Weather News

Brief heavy rains, gusty winds possible if showers, thunderstorms pop up in KC area

There’s a chance of gusty winds and brief heavy rains as showers and thunderstorms push through the Kansas City area Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Severe weather not expected.
There’s a chance of gusty winds and brief heavy rains as showers and thunderstorms push through the Kansas City area Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Severe weather not expected. National Weather Service

There’s a slight chance another round of scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms could pass through the Kansas City area Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

While severe weather is not expected, some of the stronger storms could produce a few strong wind gusts and maybe some brief periods of heavy rains in some areas, the weather service said. The threat of storms should end around sunset.

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Storms on Wednesday caught some people off guard as brief periods of heavy rain fell in the metro during the rush hour.

The storms were hit and miss. At Kansas City International Airport, for instance, 1.29 inches of rain fell on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Wheeler Downtown Airport reported only a trace of rain.

Rainfall totals on Wednesday varied widely in other parts of the metro as well: .07 of an inch fell in Lee’s Summit and at Johnson County Executive Airport while New Century AirCenter had none.

Once the storms move out of the Kansas City area, cooler, drier air is expected to move in, creating a pleasant Memorial Day weekend. Skies are expected to be clear and sunny over the holiday weekend.

Temperatures will be normal on Friday, hovering around 80 degrees. Similar conditions are expected on Saturday. Sunday will be a bit warmer, with temps in the mid-80s. On Memorial Day, temperatures will climb into the upper 80s.

The chance of storms return next week with the possibility of widespread daytime storms in the second half of the week, according to the weather service.

Weather watches and warnings

A live data feed from the National Weather Service containing official weather warnings, watches, and advisory statements. Tap warning areas for more details. Sources: NOAA, National Weather Service, NOAA GeoPlatform and Esri.


This story was originally published May 25, 2023 at 8:07 AM.

Robert A. Cronkleton
The Kansas City Star
Robert A. Cronkleton is a breaking news reporter for The Kansas City Star, covering crime, courts, transportation, weather and climate. He’s been at The Star for 36 years. His skills include multimedia and data reporting and video and audio editing. Support my work with a digital subscription
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