Storm chasers spot tornado in Oklahoma as hail pelts Kansas. Forecasts warn more is to come
CTV
Storm chasers spotted a tornado on the ground Monday in rural Oklahoma while large hail pelted parts of Kansas as forecasters issued a rare high risk warning for the two states with the possibility of long-track twisters.
Storm chasers spotted a tornado on the ground Monday in rural Oklahoma while large hail pelted parts of Kansas as forecasters issued a rare high risk warning for the two states with the possibility of long-track twisters.
The greatest risk of damaging weather includes areas in Oklahoma, such as Sulphur and Holdenville, still recovering from a tornado that killed four and left thousands without power late last month. Both the Plains and Midwest have been hammered by tornadoes this spring.
The storm chasers detected several small funnels emerging from clouds before identifying a twister near the small 1,000-person Oklahoma town of Okeene. No damage was immediately reported, but the National Weather Service warned those in the area to take shelter.
Meanwhile, apple-sized hail of three inches (7.62 centimetres) in diameter was reported near Ellinwood, Kansas, a town of about 2,000 residents 100 miles (161 kilometres) northwest of Wichita.
The National Weather Service said that more than 3.4 million people, 1,614 schools and 159 hospitals in Oklahoma, portions of southern Kansas and far north Texas, face the most severe threat for tornadoes.
In all, nearly 10 million people live in areas that could be affected, the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center said.
Schools and colleges across the state, including the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City Public Schools and several metro-area school districts, shut down early and canceled late afternoon and evening classes and activities.
