BOLIVAR, Mo. (KY3) – The National Weather Service confirmed two tornadoes hit the Bolivar, Mo. area Thursday. The two EF1 twisters hit around the noon hour. The first brief tornado hit along Killingsworth Avenue in the southern portion of the Polk County city. The second EF1 tornado hit between Bolivar and Halfway. Multiple witnesses reported…
Joplin’s EF5 Tornado: What Our Meteorologists Haven’t Forgotten 10 Years Later
Saturday marks the 10-year anniversary of the Joplin tornado, which tore a six-mile-long and up to a mile-wide path of devastation through the southwest Missouri city. One hundred fifty-eight people lost their lives directly due to the EF5 tornado on May 22, 2011. The city will commemorate the anniversary with an observance Saturday, including a…
Storms Trigger Flooding, Spawn Tornadoes in Southern Plains, Missouri, Arkansas
Severe weather brought flooding and tornadoes that caused damage in parts of Oklahoma, Missouri and other states overnight and into Wednesday afternoon. Flooding was reported in Branson, Missouri, as well as several other areas, including Abilene, Texas, and Bentonville, Arkansas. The Southern Stone County Fire Protection District said several motorists were stranded and had to…
15 years later, mid-Missouri remembers 2006 tornado outbreak
NEW BLOOMFIELD — Friday marks the 15 year anniversary of the destructive March 12, 2006 tornado outbreak that swept across mid-Missouri. Most of the tornadoes during the outbreak occurred on Sunday, March 12, but a few also touched down on March 11, and early in the morning of March 13. In all, a total of…
Homes damaged in Johnson County, Kansas, after reports of tornado touchdown
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Severe thunderstorms rolled through the Kansas City area on Monday, spawning at least one brief tornado touchdown that damaged homes and downed fences and tree limbs. The National Weather Service said on Twitter that law enforcement reported a tornado had touched down in rural southeast Johnson County south of Overland Park,…
Small town asks for help replacing tornado siren
RENICK — The town of Renick, Missouri, is asking for financial assistance to replace a tornado siren. Renick lays about five miles south of Moberly and has fewer than 200 residents. The siren, which is the town’s only emergency alert system, broke two years ago. John Muehe, the town’s mayor, said it’s been difficult trying…
Super Tuesday tornado outbreak–12 years later
JONESBORO, Ark. (KAIT) – Twelve years ago on Feb. 4, as voters headed to the polls to cast their ballots in the 2008 primaries, 12 tornadoes tore across the state of Arkansas, killing 14 people. The Super Tuesday outbreak laid waste to everything in its path. One EF-4 tornado stayed on the ground for 122…
2-day severe weather outbreak leaves widespread destruction across southern US
Intense winds, flooding downpours and tornadoes left behind a trail of destruction as the first severe weather outbreak of 2020 roared through the southern United States. From Friday morning to Saturday night, the storms turned deadly and left a long recovery process in its wake. During the two-day span, a total of over 650 wind…
No warning siren for twister; mayor has to use hand crank
SPARTA, Mo. (AP) — The tornado siren failed to sound when a small tornado reached the area of Sparta, Missouri, because the small-town mayor couldn’t get to the hand-crank siren. KY-TV reports that the tornado tracked into the Sparta area just after 1 a.m. Monday. Winds up to 90 mph damaged homes and downed trees,…
Tornado that touched down near Mound City, Missouri, left half-mile damage path
A tornado that touched down near Mound City, Missouri, Saturday was rated at EF-0, according to the National Weather Service. A report from the National Weather Service in Pleasant Hill said the tornado touched down about 4:22 p.m. and was finished about a minute later. With wind speeds estimated at 70 mph, the tornado made…