Crews survey wind damage in eastern Kansas after several tornado warnings issued Saturday
About half a dozen tornado warnings were issued Saturday evening in eastern Kansas.
Weather officials are now trying to confirm how many twisters swept through the area, causing damage in towns including Manhattan, home to Kansas State University, which sits about 120 miles due west of Kansas City.
Daniel Reese, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Topeka, said crews were on the ground as of 9:30 a.m. Sunday working to survey the damage, including downed power lines and trees, likely caused by a combination of tornadoes and straight line winds.
Wind gusts Saturday evening measured up to 80 miles per hour as a supercell thunderstorm moved south from Marshall County to Lyon and Chase counties over about five hours, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., he said.
The storm also brought hail to some areas, with the largest measuring about the size of a golf ball around 7 p.m. in northeast Morganville and Olsburg, Reese said.
The hardest hit areas appear to be from Marysville to Blue Rapids, and from Olsburg to Manhattan, according to the weather service.
More than 25,000 power outages were reported across Manhattan and Marysville, Evergy reported. About 80% of the power was restored by early Sunday, according to the power company.
In Marysville, north of Manhattan, police chief Matt Simpson, said that while there was damage in the city’s downtown area, no injuries were reported.
The Marysville Police Department announced Sunday morning that a disaster relief team of about 18 people was headed into town to help cut down damaged trees and limbs.
Those without power and need of electricity, including people who use oxygen tanks, were welcome to come to the police department, where there is power, at 207 S. 10th Street.
In Manhattan, the Riley County Police Department took reports of downed power lines and some damage to buildings, including the Chi Omega house. As of about 10 a.m. Sunday, there were still parts of the county without power.
On Sunday morning, as cleanup commenced, Riley County police asked community members to drop of storm debris at the Riley County Transfer Station at 1881 Henton Road.
The eastern Kansas storm damage came just days after parts of the Kansas City metro, including in Jackson and Johnson counties, were damaged by multiple twisters, including an EF-2 tornado reported in Buckner.
This story was originally published June 12, 2022 at 10:15 AM.
