As we've already reported, the tornado reached EF3 strength with a damage length of 2 miles. It was reported to be 250 yards wide. But what was striking to me (and it isn't anything new with tornadoes) is how one home was completely untouched, while the house immediately across the street had the roof ripped off. The image posted above was captured out of our 6 p.m. newscast Thursday. I immediately started thinking about how this could've happened and trying to visualize what the tornado would've looked like as it went through town.
Large, violent tornadoes (like Greensburg, Hesston, Andover, etc) are considered rare. They make up less than 2% of all tornadoes we get in Kansas. But those kinds of tornadoes usually come with a decent amount of warning. In the case of Greensburg, there was easily 20-30 minutes of preparation time. But in the case of Eureka, this was a small storm (what we referred to as "isolated"), and it just happened to spin up a tornado in the wrong spot. Large, violent tornadoes wipe out everything in their path. Smaller, multi-vortex tornadoes (like Eureka), can skip around from spot to spot.
Weekend Storm Chances:
A front will slide into the area Saturday and should ignite more storms over the area. The setup isn't favorable for severe storms, but small hail, heavy rains, gusty winds, and lightning will all be a threat. Rainfall amounts won't be overly huge, but if you end up with .25-.50", you'll be some of the lucky ones. The rainfall will not be widespread, but at least we have a chance at some moisture. The hot weather sure dries things out in a hurry.
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