1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 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 Omaha, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 3, 1:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE 245 AM CDT WED MAY 3 2006 DISCUSSION... COLD FRONT MOVING SLOWLY THROUGH THE SOUTHEAST PORTION OF THE CWA THIS MORNING. AT 07Z FRONT EXTENDED FROM NORTHWEST IOWA THROUGH SOUTHEAST CORNER OF NEBRASKA INTO NORTHWEST KANSAS. LINE OF CONVECTION ALONG THE FRONT FROM SOUTHWEST IOWA INTO NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS HAS BEEN MOVING STEADILY EAST AND IS EXPECTED TO BE THROUGH ALL BUT THE SOUTHEAST CORNER OF NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST CORNER OF IOWA BY 12Z. WILL KEEP SOME LOW POPS OVER THE SOUTHEAST PORTION OF THE CWA FOR THE MORNING THEN LINGER SLIGHT POPS OVER THE EXTREME SOUTHEAST CORNER OF NEBRASKA FOR THE AFTERNOON. LATEST MODELS MORE PROGRESSIVE WITH FRONT THAN YESTERDAY AND DRIVE IT FURTHER SOUTH INTO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS. AS A RESULT DRY FORECAST EXPECTED THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE SHORT TERM WITH SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING INTO THE REGION THROUGH FRIDAY. LITTLE CHANGE TO TEMPERATURE FORECAST AS NORTHERN STREAM WAVE DROPS SOME COOLER AIR INTO THE REGION. NO CHANGE TO THE EXTENDED PERIOD WITH RETURN FLOW SETTING UP BY THE WEEKEND AS SURFACE HIGH SHIFTS EAST AND PRECIP EVENT STILL INDICATED FOR LATE SUNDAY AND MONDAY. && .OAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NE...NONE. IA...NONE. && FOBERT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE 1101 PM CDT TUE MAY 2 2006 IAZ043-055-056-069-079-080-090-091-NEZ011-012-015>018-030>034- 042>045-050>053-065>068-078-088>093-031815- MONONA-HARRISON-SHELBY-POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT- PAGE-KNOX-CEDAR-THURSTON-ANTELOPE-PIERCE-WAYNE-BOONE-MADISON- STANTON-CUMING-BURT-PLATTE-COLFAX-DODGE-WASHINGTON-BUTLER- SAUNDERS-DOUGLAS-SARPY-SEWARD-LANCASTER-CASS-OTOE-SALINE- JEFFERSON-GAGE-JOHNSON-NEMAHA-PAWNEE-RICHARDSON- 1101 PM CDT TUE MAY 2 2006 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST IOWA...WEST CENTRAL IOWA...EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA...NORTHEAST NEBRASKA AND SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING...MAINLY ALONG AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM HARLAN THROUGH OMAHA AND COUNCIL BLUFFS TO DAVID CITY. SOME OF THESE STORMS MAY BE SEVERE AND CONTAIN LARGE HAIL AND PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS. THE STORMS HAVE RE-INTENSIFIED OVER CENTRAL NEBRASKA...ALONG THE COLD FRONT IN RESPONSE TO THE INCREASE IN SURFACE CONVERGENCE...INCREASING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE AND A STRENGTHENING LOW LEVEL JET. THE JET IS FORECAST TO VEER WITH TIME...WITH CONTINUED MOISTURE TRANSPORT. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE OVER PARTS OF SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST IOWA EARLY WEDNESDAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY THERE WILL BE ANOTHER CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS LATE SUNDAY INTO MONDAY...AND AGAIN ON TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ALTHOUGH A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MAY BE ISSUED LATER TONIGHT...SPOTTERS WOULD LIKELY NOT BE DEPLOYED...BUT ARE ASKED TO REPORT ANY HAIL ONE HALF INCH OR LARGER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. ZAPOTOCNY
The Topeka radar (KTWX), 133 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:59 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Lightning struck a tree next to a house and then traveled into the house and set in on fire. By the time firefighters arrived the house was completely in flames. The house and all of its contents were destroyed. There was nobody home at the time and no injuries were reported.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nebraska in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyWarnings in Nebraska, May 2006
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: 5507945.