The quiet tornado season in Kansas is reaching record-setting levels, National Weather Service officials say.
When a tornado touched down in western Kansas on April 22, it was the first in the state in 262 days, dating back to Aug. 2. That’s the longest tornado drought in Kansas in 20 years, weather officials said.
It’s been 281 days – and counting – since a tornado touched down in the 26-county region of southeast Kansas covered by the Wichita branch of the weather service.
Here’s a weather service chart showing recent tornado droughts in the state:
Wednesday will be windy in the Wichita area, forecasters say – so much so that a wind advisory has been issued for the region from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
South winds will intensify from the teens this morning to the upper 30s later in the day. Gusts will approach 50 mph.
Highs should reach the upper 70s under sunny skies, with the overnight low dropping only into the low 60s. Thursday will be even warmer, with highs in the low 80s. It will continue to be very windy, with steady breezes in the mid-20s to mid-30s, and gusts into the mid-40s.
Thursday night could see thunderstorms develop, forecasters say, and some of them could be severe.
For more information on weather conditions, go to our weather page.