Thunderstorms racing 60 miles an hour – long after sunset.
Hail…strong winds….tornado watches covering at least one-third of the state.
All on the day after Christmas — in Kansas.
No tornadoes touched down, according to the Storm Prediction Center, but there were several reports of hail – including in Valley Center and Derby. But conditions were nonetheless favorable enough for tornado watches to be issued.
I would not be surprised to hear of a tornado or two this time of year on the Gulf Coast, but the Sunflower State? Mind you, local meteorologists would be quick to tell you that tornadoes have been reported in Kansas every month of the year. But I’d expect any December reports to come very early in the month, from vestiges of warm weather that surge through the region before winter sets in.
For tornadic conditions to materialize even after spells of polar weather have shoved temperatures below zero in the state is remarkable indeed.