Tornado watch issued for Kansas City area as severe storms move into metro
A tornado watch has been issued for the Kansas City area on Wednesday afternoon as thunderstorms begin to fire up in the area.
The National Weather Service issued the watch at 3:40 p.m. for parts of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri, and it remains in effect until 9 p.m.
Johnson, Linn, Miami and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and Bates, Cass, Clay, Henry, Jackson, Johnson, Lafayette, Platte and Ray counties in Missouri from the metro area are included in the watch.
Other countries in north-central, northwest and northeast Missouri are included in the watch.
Meanwhile, the weather service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Wyandotte County, northeastern Johnson County, Clay County, Platte County and Jackson County until 4:30 p.m.
A severe thunderstorm was located over Lake Quivira about 3:50 p.m. and it was moving northeast at 40 mph. Wind gusts of 60 mph and half-dollar-sized hail were the main hazards.
Cities under the warning included Kansas City, Overland Park, Shawnee, Lenexa, Liberty, Gladstone, Prairie Village, Merriam, Mission, Smithville, Kearney, Parkville, Platte City, Edwardsville, North Kansas City, Fairway, Riverside, Lawson, Weatherby Lake, and Westwood.
“For your protection, move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building,” the weather service said.
A severe thunderstorm warning was later issued for parts of Miami, Linn, Cass and Bates counties that is in effect until 5 p.m.
A severe thunderstorm warning has also been issued for other southern parts of metro, including Johnson County. The damage threat is considerable, according to the weather service, as 2 inch hail is possible
At about 4:10 p.m., a severe thunderstorm was over Pleasanton, Kansas, and was moving northeast at 55 mph. Radar indicated that quarter-sized hail was falling, and wind gusts were reaching 65 mph.
Cities that were expected to be impacted included Harrisonville, Peculiar, Butler, Adrian, Garden City, Pleasanton, La Cygne, Archie, Drexel, Linn Valley, Cleveland, Freeman, Creighton, East Lynne, Lake Annette, Amsterdam, Amoret, Foster, West Line, and Merwin.
This story was originally published April 15, 2026 at 4:10 PM.
