Update: New forecast puts Wichita in ‘greatest concern’ for severe weather

Updated 3:15 p.m. Wednesday:

Wichita is now included in an area of “greatest concern” for severe weather on Wednesday, according to an updated forecast from the National Weather Service sent out this afternoon.

The afternoon report says the highest concern for that weather is through 5 p.m.

That weather could include golf ball-sized hail, winds up to 70 mph and a few tornadoes.

The NWS also put an area that includes Wichita under a tornado watch until 9 p.m. Severe weather for Wichita is forecast through 9 p.m.

The afternoon report also moved Wichita from a 2 to a 3 on a scale of 5 for the most likely chance of severe weather.

Original Wednesday morning:

More specific details about when to expect severe weather in south-central Kansas on Wednesday were released this morning by the National Weather Service in Wichita.

The severe weather is expected to hit the Wichita area between 5-9 p.m. The highest risk for severe weather is still expected to be east of Wichita.

The storm could include up to golf ball-sized hail, wind gusts up to 80 mph and a few tornadoes. For comparison on the wind, the highest gust measured Tuesday in Wichita was 53 mph at the Colonel James Jabara Airport, the NWS said.

The warm air Wednesday will collide with a “slow moving cold front” that will bring “much cooler and drier weather for Thursday and Friday,” the NWS in Wichita said.

The highs those days, in the 60s, are more typical for this time of year.

This story was originally published October 30, 2024 at 9:33 AM.