Tornadoes · United States · Kansas · 2017

EF0 tornado, Alta Vista, Kansas, May 18, 2017

Name: EF0 tornado, Alta Vista, Kansas, May 18, 2017
Start: 2017-05-18T22:52:00.000Z
Location: Alta Vista, Kansas

This EF0 tornado ran 0.0 miles across Wabaunsee County on May 18, 2017, touching down at 5:52 PM CDT and reaching 25 yards wide. It killed nobody.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The record

Rating: EF0
Date: May 18, 2017
Touchdown: 5:52 PM CDT (22:52 UTC)
Path length: 0.0 miles (0.0 km)
Path width: 25 yards (23 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
County: Wabaunsee County
Touchdown point: 38.849, -96.454
Lift-off point: 38.849, -96.454
Record number: 1705181652-01

The damage survey

1 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS TOP, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF0. The highest wind the damage implies is 70 mph.

Storm chaser reported a brief tornado in open country. Approximately 2 miles southeast of Alta Vista around 552pm.

Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.

What the Weather Service recorded

Severe t-storms developed near a warm front during the late afternoon of May 18th. The storms were very slow moving and had reports of funnels and lowerings from time to time as they moved across Morris, Dickinson and into Wabaunsee counties. A brief tornado was reported by chasers in open country in the Flint Hills. No damage was reported from the tornado.

A report from a chaser indicated a brief tornado in open country in the Flint Hills. No damage was reported. The tornado lasted less than 30 seconds.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Enhanced Risk, with a 0.10 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 19:45 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the tornado touched down, 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 tornado touched down at May 18, 2:19 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 18, 2:19 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Topeka KS
219 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

.SHORT TERM...(This evening through Tonight)
Issued at 159 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

Focus for tonight will be the threat for severe weather across
northeast Kansas.  This afternoon, a warm front was noted across
east central Kansas oriented from east to west.  Main concern this
afternoon will be if storms begin to develop along this warm front
as the HRRR has been depicting  in model runs.  CAPE near/south of
this boundary is over 3000 J/kg with effective bulk shear values of
50 knots.  During the afternoon hours, the NAM also shows 0-1 shear
along this boundary around 25 knots, with steep mid-level lapse
rates. Any discrete storms forming along this boundary will have the
potential to quickly become supercellular with the main hazards
being large hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes. If storms do form
this afternoon, exact details for tonight look more unclear as
instability will be weaker and subsidence from storms may act to
alleviate severity later tonight.  For tonight, storms that are
expected to fire up on the dry line located in southwestern Kansas
and extending southward into Oklahoma. Models have been fairly
consistent in having these storms congeal into a line/bow and move
through northeast Kansas this evening. This would bring a main
hazard of widespread wind damage across the area, although hail or
an embedded spin up tornado cannot be ruled out.  Additional
development behind this line is possible bringing another round of
heavy rain to the area, increasing the potential for flash flooding.
 This is especially true in areas in north central Kansas that have
already seen heavy rainfall totals earlier in the week.  With the
potential for more developing showers and thunderstorms tomorrow, a
flash flood watch has been issued for the entirety of northeast
Kansas beginning this afternoon and extending into Saturday morning.

.LONG TERM...(Friday through Thursday)
Issued at 159 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

The vast majority of the long term forecast period forecast effort
focuses on Friday and Friday night severe/flooding potential, with
periods beyond that generally trending toward a model consensus at
this time with minimal expected impacts through the remainder of
the forecast.

For Friday, much of the details will lie in how quickly convection
exits the area early Friday morning. Current indications are that
it will make a substantial eastward push overnight and exit the
region early. If this occurs, it would give much of the forecast
area more time to recharge instability as the true warm front
surges/mixes back north during the day in advance of a strong
upper level trough. Long, clockwise curved hodographs with low
LCL/LFC heights and rather steep lapse rates through the cloud-
bearing layer all point to another day with widespread severe
weather potential. This will include tornado potential across the
warm sector, and the most likely this warm sector will include
much of eastern Kansas with main uncertainty being in the
northwestward extent. There are two potential limiting factors.
1) Early day convection ends late and keeps the boundary layer
stable for much of the day, effectively mitigating instability.
2) Storms develop too close to each other, resulting in continued
hail and damaging wind potential but limiting overall tornado
potential.
Regardless, severe storms are possible with some potential for
another higher-end episode of severe weather. The other concern
will be flash flooding with multiple rounds of thunderstorm again
possible over what is likely to be saturated ground conditions
with elevated stream levels after tonight's storms. WPC has the
area in a moderate risk for excessive rainfall and for good
reason, so have continued the flash flood watch through Friday
night.

&&

.AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS through 18Z Friday afternoon)
Issued at 1205 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

Cloud deck varies from SCT to BKN at terminals near 3kft for the
next hour or two before becoming VFR this afternoon. Hi-res
guidance brings storms into the area near 22Z, with the main line
of storms near 00-03Z. These storms will greatly reduce conditions
as seen in the TEMPO groups. Timing for convection ending across
the area is still low although best consensus is near 14Z. There
is a chance MVFR ceilings will linger into the end of the period.

&&

.TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Flash Flood Watch through Saturday morning for KSZ008>012-
020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059.

&&

SHORT TERM...Heller
LONG TERM...Barjenbruch
AVIATION...Heller

Hazardous weather outlook, May 18, 2:26 PM CDT, 3 hours 26 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Topeka KS
226 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-191930-
Republic-Washington-Marshall-Nemaha-Brown-Cloud-Clay-Riley-
Pottawatomie-Jackson-Jefferson-Ottawa-Dickinson-Geary-Morris-
Wabaunsee-Shawnee-Douglas-Lyon-Osage-Franklin-Coffey-Anderson-
226 PM CDT Thu May 18 2017

This hazardous weather outlook is for east central...north
central and northeast Kansas.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and tonight.

Severe thunderstorms are likely this afternoon through tonight.
These thunderstorms will be capable of tornadoes, very large hail,
damaging winds and flash flooding.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday.

Additional thunderstorms are likely on Friday afternoon. While
some details depend on the exact evolution of storms tonight,
there is increasing confidence that multiple rounds of
thunderstorms can be expected Friday afternoon into Friday night.
These storms will likely be capable of producing large hail,
damaging winds, tornadoes, and flash flooding.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation will likely be needed this afternoon through
tonight.

&&

More detailed information can be accessed at...
http://www.weather.gov/top/sitrep

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 18, 5:04 PM CDT, 48 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
504 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0455 PM     HAIL             1 N WILSEY              38.65N 96.67W
05/18/2017  E1.00 INCH       MORRIS             KS   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

Local storm report, May 18, 5:06 PM CDT, 46 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
506 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0506 PM     HAIL             8 S JUNCTION CITY       38.92N 96.85W
05/18/2017  E1.00 INCH       GEARY              KS   EMERGENCY MNGR

&&

Local storm report, May 18, 5:08 PM CDT, 44 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
508 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0507 PM     HAIL             2 S GRANDVIEW PLAZA     38.99N 96.78W
05/18/2017  E1.75 INCH       GEARY              KS   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

JP

Local storm report, May 18, 5:31 PM CDT, 21 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
531 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0525 PM     HAIL             3 E PARKERVILLE         38.77N 96.61W
05/18/2017  E1.75 INCH       MORRIS             KS   PUBLIC

&&

JP

Special weather statement, May 18, 5:32 PM CDT, 20 minutes before

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Topeka KS
532 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

KSZ026-038>040-055-182300-
Wabaunsee-Shawnee-Jefferson-Douglas-Osage-
532 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHERN JEFFERSON...SHAWNEE...
WESTERN DOUGLAS...SOUTHEASTERN WABAUNSEE AND NORTHERN OSAGE COUNTIES
UNTIL 600 PM CDT...

At 532 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking strong thunderstorms along
a line extending from near Dover to 3 miles north of Clinton Lake.
Movement was northeast at 35 mph.

Nickel size hail and wind gusts up to 50 mph will be possible with
these storms.

Locations impacted include...
Topeka, Lawrence, Carbondale, Eskridge, Tecumseh, Richland, Dover,
Silver Lake, Auburn, Overbrook, Perry, Meriden, Scranton, Lecompton,
Clinton, Lone Star, Willard, Pauline, Williamstown and Perry Lake.

This includes the following highways...
 Interstate 70 between mile markers 345 and 355.
 Kansas Turnpike between mile markers 160 and 206.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

These storms may intensify, so be certain to monitor local radio
stations and available television stations for additional information
and possible warnings from the National Weather Service.

&&

A tornado watch remains in effect until 1000 PM CDT for northeastern
and east central Kansas.

LAT...LON 3896 9518 3875 9547 3883 9622 3919 9584
      3918 9518 3913 9519
TIME...MOT...LOC 2232Z 223DEG 29KT 3899 9595 3898 9539

Local storm report, May 18, 5:52 PM CDT, 0 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
552 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2017

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0552 PM     HAIL             3 NNE DWIGHT            38.88N 96.57W
05/18/2017  E1.00 INCH       GEARY              KS   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

Topeka, KS (KFOE), 12:00Z

10.9 hours before the tornado, 72 km from the path. May 18, 2017.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -81766 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1033 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 45 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 20 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 204 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 335 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0
0-3 km lapse rate: 3.2 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Fort Riley (FRI), 35 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)	Temp (°F)	Dew point (°F)	Wind	Gust (kt)	Pressure (mb)	Weather
00:00 UTC

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.

The radar

The Topeka radar (KTWX), 25 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 22:54 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

This ground now

The live radar over the track Every 2017 tornado in Kansas Every tornado in Kansas since 1950 Warnings in force in Kansas now The forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of May 18, 2017

47 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
May 18	2:02 PM CDT	Unrated	Jackson, OK	0.7	50
May 18	2:11 PM CDT	EF0	Jackson, OK	1.2	75	$5,000
May 18	3:29 PM CDT	EF1	Washita, OK	6.0	100	$5,000
May 18	2:29 PM MDT	Unrated	Otero, CO	2.9	75
May 18	3:40 PM CDT	Unrated	Washita, OK	0.5	100
May 18	4:03 PM CDT	EF0	Stafford, KS	0.6	50
May 18	4:04 PM CDT	Unrated	Wilbarger, TX	0.2	50
May 18	4:11 PM CDT	Unrated	Dewey, OK	0.2	50
May 18	4:14 PM CDT	EF0	Ford, KS	0.5	50
May 18	4:18 PM CDT	EF0	Ford, KS	0.3	50
May 18	4:20 PM CDT	Unrated	Custer, OK	0.2	30
May 18	4:23 PM CDT	EF0	Woodward, OK	8.6	200	$10,000
May 18	4:30 PM CDT	EF0	Barton, KS	0.1	50
May 18	4:33 PM CDT	EF0	Stafford, KS	0.6	50
May 18	4:33 PM CDT	EF0	Blaine, OK	0.2	50	$5,000
May 18	4:37 PM CDT	Unrated	Major, OK	0.2	30
May 18	4:40 PM CDT	Unrated	Washita, OK	0.3	50
May 18	4:48 PM CDT	Unrated	Wichita, TX	1.2	50
May 18	4:49 PM CDT	EF1	Woods, OK	9.0	200	$2,000
May 18	4:54 PM CDT	EF2	Wichita, TX	2.0	100	$100,000
May 18	4:57 PM CDT	Unrated	Woods, OK	0.2	50
May 18	5:05 PM CDT	EF0	Blaine, OK	3.4	50	$12,000
May 18	5:23 PM CDT	EF0	Barton, KS	0.2	50
May 18	5:49 PM CDT	EF0	Barton, KS	0.6	50
May 18	6:31 PM CDT	EF0	Saline, KS	0.3	50
May 18	7:00 PM CDT	EF0	Stephens, OK	0.2	50	$2,000
May 18	7:41 PM CDT	EF1	Brown, TX	3.3	450
May 18	8:04 PM CDT	EF0	Brown, TX	0.4	50
May 18	8:38 PM CDT	EF1	Brown, TX	4.4	880
May 18	9:13 PM CDT	EF0	Pontotoc, OK	0.6	75	$5,000
May 18	9:46 PM CDT	EF1	Pittsburg, OK	8.2	1,000	$30,000
May 18	9:56 PM CDT	EF1	Pittsburg, OK	4.6	1,000	$15,000
May 18	9:57 PM CDT	EF2	McIntosh, OK	13.7	850	$175,000
May 18	10:11 PM CDT	EF1	McIntosh, OK	4.7	500	$75,000
May 18	10:15 PM CDT	EF1	McIntosh, OK	3.8	450	$25,000
May 18	10:25 PM CDT	EF1	McIntosh, OK	8.8	600	$125,000
May 18	10:30 PM CDT	EF1	Wagoner, OK	5.0	500	$25,000
May 18	10:35 PM CDT	EF1	Muskogee, OK	5.3	900	$20,000
May 18	10:37 PM CDT	EF1	Muskogee, OK	2.0	400	$25,000
May 18	10:39 PM CDT	EF1	Wagoner, OK	10.3	700	$120,000
May 18	10:40 PM CDT	EF2	Muskogee, OK	2.8	400	$350,000
May 18	10:41 PM CDT	EF1	Muskogee, OK	3.7	350	$20,000
May 18	10:45 PM CDT	EF1	Muskogee, OK	16.6	650
May 18	10:48 PM CDT	EF1	Wagoner, OK	12.7	650	$200,000
May 18	11:01 PM CDT	EF1	Cherokee, OK	5.8	800
May 18	12:07 AM CDT	EF0	Benton, AR	2.0	225	$40,000
May 18	12:23 AM CDT	EF1	McDonald, MO	1.0	100	$100,000

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.