They really mean it

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in

The following is the Hazardous Weather Outlook for this afternoon. I personally have not seen an outlook so strongly worded. The Storm Prediction Center had put Northeast Kansas under “High” risk for Severe Weather… which means that they expect a major outbreak of severe thunderstorms.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
1228 PM CDT THU APR 6 2006

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-071730-
REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY-
POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS-
WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON-
1228 PM CDT THU APR 6 2006

...SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAK LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL...NORTH
CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST KANSAS.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ALONG A DRYLINE IN CENTRAL KANSAS
BETWEEN 1 AND 3 PM. ADDITIONALLY A FEW DISCRETE STORMS
COULD DEVELOP AHEAD OF THE DRYLINE. THESE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO
QUICKLY BECOME SEVERE...CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL AS LARGE AS 2 TO
4 INCHES IN DIAMETER...STRONG WINDS 60 TO 80 MPH AND TORNADOES.
THESE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO PARTS OF NORTHEAST AND EAST
CENTRAL KANSAS BY LATE AFTERNOON.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE OVER EAST CENTRAL AND PARTS OF
NORTHEAST KANSAS DURING THE DAY FRIDAY. A FEW OF THESE STORMS
COULD PRODUCE HAIL.

MORE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE FOR AT LEAST PART OF THE AREA FROM
MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTERS ACTIVATION IS IMMINENT. PREPARATIONS SHOULD MADE NOW FOR
WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL...NORTHEAST AND
EAST CENTRAL KANSAS THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING.

$$

WOLTERS

In addition, the SPC put us on the right hand side of a PDS Tornado Watch. Here’s what they had to say:

SEL4

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 154
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1245 PM CDT THU APR 6 2006

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

CENTRAL AND EASTERN KANSAS
SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 1245 PM UNTIL
900 PM CDT.

...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION...

DESTRUCTIVE TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...
THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE
POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 85 STATUTE
MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 20 MILES WEST NORTHWEST OF
COLUMBUS NEBRASKA TO 60 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WICHITA KANSAS.  FOR A
COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE
UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU4).

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH
AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 153...

DISCUSSION...RAPID DESTABILIZATION IS OCCURRING ACROSS CENTRAL KS
WHERE STRONG SURFACE HEATING AND MOISTURE ADVECTION IS ONGOING.  THE
CAP IS RAPIDLY WEAKENING ACROSS THIS AREA...AND STRONG SURFACE
PRESSURE FALLS ARE UNDERWAY ACROSS CENTRAL KS...DOWNSTREAM FROM A
STRONG MID LEVEL WAVE APPROACHING THIS AREA FROM THE W.  THE
ENVIRONMENT WILL BECOME MORE FAVORABLE FOR STORM DEVELOPMENT THROUGH
THE AFTERNOON...WITH BOTH DISCRETE SUPERCELLS AND BOWING LINE
SEGMENTS POSSIBLE THROUGH THE LATE AFTERNOON HOURS.  THE MORE
DISCRETE STORMS WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE A FEW STRONG
TORNADOES AND VERY LARGE HAIL...WHILE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL
BE LIKELY WITH ALL OF THE CONVECTION.  ADDITIONALLY...THE TORNADO
THREAT WILL EXTEND WELL N INTO NEB WHERE LOW-LEVEL SHEAR WILL BE
FOCUSED NEAR A SURFACE LOW AND SURFACE FRONTAL BOUNDARY.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 21045.

...THOMPSON