Tornadoes · United States · Kansas · 2026

EF1 tornado, Berwick, Kansas, May 18, 2026

Name: EF1 tornado, Berwick, Kansas, May 18, 2026
Start: 2026-05-18T21:46:00.000Z
End: 2026-05-18T21:55:00.000Z
Location: Berwick, Kansas

This EF1 tornado ran 4.2 miles across Nemaha County on May 18, 2026, touching down at 4:46 PM CDT and reaching 100 yards wide. It killed nobody.

Preliminary. This is NWS OAX and NWS TOP's damage survey, filed in the Damage Assessment Toolkit. The rating, the path and the casualties are the survey's and can change while it is revised. The Storm Prediction Center compiles the official record of 2026 from these surveys and publishes it in the spring of 2027; this page moves to that tornado's permanent address when it does.

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 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado
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 survey

Rating, as surveyed: EF1, preliminary
Date: May 18, 2026
Touchdown: 4:46 PM CDT (21:46 UTC)
Lifted: 4:55 PM CDT (21:55 UTC)
On the ground: 9 minutes
Path length: 4.2 miles (6.7 km)
Path width: 100 yards (91 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
County: Nemaha County
Touchdown point: 39.956, -95.892
Lift-off point: 40.001, -95.838
Highest wind the damage implies: 95 mph
Surveyed by: NWS OAX and NWS TOP
Survey last edited: May 21, 2026
Record number: None yet. SPC numbers 2026 in the spring of 2027.

What the survey found

Old barn lost 30-40% of roof and wall, small barn completely destroyed with debris carried about 1/4 mile ENE.

Written by NWS OAX and NWS TOP in the NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit. A survey is revised as better evidence arrives.

The damage survey

44 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS OAX and NWS TOP, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF1. The highest wind the damage implies is 107 mph.

Barn in poor condition collapsed
Old barn lost 30-40% of roof and wall
Large trunk snapped lower bound but still around 90 so low end EF1
Small barn completely destroyed debris carried about 1/4 mile ENE

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

Supercell thunderstorms developed ahead of a dryline and near a warm front during the afternoon and evening hours of May 18. The storms produced 7 documented tornadoes and eventually evolved into a line of storms that produced damaging winds of 60-80 mph across northeast and east central Kansas. Some areas also received 2-5 inches of rain just two to three hours causing flash flooding in several areas including the city of Manhattan.

A storm survey revealed a tornado developed and moved northeast across far northeast Nemaha county damaging older farm outbuidlings and barns and snapping large tree limbs. The tornado appears to have continued into southeast Nebraska.

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 Moderate Risk, with a 0.15 chance of a tornado within 25 miles, in the hatched area where significant tornadoes were expected. The outlook in force was issued at 20:05 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, 2:01 PM CDT, 2 hours 45 minutes earlier. Its key messages:

Severe thunderstorms becoming numerous early to mid afternoon today and spreading east to southeast this evening. Very large hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes all quite possible.
Flash flooding remains a concern through tonight especially where heavy rain fall Sunday night.
Gusty south winds on track for the next several hours in southwestern areas.

Area forecast discussion, May 18, 2:01 PM CDT, 2 hours 45 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Topeka KS
201 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Severe thunderstorms becoming numerous early to mid afternoon today
  and spreading east to southeast this evening. Very large hail,
  damaging winds, and tornadoes all quite possible.

- Flash flooding remains a concern through tonight especially where
  heavy rain fall Sunday night.

- Gusty south winds on track for the next several hours in
  southwestern areas.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 200 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

Warm, humid airmass was surging north into central Kansas ahead of a
cold front toward a nearly-stationary front just northeast of
northeast Kansas with a modest upper wave just upstream. Instability
of 3000 J/kg already commonplace in central Kansas at 17Z with 40-50
knots of deep-layer shear. Vectors for this layer remain close to
parallel to the front so there is some uncertainty in how long
storms can remain discrete, but some backing of low-level flow and
otherwise good setup brings all severe hazards in play. Main area of
concern over the next few hours is north-central Kansas with storms
spreading east and southeast and becoming more widespread with time.
Threats should turn more to wind versus strong tornado in eastern
areas as mode shifts to more linear. Overall a more progressive
system should keep storm residence somewhat limited, but areas that
saw heavy rain Sunday night will not take much more rain to
experience flash flooding and intense updrafts with PW values around
1.5 inches will bring quick rainfall. Storms push southeast before
dawn with flash flooding threat falling off, though rivers and
creeks may be high for a few more days. Surface winds

Next few days continue to look benign with modified Canadian high
pressure in place with cooler temperatures. Moisture return in the
mid-levels supports at least moderate precipitation chances Thursday
into Thursday night but instability remains modest. A more unstable
airmass should return around the holiday weekend though forcing for
ascent is not readily apparent.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z TUESDAY/...
Issued at 1223 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

Confidence is increasing in thunderstorm potential in the 23Z-04Z
window and went ahead with TEMPO inclusion. MVFR cloud should
diminish soon but be more consistent after FROPA around 06Z with some
chance for improvement late in the forecast.

&&

.TOP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Flood Watch through Tuesday morning for KSZ008-KSZ009-KSZ010-KSZ011-
KSZ012-KSZ020-KSZ021-KSZ022-KSZ023-KSZ024-KSZ026-KSZ034-KSZ035-
KSZ036-KSZ037-KSZ038-KSZ039-KSZ040-KSZ054-KSZ055-KSZ056-KSZ058-
KSZ059.
Wind Advisory until 9 PM CDT this evening for KSZ035-KSZ036-KSZ037-
KSZ038-KSZ054.

&&

DISCUSSION...Poage
AVIATION...Poage

Hazardous weather outlook, May 18, 1:38 PM CDT, 3 hours 8 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Topeka KS
138 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-191845-
Republic-Washington-Marshall-Nemaha-Brown-Cloud-Clay-Riley-
Pottawatomie-Jackson-Jefferson-Ottawa-Dickinson-Geary-Morris-
Wabaunsee-Shawnee-Douglas-Lyon-Osage-Franklin-Coffey-Anderson-
138 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of central Kansas,
east central Kansas, north central Kansas, and northeast Kansas.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight

South winds sustained around 25 MPH with gusts around 45 MPH are
forecast for locations southwest of a line from Abilene to Alma to
Emporia in to the evening.

Severe thunderstorms are expected through the middle of the
afternoon in north central Kansas. These storms may form into a
line as they move east and southeast late this afternoon and this
evening. Very large hail, damaging wind gusts, and a few strong
tornadoes are the main hazards.

Localized flooding is also a concern, especially if storms
persist over areas that received heavy rain Sunday night. A Flood
Watch remains in effect through 7 AM Tuesday morning.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday

The probability for widespread hazardous weather is low.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotters will likely be needed this afternoon or tonight.

&&

More detailed information can be found at:
www.weather.gov/media/top/DssPacket.pdf

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 18, 3:52 PM CDT, 54 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
352 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0350 PM     Hail             Miltonvale              39.35N 97.45W
05/18/2026  E1.00 Inch       Cloud              KS   CO-OP Observer

&&

ST

Local storm report, May 18, 4:06 PM CDT, 40 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
406 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0403 PM     Tornado          3 SE Palmer             39.60N 97.11W
05/18/2026                   Washington         KS   Public

            Social media photo of a tornado. Media
            confirmed the report.

&&

ST

Local storm report, May 18, 4:11 PM CDT, 35 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
411 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0404 PM     Tornado          2 S Palmer              39.61N 97.14W
05/18/2026                   Washington         KS   Trained Spotter

            Spotter reports damage to trees around
            intersection of HWY 9 and HWY 15.

&&

SMB

Local storm report, May 18, 4:27 PM CDT, 19 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
427 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0415 PM     Hail             Summerfield             40.00N 96.35W
05/18/2026  E1.25 Inch       Marshall           KS   Public

&&

ST

Local storm report, May 18, 4:33 PM CDT, 13 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
433 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0432 PM     Hail             5 SSE Wells             39.07N 97.52W
05/18/2026  E1.00 Inch       Ottawa             KS   Trained Spotter

&&

ST

Local storm report, May 18, 4:40 PM CDT, 6 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Topeka KS
440 PM CDT Mon May 18 2026

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

0430 PM     Hail             4 E Morganville         39.50N 97.13W
05/18/2026  E1.00 Inch       Clay               KS   Public

            Report from mPING: Quarter (1.00 in.).

&&

ST

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), 12:00Z

9.8 hours before the tornado, 110 km from the path. May 18, 2026.

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: -7134 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 963 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 56 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 13 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 71 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 271 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 4.7
0-3 km lapse rate: 3.4 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Topeka, KS (KTOP), 00:00Z

2.2 hours after it, 110 km from the path. May 19, 2026.

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

Mixed-layer CAPE: 3248 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 2804 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1108 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 39 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 209 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 370 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 4.1
Supercell composite: 22.8
0-3 km lapse rate: 6.0 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Sabetha (K83), 11 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), 114 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 21:46 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 2026 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, 2026

19 more have been surveyed in the United States that day, so far.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)
May 18	10:25 AM CDT	EF0	Ford, IL	1.0	80
May 18	2:33 PM EDT	EF0	Otsego, MI	0.1	20
May 18	2:46 PM CDT	Unrated	Jefferson, NE	0.3	15
May 18	2:57 PM CDT	Unrated	Gage, NE	0.6	20
May 18	3:27 PM CDT	Unrated	Cloud, KS	1.2	30
May 18	4:03 PM CDT	Unrated	Washington, KS	2.7	50
May 18	4:05 PM CDT	EF1	Johnson, NE	3.8	200
May 18	4:20 PM CDT	EF1	Nemaha, NE	1.9	80
May 18	4:27 PM CDT	EF0	Nemaha, NE	0.6	20
May 18	4:34 PM CDT	Unrated	Pawnee, NE	0.6	50
May 18	4:55 PM CDT	EF1	Richardson, NE	3.1	200
May 18	5:07 PM CDT	EF1	Richardson, NE	6.5	250
May 18	5:27 PM CDT	EF1	Marshall, KS	15.2	100
May 18	5:33 PM CDT	Unrated	Clay, KS	1.5	0
May 18	6:54 PM CDT	EF0	Ringgold, IA	6.1	30
May 18	7:16 PM CDT	EF1	Jackson, KS	8.2	75
May 18	7:44 PM CDT	EF1	Morris, KS	15.1	50
May 18	8:11 PM CDT	EF0	Andrew, MO	4.9	75
May 18	9:47 PM CDT	EF1	Ray, MO	17.4	100

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. A survey can be revised, so the rating, the path and the casualties can all still change.

Sources

NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit, the record the survey teams file from the damage, and NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Neither is the official database for 2026, which SPC publishes in the spring of 2027.