A seasonably strong upper level trough moved across the Plains on Friday August 14, while an associated cold front made its way across Kansas. These features combined to spark thunderstorms across northeast Kansas during the afternoon hours.
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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 seasonably strong upper level trough moved across the Plains on Friday August 14, while an associated cold front made its way across Kansas. These features combined to spark thunderstorms across northeast Kansas during the afternoon hours. A few of these storms became severe during the afternoon and evening, with reports of damaging winds and large hail. These storms also brought some much needed rain to the parts of the region, with numerous reports of one to two inches of rain.
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 Aug 20, 11:01 AM CST, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 1201 PM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 .UPDATE... FOR 18Z AVIATION. && .DISCUSSION... SEE PREVIOUS DISCUSSION && .AVIATION... TRICK TODAY IS FOR TIMING OF CONVECTION. SOME GUIDANCE SUGGESTS INITIAL WAVE LIFTS NORTH THEN REDEVELOPS CONVECTION ALONG THE BOUNDARY IN THE EARLY AFTERNOON HOURS. TRENDED THIS WAY AND ALSO BROUGHT TEMPO GUSTY WINDS IN WITH CONVECTIVE TEMPO. HEAVY RAIN MAY IMPACT VISBY BELOW 2 MILES AND WILL MONITOR. ONCE STORMS PASS EXPECT A SHIFT AROUND TO A NORTH WIND THROUGH THE TAF PERIOD. 67 && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 324 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010/ THE FOCUS OF THE FORECAST IS A FRONTAL PASSAGE TODAY WITH CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS. HOT AND DRY WEATHER RETURNS FOR THE WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK BEFORE ANOTHER FRONT APPROACHES BRINGING CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS. THUNDERSTORMS HAVE CONTINUED TO PROGRESS EAST ACROSS THE PLAINS OVERNIGHT. THE CONVECTION IS FOCUSED NEAR A PREFRONTAL TROUGH AIDED BY MOISTURE TRANSPORT FROM A 40 KNOT LOW LEVEL JET. AN UPPER TROUGH WILL KICK INTO THE PLAINS TODAY ALONG WITH AN ASSOCIATED SHORTWAVE NOTED ON WATER VAPOR MOVING INTO NORTHERN KANSAS. FORWARD PROPAGATING CONVECTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE INTO NORTHEAST KANSAS TODAY AIDED BY ADDITIONAL LIFT FROM LOW LEVEL JET...UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE AND FRONTAL PASSAGE. THE SEVERE POTENTIAL TODAY COULD BE HINDERED BY LIMITED INSTABILITY DUE TO CLOUD COVER FROM MORNING CONVECTION. HOWEVER WHERE SUFFICIENT HEATING OCCURS...MOSTLY LIKELY NORTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL KANSAS...MU CAPE VALUES ARE PROGGED TO REACH NEAR 2200 J/KG. THIS INSTABILITY ALONG WITH 0-6KM BULK SHEAR VALUES NEAR 45 KNOTS BRING THE POTENTIAL FOR STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LOCALLY DAMAGING WIND THE MAIN RISK. HEAVY RAIN WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE NEAR THE STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES NEARING AN INCH AND A HALF. THE UPPER TROUGH WILL DIG EAST INTO MISSOURI TONIGHT WITH PRECIPITATION ENDING ACROSS NORTHEAST KANSAS. AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE WILL BUILD INTO THE PLAINS AGAIN OVER THE WEEKEND BRINGING A RETURN TO HOT AND HUMID WEATHER. EARLY NEXT WEEK AN UPPER TROUGH DIGS FROM THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS WITH A COLD FRONT APPROACHING NORTHEAST KANSAS TUESDAY BRINGING ANOTHER CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS. SEASONAL TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO RETURN BEHIND THE FRONT ALONG WITH DRY WEATHER THROUGH THE REST OF THE WORK WEEK. ANGLE && .TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 432 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-210745- REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY- POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS- WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON- 432 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR TODAY AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH THE PLAINS. A FEW STORMS COULD BE STRONG TO SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON IN NORTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL KANSAS. DAMAGING WIND GUSTS UP TO 60 MPH AND HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS WILL BE THE MAIN WEATHER HAZARDS. LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY ANOTHER ROUND OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE TUESDAY ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA AS A COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH THE REGION. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS MAY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON IN NORTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL KANSAS. ANGLE
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 945 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 KSZ010-201515- MARSHALL- 945 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR MARSHALL COUNTY... THROUGH 1015 AM CDT...THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL MARSHALL COUNTY. TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED THIS STORM WAS PRODUCING STRONG WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE FRANKFORT...BLUE RAPIDS AND VERMILLION.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 1018 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 KSZ010-011-201545- MARSHALL-NEMAHA- 1018 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR NEMAHA AND MARSHALL COUNTIES... THROUGH 1045 AM CDT...THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF NEMAHA AND MARSHALL COUNTIES. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THESE STORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE CENTRALIA...CORNING...VERMILLION AND LILLIS.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 1050 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 KSZ011-023-201615- NEMAHA-POTTAWATOMIE- 1050 AM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR NEMAHA AND POTTAWATOMIE COUNTIES... THROUGH 1115 AM CDT...THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF NEMAHA AND POTTAWATOMIE COUNTIES. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE EMMETT...ONAGA AND HAVENSVILLE.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 101 PM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 KSZ026-201830- JEFFERSON- 101 PM CDT FRI AUG 20 2010 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR JEFFERSON COUNTY... THROUGH 130 PM CDT...A THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH ACROSS PORTIONS OF JEFFERSON COUNTY. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG WINDS OF 40 TO 50 MPH. SOME LOCATIONS THAT COULD BE AFFECTED INCLUDE PERRY LAKE...PERRY...OSKALOOSA...MCLOUTH AND WINCHESTER.
The Topeka radar (KTWX), 71 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:06 UTC.
13 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
In Ozawkie, sporadic 12 inch branches were broken off of trees. Two fell into roofs and caused minor damage. Elsewhere, near Winchester, more 2 inch and smaller branches were broken off of trees.
Quarter size hail was reported at the intersection of Croco and 29th Street.
Public and law enforcement officers reported 60 mph wind gusts near the cities of Oak Hill and Wakefield.
A 12 inch cottonwood tree limb broke off in strong winds associated with a thunderstorm complex near Williamstown. A travel trailer was also knocked off its blocks and turned in the driveway.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, August 2010
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: 256201, 256188, 256189, 256190, 256191, 256192, 256193, 256202, 256194, 256195, 256196, 256197, 256198, 256199, 256200, 256203.