Print edition: 
The powerful winds that buffeted the Wichita area and much of the rest of Kansas on Sunday are being blamed for a three-motorcycle crash in Cowley County that killed one man and critically injured two others, authorities said.
All three victims were stationed at McConnell Air Force Base and were out for a Sunday ride, Cowley County Undersheriff Bill Mueller said.
Sgt. Harold Young, 30, was killed in the crash that occurred shortly before 2:45 p.m. on Grouse Creek Road about a half-mile south of Dexter, Mueller said.
Jeremy Richardson, 22, and Walter Hall, 38, are both in critical condition at Wesley Medical Center.
"It appears the cross wind caught them" at a curve on Grouse Creek Road, Mueller said. "They had been riding through a relatively protected area in the valley" coming north.
"They got in that corner, got into a wide open area, and the wind caught them."
All three riders went off the north side of the road into a deep ditch, Mueller said.
"The evidence at the scene did not indicate they were going too fast," he said. "I thought I was going to get blown into the ditch just standing there."
Wind gusts of 45 miles an hour were reported in Cowley County at about the time of the accident, National Weather Service meteorologist Andy Kleinsasser said.
Wind stokes fires
Strong winds also whipped large grass fires in Butler County and several western Kansas counties on Sunday. Satanta was a ghost town for several hours Sunday after a massive grass fire prompted the evacuation of the Haskell County town of about 1,200 residents.
The fire started on the railroad in Stevens County and followed the railroad into Grant and Haskell counties, according to Mike Schechter, Stevens County emergency services coordinator.
Schechter said the fire may have been started by sparks caused by a mechanical malfunction on a train. Fed by 60-mile-an hour winds, the fire spread fast.
Two houses in Stevens County were destroyed in the fire, authorities said, and at least three more in Haskell County.
The fire broke out at about noon Sunday. The American Red Cross provided snacks and drinks to about 120 people who evacuated to the Sublette High School. Satanta residents were allowed to return to their homes at about 8 p.m., authorities said.
Firefighters in Butler County battled two grass fires on Sunday, including a large one that burned more than 700 acres southwest of El Dorado.
Crews from seven fire departments battled the blaze, El Dorado Fire Capt. Max Brown said.
Later that night, winds of 70 miles an hour were reported in Rosalia in southern Butler County, as well as near Elmdale in Chase County and Teterville in Greenwood County.
Winds of 65 miles an hour were reported elsewhere in Chase County and 63 miles an hour at Mid-Continent Airport in west Wichita.
Hail reported
Hail as large as chicken eggs fell in Lincolnville in Marion County, and golf ball-size hail fell in Saffordville in Chase County, north of Benton in Butler County, northwest of Marion in Marion County and in Winfield in Cowley County. Nickel-size hail fell in Park City.
Pea-sized hail was reported in northwest Wichita, but the larger hail "just missed" the city, weather service meteorologist Steve Smith said.
