Storm chasers dream about large tornado outbreaks on the Great Plains. That’s what forecasters anticipate today — but this could be much closer to a nightmare for chasers and even storm spotters.
The storms will be moving incredibly fast for this time of year —- 65 miles an hour by some estimates.
“Storms are going to be moving so fast, and it’s going to be very hard to keep up with them,” said Kevin Darmofal, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Wichita.
While supercell thunderstorms figure to be isolated early in the outbreak — meaning they’ll be easier to see and track — forecasters expect them to embed in lines of thunderstorms later in the evening.
“You could have tornadoes that would be very hard to see,” Darmofal said.
This weather pattern is not like the supercells that developed in the days leading up to and through Memorial Day weekend.
“They were definitely more discreet, and easier to chase,” Darmofal said. “Today it’s going to be a little bit different.”
….around dawn this morning over Wichita were an indication of the “low-level jet stream” that is in place over the Great Plains — a component that will be feeding the strong storms expected today.
I heard a couple of callers tell KFDI that this morning reminded them of April 26, 1991, which has become known as the day of the “Andover tornado” — which also hit Haysville and south Wichita and is the last EF5 tornado to strike Wichita.
I remember stepping outside that morning and going “Uh-oh,” because the heat and instability were unmistakable even at 8 a.m. That same stickiness wasn’t as apparent this morning – at least, to me – though the unsettled atmosphere is obvious.
That’s not to say Wichita has nothing to worry about. I’m just not going to be among those who say “This feels like April 26.” Some meteorologists are comparing these conditions with a previous outbreak, but it’s June 8, 1974…not April 26.
CNN has sent a television crew to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman.
Fox News wants to do regular phone interviews with officials at the Wichita branch of the National Weather Service.
The SPC’s warning coordination meteorologist is in Washington, D.C., today to brief congressional staff.
Yes, the outbreak predicted for today has caught the nation’s attention. And for good reason: forecasters are talking about large, long-track tornadoes this afternoon and tonight over a large section of the Great Plains. They’ll likely be traveling at more than 50 miles an hour, too, so people will have less time to react in threatened areas.
We’ve attached the SPC outlook for today with a story on Kansas.com. Stay tuned for updates.