Thunderstorms are expected to continue into Thursday evening across northeastern Kansas, possibly to be followed by severe weather Friday and Saturday, according to the National Weather Service in Topeka.
Parts of Lawrence had already seen about half an inch of rain as of 2 p.m. Thursday, according to neighborhood weather stations in the area.
Storms were developing west of Concordia, and Lawrence could possibly see large hail and damaging wind gusts Thursday evening, according to NWS.
Severe thunderstorms may also develop Friday afternoon and evening, according to NWS, which may be followed by additional scattered storms Saturday afternoon and evening. Winds near 30 mph and gusts up to 50 mph are also possible Friday afternoon.
“Very large hail, damaging wind gusts, and tornadoes are possible with these storms on both days,” according to a weather alert from the NWS. “Locally heavy rainfall amounts could result from these multiple rounds of thunderstorms.”
Evergy is preparing for potential power outages, according to a news release from the company Thursday afternoon.
“Evergy crews are prepared, and we will bring in additional crews if needed,” according to the release.
Evergy also reminds that downed trees are a primary cause of power outages during storms.
“If tree limbs are touching or near power lines, don’t come into contact with them. Being in contact with a tree limb that touches a power line could result in severe injury or even be fatal,” according to the release.
As of Thursday afternoon, the NWS forecast showed that showers and thunderstorms will likely continue in Lawrence during the day and night Sunday. Monday is expected to be mostly sunny, according to the forecast.
The NWS encourages people to review their weather safety plans, ensure weather warning devices are working and monitor the forecast.
Severe weather resources
National Weather Service local office (Topeka):
• Find the latest weather forecast info and severe weather advisories for the Lawrence area at this link.
• In the event of rapidly changing severe weather, such as tornadoes, the NWS posts frequent updates on Twitter, @NWSTopeka. You do not need a Twitter account to see tweets from NWS.
• NWS is also on Facebook, facebook.com/NWSTopeka.
• Call 785-234-2592 to hear the forecast.
Douglas County Emergency Management:
• Follow @DgCoEM on Twitter or Douglas County, KS- Emergency Management on Facebook, facebook.com/dgcoem.
• Sign up to receive emergency alerts at dgcoks.org/emalerts.
• Find lots of tips on severe weather and other emergency preparedness on DgCoEM’s website at douglascountyks.org/emergency-management.
• Report storm damage (for non-emergencies only, and after storm danger has passed) by calling the nonemergency dispatch line at 785-843-0250 or 785-832-7509.
Evergy outages:
• Check the status of power outages on the Evergy outage map, outagemap.evergy.com.
• Report a power outage at evergy.com/report-outage, or call 800-544-4857.
• For down powerlines, call 911.
City of Lawrence snow info:
• The city has snow information and a map at lawrenceks.org/snow that shows information about road conditions and snow plow locations. The city typically begins snow and ice control for residential roadways when 2 or more inches of snowfall or icing occurs.
Air quality:
• Check the current air quality index in Lawrence and elsewhere through AirNow, airnow.gov.
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Molly Adams / Lawrence Times
