Tornadoes · United States · Kansas · 2022

Unrated tornado, Glendale, Kansas, June 23, 2022

This Unrated tornado ran 0.1 miles across Saline County on June 23, 2022, touching down at 7:26 PM CDT and reaching 50 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.

  1. EF065 to 85 mph

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. EF186 to 110 mph

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. 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.

  7. Unratedthis tornado

    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
Unrated
Date
June 23, 2022
Touchdown
7:26 PM CDT (00:26 UTC)
Lifted
7:27 PM CDT (00:27 UTC)
On the ground
1 minutes
Path length
0.1 miles (0.2 km)
Path width
50 yards (46 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Saline County
Touchdown point
38.840, -97.870
Lift-off point
38.840, -97.869
Record number
2206231826-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A cyclic supercell developed across central Kansas, during the evening of June 23rd, 2022. A total of 6 tornadoes touched down during the evening. There were winds that overturned a semitrailer and camper on Interstate 70. Additionally up to ping ping ball sized hail fell.

Brief touchdown in open country.

Brief touchdown in open country.

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

The warnings

13 minutes of warning. NWS ICT issued a tornado warning for this county at 00:13 UTC, 13 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 00:54 UTC.

The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 20:16 UTC and running to 02:00 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
20:16 UTC02:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WatchICT
00:13 UTC00:54 UTCTornado WarningICT

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 20:00 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.

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 (KTOP), 00:00Z

0.4 hours before the tornado, 194 km from the path. June 24, 2022.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2022-06-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 392 joules per kilogram, CIN -254, lifted condensation level 1400 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
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.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2022-06-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 136 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 27 knots.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
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
392 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-254 J/kg
Surface CAPE
2005 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1400 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
17 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
136 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
362 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.1
0-3 km lapse rate
5.7 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Topeka, KS (KTOP), 12:00Z

11.6 hours after it, 194 km from the path. June 24, 2022.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2022-06-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 952 joules per kilogram, CIN -74, lifted condensation level 863 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
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.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2022-06-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 92 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 27 knots.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
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
952 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-74 J/kg
Surface CAPE
206 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
863 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
13 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
92 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
133 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
2.6
0-3 km lapse rate
4.6 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Salina (SLN), 20 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)Temp (°F)Dew point (°F)WindGust (kt)Pressure (mb)Weather
22:30 UTC130° 13 kt
22:35 UTC130° 13 kt18
22:40 UTC 14 kt1010.8
22:45 UTC120° 11 kt
22:50 UTC120° 11 kt
22:53 UTC8474130° 13 kt1011.2
22:55 UTC130° 13 kt
23:00 UTC140° 10 kt
23:05 UTC140° 10 kt
23:10 UTC140° 11 kt
23:15 UTC140° 11 kt
23:20 UTC130° 11 kt
23:25 UTC130° 11 kt
23:30 UTC130° 11 kt1010.8
23:35 UTC130° 11 kt1010.8
23:40 UTC120° 11 kt1010.8
23:45 UTC120° 11 kt1010.8
23:50 UTC120° 11 kt1010.8
23:53 UTC8374120° 10 kt1010.8
23:55 UTC120° 10 kt1010.8
23:58 UTC8374120° 10 kt1010.8VCTS
00:00 UTC120° 11 kt1010.8
00:05 UTC110° 10 kt
00:09 UTC8374110° 9 kt1011.2TS
00:10 UTC110° 10 kt
00:15 UTC120° 10 kt1010.8
00:20 UTC110° 10 kt151010.8
00:25 UTC110° 9 kt
00:27 UTC8374100° 7 kt161011.2VCTS
00:30 UTC100° 8 kt
00:35 UTC100° 8 kt
00:40 UTC100° 7 kt
00:45 UTC837590° 6 kt1011.5TS
00:45 UTC90° 5 kt
00:50 UTC30° 5 kt
00:53 UTC8375360° 9 kt1011.9TS
00:55 UTC340° 11 kt
01:00 UTC 17 kt22
01:05 UTC 19 kt28
01:10 UTC10° 19 kt
01:15 UTC30° 13 kt
01:20 UTC30° 11 kt
01:25 UTC30° 10 kt16
01:27 UTC807420° 13 kt1012.2
01:30 UTC40° 8 kt
01:35 UTC60° 7 kt
01:40 UTC60° 9 kt
01:45 UTC80° 8 kt
01:50 UTC60° 5 kt
01:53 UTC817460° 7 kt1011.9
01:55 UTC70° 7 kt
02:00 UTC70° 8 kt
02:05 UTC70° 10 kt
02:10 UTC70° 10 kt
02:15 UTC80° 9 kt
02:20 UTC90° 11 kt
02:25 UTC90° 13 kt1011.5

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

The radar

The Wichita radar (KICT), 137 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 00:25 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.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
23:20 UTCTORNADO6 S Sylvan GroveLincoln, KSBRIEF TORNADO TOUCH DOWN AROUND 6 MILES SOUTH OF SYLVAN GROVE.
23:39 UTCTORNADO10 N EllsworthLincoln, KSBRIEF TORNADO TOUCH DOWN AROUND 10 MILES NORTH OF ELLSWORTH. TORNADO LASTED ABOUT 1 MINUTE.
00:26 UTCTORNADO4 S GlendaleSaline, KSBRIEF TORNADO TOUCHDOWN.
00:30 UTCTORNADO3 Sw GlendaleSaline, KSBRIEF TORNADO TOUCHDOWN.
02:10 UTCHAIL 1.259 Ne VictorMitchell, KSQUARTER TO HALF DOLLAR HAIL WINDS 40-50MPH WITH HEAVY RAIN.
02:46 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 N DelphosOttawa, KSTWO OUTBUILDINGS DESTROYED, SEVERAL TREES DOWNED ALONG THE CLOUD AND OTTAWA COUNTY BORDER. DELAYED REPORT, TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2022 tornado in KansasEvery tornado in Kansas since 1950Warnings in force in Kansas nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of June 23, 2022

7 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 232:00 PM MSTEF0Coconino, AZ0.110
June 232:03 PM MSTUnratedPinal, AZ0.615
June 235:25 PM CDTUnratedRussell, KS0.150
June 235:54 PM CDTUnratedRussell, KS0.150
June 236:20 PM CDTUnratedLincoln, KS0.150
June 236:39 PM CDTUnratedLincoln, KS0.150
June 237:30 PM CDTUnratedSaline, KS0.150

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.