A squall line of thunderstorms developed across portions of central Kansas during the early morning hours of May 11th. These storms moved eastward into east-central and northeast Kansas.
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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 squall line of thunderstorms developed across portions of central Kansas during the early morning hours of May 11th. These storms moved eastward into east-central and northeast 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 May 11, 1:41 AM CST, 49 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION National Weather Service Topeka KS 241 AM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 .SHORT TERM...(Today and Tonight) Issued at 239 AM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 Will be brief as storms progged to develop over next hour or so over the area, with stronger focus along and north of I70. Threat continues to be large hail and wind, with plume of instability working its way northward into the area at this time. Higher resolution models indicate a convective system developing and moving to the northeast, with much of the activity east of our area by around the noon hour as the main front pushes through. Highs should still reach into the 70s with lows in the upper 40s to low 50s. .LONG TERM...(Thursday through Tuesday) Issued at 239 AM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 Beginning of the period starts with surface high pressure moving into Kansas by early afternoon Thursday keeping conditions dry and skies mostly clear. This high pressure moves southeast late Thursday night as a surface low and embedded weak shortwave in the upper level flow move across northeast Kansas Friday afternoon into Friday night. With models showing over 1200 J/kg of CAPE and decent shear across the area Friday, thunderstorms will be possible during this time period. Saturday through Wednesday, chances for precipitation persist in the forecast. While the GFS and ECMWF still have significant differences in the extended, the best chance for precipitation looks to be Monday and Monday night associated with a shortwave moving across the southern stream flow. Instability looks to be minimal through the end of the period, therefore have kept either showers or showers with isolated thunder. && .AVIATION...(For the 06Z TAFS through 06Z Wednesday Night) Issued at 1142 PM CDT TUE MAY 10 2016 Not much change to the forecast as the HRRR continues to show some inconsistency in the reflectivity prog. The 03Z HRRR tends to keep much of the convection north of I-70 while the larger scale NAM and GFS show more widespread precipitation. Therefore have opted to maintain a VCTS for the most likely window. Overall the HRRR/RAP/NAM are a little slower in developing elevated storms, so have delayed the from groups in the previous forecast accordingly. Still looks like some MVFR stratus could move in behind the precip as low level moisture advection persists. && .TOP Watches/Warnings/Advisories... NONE. && SHORT TERM...67 LONG TERM...Heller AVIATION...Wolters
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 410 PM CDT TUE MAY 10 2016 KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-112115- REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY- POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS- WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON- 410 PM CDT TUE MAY 10 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE AREA LATE TUESDAY NIGHT INTO EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING, MAINLY NORTH OF INTERSTATE-70...AND MAY PRODUCE SEVERE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS EAST CENTRAL KANSAS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. && MORE DETAILED INFORMATION CAN BE ACCESSED AT... HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/TOP/SITREP
The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 120 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:29 UTC.
4 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Fence blown down along with tree limbs from thunderstorm winds.
Estimated wind gust of 60 mph reported near Highway-36 at the Marshall/Washington County line.
Water over the roadway on Highway-187, two miles north of K-9.
Water flowing across the roadway near 16th and Deer Train. Approximately 18 inches deep.
Water flowing over the road approximately 3 miles north of Beattie on K-99.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, May 2016
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: 631054, 631055, 631056, 631057, 631058, 631060, 631059.