Strong thunderstorms expected overnight in Kansas City. Here’s timing of severe weather
Severe weather is expected to sweep across the Kansas City area overnight Tuesday, with the main threats being damaging winds and large hail, the National Weather Service said.
A few tornadoes also cannot be ruled out, the weather service said.
“Be sure to have a way to receive weather alerts as most of the severe weather will occur during the overnight hours!” the weather service said on its Facebook page.
Rounds of storms to come through Kansas City
A low-pressure system has set up to the west, causing breezy conditions in the metro with gusts between 30 and 40 mph, according to the weather service.
A cold front associated with the low-pressure system is expected to move east, acting as a catalyst for the first round of severe thunderstorms, the weather service said.
Scattered severe thunderstorms are expected to form over central and eastern Kansas between 8 and 10 p.m. and then move northeast into central Missouri around midnight.
There is a risk of damaging winds and large hail, as well as a tornado or two, with these storms, the weather service said. The storms are expected to exit the area by around 2 to 4 a.m. Wednesday.
Second round expected to be more severe
The second round of storms, which are expected to be more severe than the first, is likely to develop around midnight in central Kansas.
These storms are expected to form a line that will sweep across the Kansas-Missouri border between 4 and 6 a.m. Wednesday, the weather service said.
Damaging winds and large hail will be the main threats, but “a few spin-ups are possible along the line of storms,” the weather service said.
“If storms begin to train (over the same area) or storm motions are slower than anticipated, minimal flooding could become a concern,” the weather service said.
The line of storms is expected to exit the Kansas City forecast area by between 8 and 10 a.m. The weather service stated that the severe weather threat would persist until early in the morning and may affect the morning commute.
In the strongest storms, hail can be up to 2 inches in diameter, and winds can reach up to 70 mph.
