Severe Weather

The Wichita Ribfest which includes the Conjunto Anonimo and kareem Lopez concerts were canceled due to the severe weather potential. The Hank Williams Jr.concert at the Intrust Bank Arena is going on as planned. The Wichita Wingnuts game is pushed back to 8:30pm because of the threat.  

A scary situation as severe weather moves through Friday afternoon. Tony and Shawn Lubbers were at Cottonwood Point at Marion Reservoir with their grandkids when the storms came through. The storm toppled their camper and damaged their campsite.  Four people were inside.  Tony Lubbers tells us, aside from some bumps and bruises - everyone is okay. The camper and some nearby vehicles were damaged. If you have pictures you'd like to share - email them to stormshots@kwch.

There is a severe thunderstorm watch until 9 p.m. for southern Kansas.  It includes Wichita, El Dorado, Hutch, Garden City, Dodge City and Great Bend. Very large hail (up to 3” in diameter) and damaging winds (greater than 75 mph) are the main concerns.

We all know that Spring can bring major thunderstorms, hail and tornadoes. When those weather conditions happen, everyone at KWCH focuses on quickly getting you information about what is happening in your neighborhood and and what impact the storms are having across Kansas. I’m new at KWCH and I wanted to see what happens behind the scenes by speaking with producers, photojournalists, reporters, and of course the weather team when extreme weather breaks. Make sure to send us your storm shots at stormshots@kwch.com and tell us what you see on our Severe Weather page chat . Check back throughout the day on KWCH.com for updated video and interviews from behind the scenes .

Wesley Medical Center is taking precautions in preparations for severe weather. Below is their severe weather plan at the hospital.  Level I   Severe Thunderstorm/Tornado WATCH        Level I    Severe Thunderstorm/Tornado   WATCH                  PROCEDURES : Patients on Oxygen/ventilators should have small Cylinder Oxygen tank placed securely on each patient's bed ...

All Wichita State University campuses closed at four o'clock Tuesday afternoon because of the threat of severe weather. Friends University and Newman also closed at four o'clock.

Local Red Cross volunteers have been told to be ready in anticipation of severe weather Tuesday. The volunteers need to be ready to respond right away if a community receives damage. Those helping will be skilled in sheltering and mass care. The Red Cross says it will be capable of setting up a shelter within a few hours of a storm. Nearly 400 volunteers are trained to respond.    

Kansas is hit with another round of severe weather on Friday night.  The Eyewitness Newsroom has received multiple reports of strong winds, hail, and storm damage from across the state. National Weather Service reported 60mph wind gusts in Butler County and 70mph wind gusts in Marion County. Westar Energy reported 2,419 customers were without power as of 12:13am.  The outages were in Chase, Douglas, Greenwood, Lyon, Marion, Nemaha, Ottawa, Reno, Saline, and Sedgwick counties.

Tejay Lovelock came all the way from Australia to keep an eye on the Kansas sky. "We've probably driven about 2,000 miles so far and we haven't seen a tornado yet. " He's spending his vacation storm chasing, joining the hundreds that hit the road in search of the perfect storm. Among them, is KWCH storm chaser Mikey Gribble. On Wednesday he was centrally stationed in a town that knows tornados all too well - Greensburg. "There were probably 20 or 30 chasers, a lot of tour vans first thing this morning, and then everyone just kind of spread out since then.

The potential of severe weather is forcing some schools to change their plans for prom.  Maize, Goddard and Valley Center are already taking precautions. Maize Due to the significant threat of severe weather in our area for Saturday evening, both the dance and the After Prom activities will be moved to Maize South Middle School, located at 3403 North Tyler Road. The Cotillion has no storm shelter available. Maize South Middle has a FEMA storm shelter and there is enough space for students.

Several graduation ceremonies in Wichita were postponed because of severe weather Sunday. Andover graduation started late at 5 p.m. Earlier in the afternoon, several graduates and their families took shelter in the basement of Century II. Kapaun Mt. Carmel's ceremony was postponed until 6 p.m.  Maize postponed tonight's ceremony at Koch Arena.  School officials are working to reschedule it. Bishop Carrol had...

Another day of severe weather for Kansas.  The area of most concern today-  south central and eastern Kansas.  An approaching cold front, combined with a dry line (lower humidity/dewpoint) will slowly move across the area during the afternoon.  These weather features combined with outflow boundaries (cooler, stable air-from morning storms) will be the focal point for severe thunderstorm development after 3 P.M.  The greatest potential for tornadoes will be along and east of I-135 and southward into northern Oklahoma.

The warm spell will continue here in Kansas with highs running 10-15 degrees above average for Thursday through Sunday. Our weekend looks warm and stormy with the possibility of severe weather. Thursday will be mild and humid with a few spotty storms over extreme northern Kansas. Temperatures will climb into the lower-80s along with southeast winds. Friday should be dry but we can expect a few severe storms to roll through western Kansas Saturday.

Looks like we've skipped spring and driven right into summer here in Kansas as temperatures soar into the 90s across the state Tuesday afternoon. We won't see any big weather changes Tuesday, it will feel a lot like Monday, hot and dry again. Temperatures will stay well above normal for mid-May under a mostly sunny sky. Highs will climb to around 90 for many with mid-90s possible for some along gusty southerly winds. The strong winds will lead to a higher fire danger for a big chunk of desert-dry western Kansas.

Think summer not spring when it comes to our weather this week across Kansas as most of the state will be experiencing highs in the 80s and even some 90s! Early Monday, temps tumbled to around 50 with light winds under a mostly clear sky. Monday afternoon will be mostly sunny with south winds gusting to 25 mph and highs ranging from the lower-90s across western Kansas to the upper-80s elsewhere. Don't look for any big weather changes Tuesday as temperatures stay well above normal for mid-May.

A cold front has moved into western Kansas and will change our weather for the rest of the week. Overnight, some rain is expected in northwest Kansas with increasing north winds. Lows will range from around 40 in the northwest to near 60 in south central Kansas. The front will likely stall over central Kansas through the night. Wednesday will see much cooler temperatures statewide. Warmest readings will be in the mid-morning hours with temperatures in the upper 40s west to upper 60s in south central Kansas.

The Storm Team 12 weather center is a silent contrast to the noisy newsroom a few yards away. Inside of one of the television studios at the station, bright monitors line the walls, tracking cloud and precipitation patterns that drift across Kansas. Day or night you can find Merril Teller, Ross Janssen, Mark Larson, Rodney Price or Dean Jones quietly studying maps and analyzing data.  Click here for weather and behind the scenes photos But when the station first went on the air in 1953, like most TV stations, Channel 12 didn't have a meteorologist.

The weather should remain quiet through Tuesday, but storms and severe weather should be expected into Wednesday. Overnight, clouds will thicken back up with some drizzle possible in south central Kansas. Some thunderstorms are possible in southeast Kansas, but most of the activity will remain out of Kansas. Temperatures will fall into the 30s for northern Kansas, with low to mid 40s in the south. Expect a cloudy day on Tuesday with some patchy drizzle possible. Some afternoon sunshine is possible in the southwest, but temperatures statewide will be rather cool.

A potent weather-maker is expected to blow into Kansas Tuesday and Wednesday, traveling along the stalled front, bringing thunderstorms, locally heavy rain, the threat for severe weather and even snow. Look for partly to mostly cloudy skies Monday with afternoon highs only topping out in the mid-50s and lower-60s. The wind will also be picking-up from the southeast across western Kansas while lighter winds will be found across the central and east. Tuesday, expect increasing clouds and even cooler highs in the 50s. Our rain chances will increase significantly Tuesday night and especially Wednesday but severe weather is not expected a big concern.