Hail and Lightning Strike in Kansas, April 25, 2009

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
333 PM CDT SAT APR 25 2009

.DISCUSSION...

FRONTAL BOUNDARY STALLED ACROSS AREA WILL BE THE FOCUS OF CONVECTION
AND HEAVY PRECIPITATION OVERNIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. CURRENT
OBSERVATIONS SHOW MID 60S TO NEAR 70 DEWPOINTS ADVECTING OVER
STALLED BOUNDARY...WHICH WILL MOVE BACK NORTH OVERNIGHT AS A STRONG
WARM FRONT. CONTINUOUS SYNOPTIC SCALE LIFT FROM BOTH JET STREAK AND
LOW LEVEL WARM ADVECTION SHOULD PRODUCE A VERY EFFICIENT
PRECIPITATION SCENARIO.

WARM CLOUD DEPTHS ARE AROUND 10K FEET WITH LLJ APPROACHING 60 KNOTS.
THIS WILL LIKELY LEAD TO AREAS NEAR THE FRONT RECEIVING 2 TO 4
INCHES OF RAIN. HAVE ISSUED FLOOD WATCH ACROSS EASTERN CWA IN
ANTICIPATION OF THIS EVENT. MODEL SOUNDINGS ALSO INDICATE DECENT
CAPE...WITH THE GFS HAVING A LOT MORE INSTABILITY THAN THE NAM.
CONCERNED WITH SEVERE THREAT TOMORROW WITH SUCH STRONG LOW LEVEL
SHEAR AND BOUNDARY IN THE REGION. SPC DAY 2 INDICATES A MODERATE
RISK ACROSS MUCH OF THIS AREA.

HARDING

SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY...AN INTENSE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL SHIFT
EAST ACROSS WY...CO AND NM. AS THE ASCENT INCREASES AHEAD OF THE 5H
TROUGH THE SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MAY DEVELOP INTO SEGMENTED
LINES OF THUNDERSTORMS. THE LOW-LEVEL VERTICAL WIND SHEAR WILL
INCREASE AS 850MB WINDS BACK MORE TO THE SOUTH AND INCREASE TO 50
KTS AND SFC WINDS BACK TO THE SOUTHEAST ACROSS MUCH OF THE CWA. ANY
ISOLATED SUPERCELLS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES...ALONG
WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING OUTFLOW WINDS. IF A LINE OF SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPS THE PRIMARY HAZARD WILL BE DAMAGING STRAIGHT
LINE WINDS AND LARGE HAIL WITH THE STRONGER UPDRAFTS WITHIN THE
LINE. TRAINING OF THUNDERSTORMS UPDRAFTS ACROSS THE EASTERN COUNTIES
OF THE CWA MAY CAUSE 2 TO 4 INCHES OF RAIN TO ACCUMULATE THROUGH
EARLY MONDAY MORNING. THE HEAVY RAINFALL MAY PRODUCE
FLOODING...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE EASTERN HALF OF THE CWA. AFTER
MIDNIGHT A COLD FRONT WILL PUSH SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE CWA AND SHOULD
BRING AN END TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THE MORNING HOURS OF
MONDAY. THE 5H TROUGH WILL LIFT NORTHEAST INTO THE MIDWEST BY 00Z
TUE. THE RESULTING LOW-LEVEL CAA WILL BRING A COOLER AND DRIER
AIRMASS SOUTH AND MOST OF THE RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD END FROM
NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE CWA DURING THE LATE MORNING AND
EARLY AFTERNOON HOURS.

TUESDAY LOOKS DRY AS A DOWNSTREAM 5H RIDGE DEVELOPS OVER THE PLAINS
AHEAD OF THE NEXT 5H TROUGH DIGGING SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE WESTERN
CONUS. HIGHS TUESDAY WILL BE IN THE MID 60S TO AROUND 70.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...THE 5H TROUGH ACROSS THE WESTERN
CONUS WILL SLOWLY LIFT OUT INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS AND MIDWEST BY
FRIDAY NIGHT. THE GFS FORECAST THE 5H TROUGH BEING MORE AMPLIFIED AS
IT LIFTS NORTHEAST OUT INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS THAN THE EC. BOTH
MODELS SHOW GULF MOISTURE TRANSPORT NORTHWARD ACROSS EASTERN
KS...THUS WE WILL SEE PERIODS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. IF THE
MORE AMPLIFIED GFS SOLUTION VERIFIES...THEN THERE MAY BE A CHANCE
FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. HIGHS WILL
BE IN THE LOWER TO MID 70S...MAY GET A BIT WARMER ON THURSDAY IF WE
SEE MORE INSOLATION.

FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY...WE MAY SEE A BREAK IN THE PRECIP
SINCE WE WILL BE BETWEEN 5H TROUGHS. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE
UPPER 60S TO AROUND 70.

GARGAN

&&

.AVIATION...
COLD FRONT RIGHT ON TOP OF TOP/FOE AT ISSUANCE TIME. MAIN ISSUE IS
TRYING TO DECIDE BETWEEN MVFR AND IFR CIG OVERNIGHT. AS COLD FRONT
STALLS OUT...AND MOVES BACK NORTH TOMORROW MORNING AS A WARM
FRONT...BATTLE WILL BE BETWEEN IFR CIGS ADVECTING IN FROM NEBRASKA
AND MVFR CIGS HOLDING ON. ALSO EXPECT A SIGNIFICANT PERIOD OF
RAIN SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVERNIGHT AS FRONT STALLS. MAIN
FOCUS OF THIS SET OF TAFS IS TO INDICATE MVFR CIGS WITH
THUNDERSTORM POSSIBILITIES. WILL NEED TO MONITOR IFR CIGS CLOSELY
AS THE BEGIN TO MOVE SOUTH OUT OF NEBRASKA.

HARDING

&&

.TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...FLOOD WATCH FROM 1 PM SUNDAY TO 7
AM MONDAY FOR
KSZ011-KSZ012-KSZ023-KSZ024-KSZ026-KSZ037-KSZ038-KSZ039-KSZ040-KSZ054
-KSZ055-KSZ056-KSZ058-KSZ059.

&&

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
500 AM CDT SAT APR 25 2009

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-261000-
REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY-
POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS-
WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON-
500 AM CDT SAT APR 25 2009

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH
CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THERE IS A CHANCE THAT THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS EAST
CENTRAL KANSAS THIS AFTERNOON. THUNDERSTORMS ARE MORE LIKELY
TONIGHT ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS. THERE IS THE
POSSIBILITY THAT SOME OF THESE STORMS COULD PRODUCE LARGE HAIL AND
DAMAGING WINDS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO OCCUR DURING THE DAY SUNDAY AND
OVERNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT AS A COLD FRONT MOVES SOUTH. SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL
THE MAIN CONCERN. HOWEVER HEAVY RAINFALL AND POTENTIAL FOR FLASH
FLOODING WILL INCREASE SUNDAY NIGHT AS SEVERAL ROUNDS OF
THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE.

THERE IS A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY
ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTERS ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED FOR TODAY OR TONIGHT.

WOLTERS