An unseasonably warm moist airmass was in place across the southern and central Plains on Thursday, October 6th, 2016. Storms developed over southeast and south central Kansas during the early afternoon hours along a weak outflow boundary.
Every event with a place to put it. 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.
An unseasonably warm moist airmass was in place across the southern and central Plains on Thursday, October 6th, 2016. Storms developed over southeast and south central Kansas during the early afternoon hours along a weak outflow boundary. These storms produced three tornadoes over Cowley County, and with another brief tornado near Strother Field. Another very brief tornado touchdown was noted in Labette County near Bartlett. Straight line wind damage from one of the storms occurred in Allen County. Additional storms developed along a cold front that was surging east. A supercell thunderstorm developed along this feature and produced two tornadoes in eastern Saline County. In addition to the tornadoes, numerous rounds of storms resulted in very heavy rainfall across mainly southeast Kansas causing flash flooding. Several water rescues were performed along with homes being flooded in Allen County.
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 Oct 6, 5:52 AM CST, 2 hours 33 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Wichita KS 652 AM CDT THU OCT 6 2016 .MESOSCALE DISCUSSION... Issued at 648 AM CDT Thu Oct 6 2016 Storms continue to develop in Southeast KS, with latest short term models suggesting this will persist into midday and some suggesting it will continue well into this afternoon. This casts considerable uncertainty on the severe threat east of I-35, i.e., how much recovery can occur. While dew points have dropped into the lower 60s in SE KS, near 70 dewpoints persist across Eastern OK. That said, several convection allowing models keep cold pool over most of South Central/Southeast KS throughout the afternoon. However there seems to be a decent signal for the area west of this mornings persistent convection, i.e., west of EWK-ICT-EGT to significantly recover just ahead of dryline. If convection can develop on dryline, large hail/damaging winds would be likely and an isolated tornado could not be ruled out. Cold front will quickly overtake dryline and storms will likely become linear with threat evolving into a squall line. However quality of moisture return east of I-35 is uncertain with front rapidly surging southeast this evening. -Howerton && .SHORT TERM...(Today through Saturday night) Issued at 342 AM CDT Thu Oct 6 2016 Today-tonight: Light east southeast flow and clear skies allowed good combo radiational cooling upslope flow fog across Central KS. Areas from SLN-HUT-9K8 have had sufficient cirrus to limit fog so far. Watching this area closely for trends/clearing. If that area clears before daybreak, will expand dense fog advisory. Storms will likely persist into mid morning given good diffluence -- as long as warm air advection persists. Focus then shifts to afternoon convection. Models fairly evenly split whether storms will develop over Flint Hills/Southeast KS well in advance of front, or whether they will just be anchored in the vicinity of cold front. Do expect narrow dry slot to work ahead of front, which will boost temperatures across parts of Central KS. Strong cold air advection in wake of front will result in falling afternoon temperatures for a good part of Central KS. Storms will persist tonight mainly east of I-35. Progressive nature of front should limit rainfall/flooding concerns assuming extensive heavy rain does not occur this afternoon in Southeast KS. Precipitation will exit all but extreme Southeast KS by daybreak Friday. Friday-Saturday: Except for lingering rain showers/thunderstorm in extreme Southeast KS right at start of period, dry and cooler temperatures are expected on Friday and Saturday. Highs on Friday will be well below normal. Concerned that forecast lows may be as much as 5 degrees too warm for Saturday morning. Suspect there will be some patchy frost in protected areas, most likely over flint hills. Limiting factors will be relatively warm/moist ground and potential for weak return flow west of i-35 during the night. -Howerton .LONG TERM...(Sunday through Wednesday) Issued at 342 AM CDT Thu Oct 6 2016 Otherwise moderating temperatures for most of this period. Best chance albeit small of precipitation will be Sunday night into Monday with the return moisture and shortwave passage. Rather large discrepancy for Tuesday-Wednesday as GFS is as much as 150 miles south of ECMWF with position of the next cold front. -Howerton && .AVIATION...(For the 12Z TAFS through 12Z Friday morning) Issued at 635 AM CDT Thu Oct 6 2016 Poor aviation conditions will linger across central Kansas this morning with dense fog/low cigs, conditions will gradually improve with southerly winds on the increase across the entire area. Showers/storms over southeast Kansas will persist through the morning as well. Meanwhile a strong cold front will race southward across the region for this afternoon into this evening. Strong to severe thunderstorms will accompany the front across south central and southeast Kansas later today. Northerly winds will increase behind the front with skies clearing out. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Wichita-KICT 85 47 65 43 / 60 50 10 0 Hutchinson 85 44 65 40 / 20 30 0 0 Newton 83 44 64 42 / 60 50 10 0 ElDorado 84 46 65 43 / 60 70 10 0 Winfield-KWLD 85 48 65 43 / 80 80 10 0 Russell 78 37 65 39 / 10 0 0 0 Great Bend 82 39 66 39 / 10 10 0 0 Salina 86 41 65 40 / 20 20 0 0 McPherson 84 42 64 40 / 20 30 0 0 Coffeyville 87 52 66 42 / 90 80 20 0 Chanute 85 50 65 42 / 90 80 10 0 Iola 84 50 64 42 / 80 80 10 0 Parsons-KPPF 86 51 66 42 / 90 80 10 0 && .ICT Watches/Warnings/Advisories... Dense Fog Advisory until 10 AM CDT this morning for KSZ032-033- 047-048-050. && MESOSCALE...PJH SHORT TERM...PJH LONG TERM...PJH AVIATION...CDJ
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 529 AM CDT THU OCT 6 2016 KSZ032-033-047>053-067>072-082-083-091>096-098>100-071030- 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 CDT THU OCT 6 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL KANSAS, SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT AREAS OF DENSE FOG WILL PERSIST INTO MID MORNING. CHECK THE LATEST DENSE FOG ADVISORY FOR DETAILS. THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN WILL PERSIST INTO AT LEAST LATE MORNING MAINLY EAST OF I-35. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE FLOODING FROM LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN. THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ALONG OR AHEAD OF A SOUTHEAST ADVANCING COLD FRONT THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. SOME STORMS COULD BE SEVERE...ESPECIALLY SOUTHWEST OF A LINE FROM HUTCHINSON TO ARKANSAS CITY. HALF DOLLAR SIZED HAIL WOULD INITIALLY BE THE PRIMARY THREAT...WITH DAMAGING 60 TO 70 MPH WINDS BECOMING THE PRIMARY THREAT AS THE THUNDERSTORMS QUICKLY DEVELOP INTO A SQUALL LINE THURSDAY EVENING. HEAVY RAIN IS ALSO POSSIBLE ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND THURSDAY EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THUNDERSTORMS WILL EXIT EXTREME SOUTHEAST KANSAS SHORTLY AFTER DAYBREAK ON FRIDAY. A COUPLE ROUNDS OF THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE BETWEEN SUNDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY NIGHT. STRONG OR SEVERE STORMS ARE NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TONIGHT. && FOR A GRAPHICAL VERSION OF THIS INFORMATION, SEE OUR WEBPAGE AT: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/WICHITA/HWO/ HOWERTON
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 339 AM CDT THU OCT 6 2016 KSZ095-096-099-100-060945- WILSON KS-NEOSHO KS-LABETTE KS-MONTGOMERY KS- 339 AM CDT THU OCT 6 2016 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A * SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR... SOUTHEASTERN WILSON COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN KANSAS... SOUTHERN NEOSHO COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN KANSAS... LABETTE COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN KANSAS... MONTGOMERY COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN KANSAS... * UNTIL 445 AM CDT * AT 338 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS WERE TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR INDEPENDENCE...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH. HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF DIMES...AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH AND TORRENTIAL RAINFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. * LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... PARSONS...COFFEYVILLE...INDEPENDENCE...NEODESHA...CHERRYVALE... OSWEGO...ERIE...CHETOPA...ALTAMONT...ST. PAUL...THAYER...EDNA... DEARING...MOUND VALLEY...TYRO...GALESBURG...LIBERTY...BOLTON... SYCAMORE AND BARTLETT. LAT...LON 3700 9586 3738 9574 3765 9509 3704 9507 TIME...MOT...LOC 0839Z 252DEG 29KT 3722 9565 JAKUB
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
630 AM CDT THU OCT 06 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0628 AM FLOOD 5 NW DENNIS 37.40N 95.48W
10/06/2016 NEOSHO KS TRAINED SPOTTER
NUMEROUS ROADS HAVE WATER FLOWING OVER THE ROADWAYS.
&&
METZGERPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
835 AM CDT THU OCT 06 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0754 AM FLOOD INDEPENDENCE 37.23N 95.71W
10/06/2016 MONTGOMERY KS LAW ENFORCEMENT
MINOR STREET FLOODING IN THE TOWN OF INDEPENDENCE. 2.90
INCHES OF RAINFALL REPORTED AT INDEPENDENCE CITY HALL.
&&
JMCThe Tulsa radar (KINX), 116 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 14:24 UTC.
10 hail, 8 flash flood, 7 tornado, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Water was reported flowing over Pennsylvania Avenue on the south side of Independence.
Water was flowing over south 10th street near Rock creek.
Trained spotter reported a brief tornado touchdown.
Numerous tree limbs from a brief tornado touchdown.
Water was reported flowing across US highway 59 at the railroad overpass.
There was a brief touchdown just east of Strother field airport in an open field.
The tornado touched down initially in a soybean field just to the southeast of a farmstead. The tornado than skimmed along at tree top level over the farmstead, before touching down again on the north side of the farmstead, destroying an open ended horse barn and grain bin. The horse barn and grain bin were thrown to the northeast into the road, as the tornado lifted along 191st road.
The tornado moved almost due north over open country causing some damage to trees by blowing down several large trees and several large tree limbs.
A barn was demolished and debris was strewn to the east. There was also damage to a few trees.
A manufactured double wide home which was held down by straps was completely lifted and destroyed. Additionally a jeep was rolled approximately 200 yards; there was damage to other farm equipment which was tossed from their original locations. Another homestead received significant tree damage along the path. All farm machinery was thrown across the property. Of significance was a combine that was rolled about 75 yards.
The hail was pea to dime sized.
A large area of damaging downburst winds moved across the town of Humboldt. The downburst winds were produced by the rear flank downtraft from a supercell thunderstorm as it moved just to the northeast of town. Numerous large trees were blow down. Some of the trees were almost 3 to 4 feet in diameter. The northwest side of town was the hardest hit, with most of the tree damage laying over to the west and northwest. A large row of power poles were snapped on the north side of town. Some minor superficial damage occurred to a few buildings in downtown.
Law Enforcement reported the gust.
An off duty NWS employee reported dime to nickel size hail.
A storm chaser reported dime to quarter sized hail.
The Emergency manager reported flooding of roadways and stranded cars, especially on the west side of Iola and just west of town.
Latham fire department reported a foot of water running over the road just south of town.
The Emergency manager reported widespread flooding across the southern half of Greenwood county. Numerous rural roads were reported impassible. Water was also reported covering portions of US Highway 99 and US Highway 400.
A successful water rescue was performed near Neal in Eastern Greenwood county.
Widespread flooding occurred in Iola. High water approached several homes. The fire department assisted evacuating residents from their homes. Multiple cars were reported stranded due to the high water.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Kansas, 2016Warnings in Kansas, October 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: 662301, 662302, 655891, 655890, 662303, 655892, 662304, 662305, 655894, 655893, 656411, 656435, 662306, 662308, 662307, 662309, 662310, 663991, 663987, 663988, 663989, 663504, 663505, 663990, 663506, 663507, 663539.