Should we expect tornadoes in Missouri today? Here’s what the weather forecast says
Severe storms predicted for the Kansas City area Wednesday may also bring tornadoes to Missouri, according to the National Weather Service
But how likely is it that tornadoes will appear in Missouri today?
It was too soon to tell Wednesday morning, said weather service meteorologist Brent Pesel. The storms are expected to sweep through the region in the afternoon and evening, bringing the chance also of large hail and damaging winds.
Tornadoes can’t be ruled out and are possible across a broad swath of the state, from the east side of the Kansas City metro all the way to Cape Girardeau, in the southeast corner of Missouri.
“We’re not expecting them to be particularly violent or on the upper end of the scale, but they are possible and they can still do damage,” Pesel told The Star.
Pesel said the main ingredients for a tornado will be warm air, moisture and wind shear, which he said is the changing of wind speed or direction as the storm moves higher in the atmosphere from the ground.
“The wind shear profile is there to keep thunderstorms going but it is just not quite to the numbers that make us concerned for a large amount of tornadoes in western Missouri,” he said.
Pesel said as the weather progresses, by late afternoon or early evening on Wednesday, it will become clear where and if a tornado may strike.
“The environment can evolve quite a bit between now and when we expect storms to strike but our confidence is high that the threat is towards areas further east,” he said.
Pesel said he is more concerned with the storm’s strong winds, which could bring dangerous gusts up to 60 miles per hour, heavy rain and even large hail to some areas of the Kansas City region.
The Kansas City area is also under a heat advisory from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. Wednesday as portions of east, central and northeast Kansas and central, northwest and west-central Missouri could see heat index values soar up to 110 degrees, according to the weather service.
Pesel said residents should remain “weather aware” throughout Wednesday and check for updates on the storm.
Remember when the weather service issues a watch, it means to be prepared for the severe weather.
Warnings, on the other hand, mean to take action because severe weather has either been reported by spotters or indicated by radar.
Here’s a guide on how to sign up for severe weather alerts in Kansas City.
Weather watches and warnings
A live data feed from the National Weather Service containing official weather warnings, watches, and advisory statements. Tap warning areas for more details. Sources: NOAA, National Weather Service, NOAA GeoPlatform and Esri.
