Cold front to bring strong to severe thunderstorms to the Kansas City area overnight
A powerful cold front moving into the Kansas City area Wednesday will bring strong winds and overnight thunderstorms, kicking off what will be an active weather pattern that runs through the weekend, said FOX4 meteorologist Karli Ritter.
“We have a very windy day ahead of us in advance of a strong cold front,” said Ritter, who provides weather updates to The Star. “As our winds increase, they’ll be gusting about 45 miles per hour and as a result we have a wind advisory in effect through this evening.”
The Kansas City area hit 77 degrees on Tuesday, which tied the record high for that date which was set in 1986. Highs on Wednesday will again climb back into the upper 70s, Ritter said. The record high for this date is 84 degrees set in 1967.
“As the day progresses, we’ll see some sunshine but then tonight as the front approaches, rain chances become more widespread,” she said. “ There’s a chance some of these storms could be on the strong or even severe side and that’s something we’ll be monitoring especially for maybe some larger hail up to an inch in diameter.”
Ritter said she is most concerned about the large hail risk.
“After today, this front cools us down,” Ritter said in her forecast. “We have highs in the 40s and 50s with more unsettled weather all the way through early next week.”
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.
The National Weather Service in Kansas City and Topeka have issued a Red Flag Warning for areas west of the metro and northwest Missouri, saying a combination of strong winds, low humidity and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior. Any fires that ignite will likely spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is not recommended.
Overnight storms could produce a few strong to isolated severe storms, the National Weather Service in Kansas City said. While hail is the primary threat, heavy rain could lead to localized flooding. Some areas could see up to 2 inches of rain.
Additional rainfall is possible through the weekend. Between 2 and 5 inches of rain is possible through the weekend along and south of Interstate 70, the weather service said.
This story was originally published March 10, 2021 at 8:21 AM.
