE OF THE TROUGH WILL TRIGGER SURFACE LOW PRESSURE IN THE HIGH PLAINS. WITH WARM FRONT TO THE NORTH...PLAINS WILL BE SUPPLIED WITH WARM AND MOIST GULF AIR. THIS COMBINATION WILL RESULT IN A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS JUST ABOUT ANY DAY RIGHT ON THROUGH SUNDAY. AFTER COLLABORATION WITH SURROUNDING OFFICES...BEST APPROACH NOW APPEARS TO BE TO SHOTGUN CHANCE POPS FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7 AND THEREFORE WAS DONE. TEMPERATURES WILL COOL SLIGHTLY WITH CURRENT LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVING EAST. LOW TEMPERATURES SHOULD AVERAGE UPPER 40S WITH HIGHS IN THE UPPER 60S AND 70S MONDAY AND TUESDAY. PLENTY OF SUNSHINE ON MONDAY MAY HELP TEMPS IN THE SOUTHERN CWA TO TOUCH 80. WITH ONSET OF CLOUDS/PRECIP CHANCES BY MID WEEK...WILL TREND TEMPS BACK TO NEAR NORMAL. .TOP...NONE. 62
KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-051000- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 551 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL...NORTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT ALTHOUGH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL LINGER INTO THE EVENING...IT APPEARS THE THREAT FOR TORNADOES HAS GREATLY DIMINISHED. IN ADDITION...THE THREAT OF LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL ALSO DECREASE RAPIDLY AS SUNSET APPROACHES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE AGAIN WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS WILL LIKELY NOT BE NEEDED TONIGHT. && MORE INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED AT THE FOLLOWING WEB PAGE: HTTP://WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/TOP (ALL LOWER CASE)
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA, KS
242 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0240 PM WINCHESTER KS 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/04/03 JEFFERSON
BNPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA, KS
333 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0326 PM LAWRENCE KS .75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03 DOUGLAS
BNPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA, KS
442 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0441 PM KINCAID KS 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/04/03 ANDERSONPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA, KS
520 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0500 PM 1 W JAMESTOWN KS .88 INCH HAIL
05/04/03 CLOUD REPORTED BY COUNTY EM.
0500 PM GLASCO KS .75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03 CLOUD REPORTED BY TRAINED
SPOTTER.KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-042345- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 555 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003 TORNADO WATCH #231 WILL EXPIRE AT 6PM AND NOT BE REISSUED. THE WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES... REPUBLIC WASHINGTON NEMAHA MARSHALL BROWN CLOUD JACKSON CLAY RILEY POTTAWATOMIE JEFFERSON OTTAWA GEARY SHAWNEE WABAUNSEE DICKINSON DOUGLAS MORRIS OSAGE LYON FRANKLIN COFFEY ANDERSON
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
4 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Strong non-thunderstorm winds blew down power lines near Marysville. Awnings, gas pumps, and a sign were also blown down at Home.
Strong non-thunderstorm winds blew down power lines 10 miles northwest of Clay Center.
Strong non-thunderstorm winds blew down a power pole 2 miles east of Abilene.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, May 2003
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5358682, 5358683, 5358684, 5358685.