Strong gradient winds howled across Central Kansas as a strong cold front moved across the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 7 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 ICT wrote it up.
Strong gradient winds howled across Central Kansas as a strong cold front moved across the area.
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 Wichita, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 6, 5:27 AM CST, 3 hours 57 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 527 AM CST THU NOV 6 2008 && .AVIATION...12Z TAFS KRSL/KSLN/KHUT/KICT/KCNU ONLY AVIATION CONCERN WILL BE VERY GUSTY W-NWRLY WINDS TODAY. DEEP UPPER LOW TO MOVE FROM NRN PLAINS TO UPR MS VLY FROM TODAY INTO TONIGHT. STRONGEST PRESSURE GRADIENT/STEEPEST 1000-850 MIXING TO OCCUR FROM LATE AM INTO THE PM HOURS BEFORE SUBSIDING SOME TONIGHT. GUSTS OF 35-40KT LIKELY IN CNTRL/S-CNTRL KS...BEFORE DIMINISHING THIS EVE. VFR CIGS (5000-7000FT) EXPECTED TO IMPACT CNTRL KS IN ASSOCIATION WITH WRAP-AROUND CLOUD COVER. JMC && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 310 AM CST THU NOV 6 2008/ SYNOPSIS... WATER VAPOR IMAGERY VIVIDLY DISPLAYING DEEP INTENSE TROPOSPHERIC CYCLONE CENTERED OVER THE SD/NEBRASKA BORDER EARLY THIS MORNING. THIS FEATURE IS ENABLING A STRONG COLD FRONT TO SURGE E/SE ACROSS THE KS/MO BORDER WHERE A FEW SCATTERED -SHRA WERE LINGERING AT 2 AM CST. THE INTENSE CYCLONE WILL DRIFT VERY SLOWLY E TODAY & MAY DEEPEN EVEN FURTHER AS IT VENTURES OVER THE MN/IA BORDER TONIGHT. THIS WILL INDUCE STRONG NW WINDS TO WHIP ACROSS CENTRAL & MUCH OF SC KS TODAY. IN CENTRAL KS...CONCERN EXISTS FOR THE WINDS TO REACH HIGH WIND WARNING CRITERIA. DISCUSSION... TODAY: PER SYNOPSIS...AN UPGRADE FROM A WIND ADVISORY TO A HIGH WIND WARNING WAS GREATLY CONSIDERED FOR CENTRAL KS (ESPECIALLY WITH MOMENTUM TRANSFER WINDS OF 45 KTS PROGGED OVER KRSL THAT...WITH DRY ADIABATIC LAPSE RATES ARE LIKELY TO REACH THE DECK. HOWEVER...THE AFORE-MENTIONED CYCLONE WILL SPREAD AMPLE STRATOCU 5,000 FEET SE OVER CENTRAL KS & THIS SHOULD PROVE AN INHIBITOR TO SUSTAINED WINDS >=40MPH BEING REALIZED. THEREFORE HAVE CHECKED SWING ON UPGRADING BUT IT SHOULD BE A WARNING TRACK SHOT. THE WIND ADVISORY IS BEING EXTENDED AS FAR SE AS KINGMAN & SEDGWICK COUNTIES. THE SCATTERED -SHRA OCCURRING OVER CHASE COUNTY ARE SURGING NE 45MPH ARE IN ASSOCIATION WITH AN INTENSE PV ANOMALY SPRINTING E/NE OVER NRN OK & WILL BE NE OF KICT COUNTRY BY 4 AM. WITH MUCH DRIER AIR SURGING E/SE INTO SE KS A DRY FORECAST IS SLATED FOR ALL AREAS. TONIGHT: WITH THE LWR-DECK GRADIENT GRADUALLY SLACKENING THIS EVENING...NW WINDS WILL DIMINISH BUT SHOULD STILL REMAIN QUITE BRISK OVER CENTRAL KS. THE DOWNSLOPE COMPONENT WILL KEEP TEMPERATURES SOMEWHAT IN CHECK. THIS WEEKEND-EARLY NEXT WEEK: NICE WEATHER SLATED FOR ALL AREAS UNTIL SUNDAY NIGHT...WHEN A VIGOROUS MID-UPR DECK TROF STRENGTHENS AS IT MOVES E/SE ACROSS THE PACIFIC COAST. ALTHOUGH THIS SYSTEM WONT BE NEARLY AS STRONG AS ITS PREDECESSOR OF THIS WEEK...IT WILL NONE-THE-LESS LWR-DECK CYCLOGENESIS OVER THE SWRN PLAINS THATLL TRANSITION WHAT HAD BEEN A PERSISTENT NW LWR-DECK FLOW INTO AN ELY VARIANT. THE UPSLOPE WILL INCREASE WHILE BACKING TO THE NE EARLY MON MORNING...SETTING THE STAGE FOR WHAT SHOULD BE A DAMP START TO THE WORK-WEEK. HAVE LEFT INHERITED MAXES ALONE FOR TIME BEING...BUT WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IF SUCCESSORS LOWER MONS HIGHS AS THE PICTURE COMES INTO BETTER FOCUS. AVIATION...06Z TAFS KRSL/KSLN/KHUT/KICT/KCNU THE MAIN CONCERN INITIALLY IS THE TIMING OF WHEN THE RAIN SHIELD WILL MOVE OUT OF THE TAF SITES. WE ARE PLANNING ON TAKING OUT THE MENTION OF RAIN BY 09Z OR SO AT THE HUT/ICT AND CNU TAF SITES. OTHERWISE...A VERY WINDY IS EXPECTED TOMORROW WITH GOOD MOMENTUM TRANSFER EXPECTED...ESPECIALLY IF THERE A QUITE A FEW BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS. RSL AND SLN TAF SITES MAY EVEN SEE SUSTAINED SPEEDS OF 30-35KTS WITH GUSTS TO 45KTS BY MID MORNING. COX && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... WICHITA-KICT 59 38 55 35 / 10 10 0 0 HUTCHINSON 57 37 53 34 / 10 10 0 0 NEWTON 58 38 52 34 / 10 10 10 0 ELDORADO 58 38 52 35 / 10 10 10 0 WINFIELD-KWLD 62 39 57 35 / 0 0 0 0 RUSSELL 54 35 52 33 / 10 10 0 0 GREAT BEND 55 36 54 33 / 10 10 0 0 SALINA 55 36 51 34 / 10 10 10 0 MCPHERSON 57 37 52 34 / 10 10 0 0 COFFEYVILLE 64 40 55 35 / 10 0 10 0 CHANUTE 60 39 52 34 / 10 10 10 0 IOLA 59 38 51 34 / 10 10 10 0 PARSONS-KPPF 62 40 53 34 / 10 10 10 0 && .ICT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WIND ADVISORY FROM 8 AM THIS MORNING TO 5 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR KSZ032-033-047>052-067-068-082-083. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 529 AM CST THU NOV 6 2008 KSZ032-033-047>053-067>072-082-083-091>096-098>100-071130- RUSSELL-LINCOLN-BARTON-ELLSWORTH-SALINE-RICE-MCPHERSON-MARION-CHASE- RENO-HARVEY-BUTLER-GREENWOOD-WOODSON-ALLEN-KINGMAN-SEDGWICK-HARPER- SUMNER-COWLEY-ELK-WILSON-NEOSHO-CHAUTAUQUA-MONTGOMERY-LABETTE- 529 AM CST THU NOV 6 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL...SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT STRONG WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL WHIP ACROSS ALL OF CENTRAL AND MUCH OF SOUTH-CENTRAL KANSAS TODAY. PLEASE REFER TO THE WIND ADVISORY FOR DETAILS. A VERY HIGH FIRE DANGER EXISTS ACROSS THESE AREAS THROUGH EARLY THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY A HIGH FIRE DANGER WILL EXIST ACROSS ALL OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS ON FRIDAY. THERE CONTINUES TO BE A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR SNOW...OR RAIN MIXED WITH SNOW...IN CENTRAL KANSAS MONDAY NIGHT. HOWEVER THE CHANCES FOR ANY MEASURABLE ACCUMULATION ARE LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY OR TONIGHT. && FOR A GRAPHICAL VERSION OF THIS INFORMATION...SEE OUR WEBPAGE AT (LOWERCASE) HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/WICHITA/HWO/HWO.PHP ES
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
7 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A 59 mph wind gust was measured at Windom Elementary School. Report courtesy KSN channel three.
Widespread wind gusts of 60 mph were relayed from across the county.
Widespread wind gusts of 60 mph were relayed from across the county.
Widespread wind gusts of 60 mph were relayed from across the county.
Widespread wind gusts of 60 mph were relayed from across the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, November 2008
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: 136627, 136628, 136632, 136629, 136630, 136633, 136631.