Flash flood warnings issued in Kansas City as thunderstorms, heavy rain pound metro
Heavy rain from early morning thunderstorms caused flash flooding across the Kansas City metro area Wednesday, FOX4 meteorologist Karli Ritter said.
The National Weather Service in Kansas City urged commuters to use caution on their morning drive.
“Please sow down and take your time heading into work this morning,” the weather service said on Twitter. “T-storms producing heavy rain are reducing visibility and increasing the hydroplaning risk due to ponding water on roads.”
The weather service issued a flash flood warning for Clay, Platte and southern Clinton counties, including the Excelsior Springs, Liberty and Smithville area until 9:15 a.m. saying thunderstorms were dumping heavy rains. More than 3 to 4 inches of rain had already fallen by shortly after 6 a.m.
Flood warnings were issued for the Fishing River near Mosby and the Little Platte River at Smithville.
“We may have additional storms developing later this afternoon, especially around Kansas City and points east,” said Ritter, who provides weather updates to The Star. “That’s going to limit our warm up to the mid-80s at best.”
The rain and thunderstorms are expected to be an issue throughout the day, she said. People in the northern part of the metro area should expect heavy rain and flash flooding at times. Storms that develop east of the Kansas City area could be on the strong to severe side.
“The south side might not pickup quite as much,” Ritter said. “By tomorrow morning, we are free and clear of rain and we stay dry for our Thursday.”
Hot temperatures and high humidity return for the end of the week, with highs climbing to near 100 degrees on Saturday and Sunday.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREHow we did this story
The Star produced this weather update in partnership with the local FOX4 television station. The station’s meteorologists create forecast videos multiple times a day for the newspaper to include in its weather reports.
This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 7:55 AM.
