Wildfire and Dust Storm in Kansas, December 15 to 17, 2021

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Greeley County over a period of four hours. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 59-70 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Selkirk, Kansas. Several outbuildings were destroyed while numerous powerlines and trees were reported down across the county. In the southeast corner of the county, near Selkirk, one home had it's roof blown off. West of the city of Tribune, the top of a metal elevator bin was blown off, also damaging the stairwell for the bin. North of Tribune, a shed and a shop were knocked down due to the high winds. Given the degree of damage observed across the county, the wind gusts were estimated to be up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Wallace County. Mesonets across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-87 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Sharon Springs, Kansas. There was a range of damage across the county, but mostly in Sharon Springs. Up to 6 pivot irrigation systems were blown over along with a portion of corral and pasture fencing. Up to 8 power poles were damaged, 4 in Sharon Springs. Additional damage included Christmas decorations blown away, fencing blown over, a carport, and the tin roof of a house. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 100 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions reported to be near zero at times.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 100 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions ranging from near zero visibility to 1/4 of a mile at times over a period of several hours.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Gove County with mesonet stations recording high wind gusts of 58-88 mph, with the peak gust located near Gove, Kansas. The Gove County Emergency Manager reported multiple outbuildings destroyed across the county, one trailer home rolled, and five roofs were ripped off in the city of Quinter. The winds estimated to cause this amount of damage was up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions reported between 1/4 mile to 1 mile for several hours. Numerous accidents were reported along I-70 and other roadways across the county.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Wichita County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-83 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Leoti, Kansas. Across the county there were numerous trees down, 2 of which fell on houses in Leoti. A barn was blown down in Coronado and Wichita County High School in Leoti sustained roof and structural damage. There were also various degrees of roof and shingle damage across the county. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility as low as 1/4 of a mile at times.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Logan County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded peak wind gusts of 69 to 84 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Oakley, Kansas. There were an unknown number of outbuildings destroyed and broken windshields across the county. Other damage due to the high winds include the collapse of the landfill fence, an old roof and siding were torn off an old barn, and a shop had half the roof blown off. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 100 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 100 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions reported between 1/4 mile to 1 mile for several hours. Numerous accidents were reported along I-70 and other roadways across the county. One accident on I-70 caused two injuries due to the reduced visibility.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Sherman County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-81 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located in Goodland, Kansas. Numerous trees, power poles, and power lines were reported down across the county with power outages reported in Caruso and Goodland. In Goodland, high winds damaged stop signs, road signs, a wooden chest acting as a flower bed, a section of wooden fencing at two residences, and collapsed a metal mailbox inward towards the center while remaining on it's stand. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 100 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 100 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions reported around 1/4 mile or less for several hours. Numerous accidents were reported along I-70 and other roadways across the county.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Cheyenne County with mesonet stations recording high wind gusts of 60-70 mph, with the peak gust located near Bird City, Kansas. A portion of the metal roof of a Dollar General store in Saint Francis was peeled back allowing daylight to be seen from customers inside the store near a wall of the building due to winds estimated to gust up to 90 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility as low as 1/8 of a mile at times.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Thomas County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-81 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located in Colby, Kansas. Numerous power poles and lines were reported down across the county. The town of Rexford lost power due to the high winds. On I-70 near Levant, a semi truck was blown over due to high winds at mile marker 43. In Colby, numerous trees had various sized limbs down or were uprooted and a pivot irrigation system was knocked over. There were also reports of shingles blown off roofs and two windows broken on a vehicle parked in a strip mall parking lot. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions varying from brown out conditions to 1 mile for several hours. Numerous accidents were reported along I-70 and other roadways across the county including a minor injury accident involving two semi trucks on US Highway 83 near the town of Rexford.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Rawlins County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-84 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Atwood, Kansas.

Two rounds of high winds with wind gusts up to 84 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions reported between 1/4 mile to 1 mile for several hours.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Decatur County. Mesonets across the county recorded wind gusts of 59-73 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Oberlin, Kansas. There was damage to a power pole that caused loss of power in Oberlin and damage to an unknown number of roofs across the county due to estimated gusts up to 100 mph.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Sheridan County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-70 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located north of the town of Tasco, Kansas. Several outbuildings were blown down across the county; however, the most significant damage occurred in Hoxie where the metal roof was torn off a chiropractor's office. Other noticeable damage in Hoxie included a Jeep window blown out in Hoxie. Near Campus, Kansas, a power pole was cracked, multiple tree limbs of an unknown size were down, and the roof on an old farm house was nearly gone. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 100 mph created a dust storm with visibility as low as 1/4 of a mile at times.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with zero visibility reported at times.

A line of weak storms developed along the cold front as it exited Northwest Kansas and entered Central Kansas. As the line moved over Sheridan County, it produced dime to penny sized hail.

Two rounds of high winds occurred across Norton County. Mesonet stations across the county recorded wind gusts of 58-90 mph, with the strongest recorded gust located near Lenora, Kansas. In the city of Norton, high winds caused the rear wall of a two-story building to partially collapse. Near the town of Densmore, half a tin roof was torn off an old barn with the wooden support beams caved inside. The wind gusts capable of this degree of damage were estimated to be up to 120 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 120 mph created a dust storm with the visibility reported near zero at times.

Two rounds of high winds moved across Graham County with mesonet stations recording high wind gusts of 58-81 mph, with the peak gust located in Hill City, Kansas. There was extensive damage across the county due to the high winds. One barn was blown down onto a roadway, six outbuildings were destroyed. Two homes were damaged in the county with one home considered abandoned. Older structures, including barns, around the county received various degrees of damage, mainly to the old tin roofs. There was also an unknown number of power poles down/leaning around the county. An unknown number of trees also sustained damage during the event, with one report listing 3.5 to 4 inch diameter tree limbs ripped off an evergreen tree in Hill City. With the degree of damage across the county, winds are estimated to have gusted up to 110 mph.

Two rounds of high winds with estimated wind gusts up to 110 mph created a dust storm with visibility reductions ranging from near zero miles to 1/4 of a mile at times over a period of several hours.

High winds knocked over power poles in Gove County sparking two large fires. The first fire started around 13:32 PM CST roughly 5 miles northeast of Quinter near the Gove-Sheridan-Graham county line. This fire burned approximately 1500 acres of wildlife and grassland area in Gove County. Damage included numerous burned down trees and power poles. The Gove-Sheridan-Graham fire burned a path length of roughly 9 miles across the three counties. The northeast Gove fire was extinguished around 18:00 PM CST in Gove County, but continued to burn in Sheridan and Graham counties.

The second fire began around 14:04 PM CST and was approximately 12 miles southeast of Gove where it burned another 1500 acres of land. This wildfire burned several storage structures, two grain bags, fenceline, a limestone building, wheat fields, along with numerous power poles and trees. This fire was mostly extinguished during the late night hours; however it continued to have hot spots until roughly 14:00 PM CST on the 17th.

High winds knocked over power poles in northeast Gove County sparking a wildfire that traveled into extreme southeast Sheridan County near Sheridan Lake beginning around 13:40 PM CST. The Gove-Sheridan-Graham fire burned a path length of roughly 9 miles across the three counties, with one of those miles in Sheridan County. The fire burned roughly half a mile wide in Sheridan County damaging grassland, crop land, and trees along a creek bottom near Sheridan Lake. Due to burning trees and tall grass, the fire continued to burn into the next day, with fire crews leaving the area around 16:00 PM CST on the 16th. The fire continued to smolder for a week. The Gove-Sheridan-Graham fire burned a path length of roughly 9 miles across the three counties.

High winds knocked over a powerline which sparked a wildfire in the northeast corner of Gove County that gradually moved into southeast Graham County near the community of St. Peter, Kansas. This fire burned approximately 4,520 acres damaging several outbuildings and grassland. The Gove-Sheridan-Graham fire burned a path length of roughly 9 miles across the three counties.

High winds knocked over power lines near the towns of Marienthal and Lydia, sparking two large fires. The fire near Marienthal began around 14:30 PM CST burning fields and one home. The Marienthal fire burned approximately 1200 acres and was put out around 22:30 PM CST. The Lydia fire began around 13:50 PM CST burning fields, two homes, and several vehicles over a span of 8300 acres. This fire injured one non-hospitalized person and another person died the next day due to burns and a collapsed lung from protecting his home. The Lydia fire was extinguished around 22:06 PM CST.

High winds, very low relative humidity, and thick blowing dust created static electricity that interacted with pasture fencing approximately 10 miles east of Russell Springs beginning around 13:58 PM CST. This fire burned mostly crop land and fencing over 3200 acres. The fire was roughly six miles wide spreading from County Road 370 to County Road 410. Due to the magnitude of the event, there was no end time provided for this specific fire.