A strong low level jet helped to trigger scattered showers and thunderstorms during the overnight hours of September 21st. Reports of 3 to 4 inches of rain were received along with reports of flooding.
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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.
A strong low level jet helped to trigger scattered showers and thunderstorms during the overnight hours of September 21st. Reports of 3 to 4 inches of rain were received along with reports of flooding. The storms gradually moved southeast across the area producing flooding across parts of Northeast and Eastern Kansas.
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 Sep 21, 6:04 AM CST, 58 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 704 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 .UPDATE... UPDATED FOR THE 12 UTC AVIATION. && .DISCUSSION... SEE THE PREVIOUS DISCUSSION BELOW. && .AVIATION... A BROAD AREA OF RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS THE TAF SITES THIS MORNING. THE RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD MOVE EAST OF KMHK THIS AFTERNOON AND EAST OF KTOP AND KFOE LATER THIS AFTERNOON. MVFR CEILINGS AND VISBYS DOWN TO 1 MILE ARE POSSIBLE IN AREAS WITH HEAVIER RAINFALL. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SOUTHEAST OF THE TAF SITES THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHIFTING WINDS TO THE NORTHWEST. DRIER AIR BEHIND THE FRONT WILL CLEAR OUT ANY STRATUS THOUGH WE MAY KEEP MID AND BKN HIGH CLOUDS THROUGH THE NIGHT. NORTHWEST WINDS SHOULD BE STRONG ENOUGH TO PREVENT ANY FOG FORMATION IF SKIES CLEAR LATE TONIGHT. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 358 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009/ DISCUSSION... WATER VAPOR AND PROFILERS SHOWING ONE INITIAL SHORTWAVE MOVING EAST ACROSS SOUTHERN KS WITH THE MAIN UPPER TROUGH AND SHORTWAVE NOW DIGGING SOUTH/SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE NORTHERN HIGH PLAINS INTO THE NORTHERN GREAT BASIN. COMBINATION OF INITIAL SHORTWAVE...OUTFLOW BOUNDARY FROM EARLIER CONVECTION TO THE WEST/APPROACHING FRONT TO THE WEST AND STRENGTHENING LLVL JET AXIS HAS ALL AIDED SCT-BKN THUNDERSTORMS FROM OK THROUGH CENTRAL KS INTO NE. AS LARGE SCALE ASCENT AHEAD OF THE STRONGER UPSTREAM TROUGH INCREASES THIS MORNING OVER THE WESTERN CWA...EXPECT HIGH POPS AND CATEGORICAL WORDING TO BE APPROPRIATE FOR THE WESTERN HALF OF THE CWA THIS MORNING...THEN CATEGORICAL OVER THE EASTERN CWA THIS AFTERNOON AS COLD FRONT PUSHES EASTWARD WITH WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WORKING EASTWARD ACROSS THE AREA. SOME QUESTIONS REMAIN ON HOW MUCH DESTABILIZATION CAN OCCUR AHEAD OF THE FRONT AND MAIN FORCING IN THE EASTERN CWA...BUT INCREASING BULK SHEAR OF 25-30 KTS AND STEEPENING LAPSE RATES PRODUCING CAPE OF 1000-1500 J/KG SHOULD SUPPORT STORM ORGANIZATION TO PRODUCE SOME THREAT OF LARGE HAIL AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS THROUGH TODAY GENERALLY EXPECTED TO AVERAGE AROUND HALF INCH WEST TO OVER AN INCH IN THE EAST. HOWEVER...SOME POTENTIAL FOR A BRIEF PERIOD OF TRAINING ALONG LINE OF CONVECTION WITH PWS APPROACHING 2 INCHES ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE TURNPIKE LATER THIS AFTERNOON. THIS COULD SET THE STAGE FOR SOME ISOLATED AMOUNTS NEAR OR IN EXCESS OF 2 INCHES SOUTHEAST OF THE TURNPIKE. ANOTHER QUARTER TO LOCALLY HALF INCH OF RAIN IS POSSIBLE EARLY THIS EVENING IN THE FAR SOUTHEAST CWA BEFORE RAPIDLY TAPERING OFF OVERNIGHT. HIGHS TODAY SHOULD BE LATER TODAY FOLLOWING MAIN CONVECTION THIS MORNING IN THE NORTH CENTRAL AND MIDDAY/EARLY AFTERNOON OVER THE FAR EAST BEFORE MIN PRECIP AREA ARRIVES. THEREFORE DID NOT CARRY ANY NON DIURNAL TEMP TRENDS TODAY. BUT WITH THE CLOUDS AND PRECIP IT WILL BE BELOW NORMAL MOST AREAS WITH HIGHS FROM THE UPPER 60S FAR NORTH CENTRAL TO THE UPPER 70S AROUND GARNETT. THE MODELS ARE SIMILAR IN DIGGING TROUGH AND CUTTING OFF THE LOW IN WESTERN KS...BUT DIVERGE BEYOND MID WEEK WITH GFS RETROGRESSING IT WESTWARD INTO THE CENTRAL ROCKIES THEN LIFTING IT NORTHEAST BY THE WEEKEND...WHILE THE EC KEEPS IT IN CLOSER PROXIMITY TO THE CWA THROUGH THE WEEK THEN LIFTS IT NORTHEAST IN THE WEEKEND. YET ALL HAVE A DRY SLOT MOVING INTO THE CWA THROUGH THE LATE TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY TIMEFRAME...SO HAVE REMOVED LOW POPS AT THIS TIME. IF MODELS KEEP DRY SLOT INTO EASTERN KS LONGER WITH NEXT MODEL RUNS...NEXT SHIFT MAY NEED TO CONSIDER REMOVING LOW POPS WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY AS WELL. BUT WITH THE INCONSISTENCY AND UNCERTAINTY OF THE DRY SLOT LOCATION STILL REMAINING...HAVE DECIDED NOT TO ADJUST POPS BEYOND WEDNESDAY. EITHER WAY GENERALLY BELOW NORMAL TEMPS THROUGH THE PERIOD STILL LOOKS ON TRACK. && .TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && GARGAN
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 501 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-221015- REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY- POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS- WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON- 501 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA TODAY PRODUCING NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS. THUNDERSTORMS THIS MORNING WILL BE MORE CONCENTRATED TO THE WEST OF AN EMPORIA...TOPEKA TO HIAWATHA LINE MAY PRODUCE HAIL TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS ALONG WITH GUSTY WINDS AND LOCALLY VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. THE MAIN AREA FOR THUNDERSTORMS FROM MIDDAY THROUGH THE AFTERNOON WILL THEN SHIFT TO AREAS GENERALLY ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE KANSAS TURNPIKE. SEVERE WEATHER IS POSSIBLE DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS ACROSS THIS AREA...WITH HAIL TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS THE PRIMARY THREATS. LOCALLY VERY HEAVY RAINFALL IS ALSO POSSIBLE. THE COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF THUNDERSTORMS IN THIS AREA SHOULD STEADILY DECREASE INTO THE EVENING HOURS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS MAY BE NEEDED TODAY AND ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT RAINFALL AMOUNTS OVER ONE INCH TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TOPEKA.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 333 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ020-210900- CLOUD- 333 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR CLOUD COUNTY... THROUGH 400 AM CDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST CLOUD COUNTY. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE AURORA AND CLYDE.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 410 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ035-210930- DICKINSON- 410 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR DICKINSON COUNTY... THROUGH 430 AM CDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF WESTERN DICKINSON COUNTY. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE TALMAGE. MOTORISTS ALONG INTERSTATE 70 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 266 AND 279 COULD ALSO BE AFFECTED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 433 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ021-034-035-211000- CLAY-DICKINSON-OTTAWA- 433 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR CLAY...OTTAWA AND DICKINSON COUNTIES... THROUGH 500 AM CDT...A SMALL CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTH AT 20 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST CLAY...EASTERN OTTAWA AND AND WESTERN DICKINSON COUNTIES. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS CLUSTER OF STORMS IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE SOLOMON...MANCHESTER...LONGFORD AND OAK HILL. MOTORISTS ALONG INTERSTATE 70 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 267 AND 274 COULD ALSO BE AFFECTED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 518 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ035-211045- DICKINSON- 518 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR DICKINSON COUNTY... THROUGH 545 AM CDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL DICKINSON COUNTY. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE ENTERPRISE...MOONLIGHT AND CHAPMAN. MOTORISTS ALONG INTERSTATE 70 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 278 AND 288 COULD ALSO BE AFFECTED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 640 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ037-211215- MORRIS- 640 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR MORRIS COUNTY... THROUGH 715 AM CDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF MORRIS COUNTY. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING NICKEL SIZE HAIL AND TORRENTIAL RAINFALL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE WILSEY...LATIMER...WHITE CITY...PARKERVILLE AND DWIGHT. STAY ALERT TO THE WEATHER IN CASE A WARNING IS ISSUED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 756 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 KSZ058-059-211330- ANDERSON-COFFEY- 756 AM CDT MON SEP 21 2009 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR COFFEY AND ANDERSON COUNTIES... THROUGH 830 AM CDT...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTH AT 25 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF EASTERN COFFEY AND NORTHWEST ANDERSON COUNTIES. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY TO NICKEL SIZE HAIL. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE WAVERLY.
The Topeka radar (KTWX), 94 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:56 UTC.
3 flood, 3 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorms producing heavy rains caused 2 to 3 inches of water to pond on highway 40 at the intersection of Daisy Road.
Thunderstorms producing heavy rains produced water over the road at 3400 Avenue at Manchester and 3200 Avenue and Camp have water over the road. No roads reported closed.
Thunderstorms producing heavy rains produced flooding at the intersection of Cherokee road and 8th street. This intersection had 6 to 12 inches of water ponded in spots.
Slow moving thunderstorms dumped 3 to 4 inches of rain across the area. Old highway 50 and N Dane Road were flooded and closed with 6 inches of flowing water reported in the town of Williamsburg due to the heavy rains.
Thunderstorms producing heavy rains caused flash flooding in the city of Ottawa. Eisenhower road in Ottawa had one foot of water flowing over the road. 15th street in Ottawa also had one foot of flowing water across the road.
Two Cars were reported to be stalled in high water due a heavy rains from thunderstorms. The high water and stalled cars were at the intersection of 15th and Poplar streets in Ottawa.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, September 2009
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: 198048, 198049, 198050, 198042, 198044, 198046.