KWCH - Kansas News and Weather - Tornadoes Touch Down in Central Kansas

Tornadoes Touch Down in Central Kansas

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By Megan Strader (WICHITA, Kan.)

The sounds of chainsaws around McPherson on Sunday are much different than the sounds that accompanied a lot of wind damage Saturday night.

"We were actually standing on the front porch so we were able to hear the booms and the bangs. We heard the transformers go out and the wind was nuts," describes Jimmy Yianakopulos. 

That wind ended up taking out part of his fence, only a few weeks after a different storm wiped out a different section.

"Maybe a blessing in disguise, it needed replaced anyway." Not everyone is looking at the damage that way though.

Several Main Street businesses now have built in skylights on their awnings, whether they wanted them or not. The storm collapsed the metal sheets that used to shade their doors.

But it wasn't just the winds causing problems. It rained so much that the streets were flooded and the water would actually pick branches up out of people's yards and wash them down the streets to other people's yards.

Signs of the heavy rain can still be seen in swollen creeks, but it's the sounds of cleaning up the aftermath that are going to be reminding people of this weekends storm for days to come.

Byam Lacy tells Eyewitness News, "That tree has a massive root system on it and I swear that tree is leaning this way today but it just might be my imagination or maybe the house is leaning the other way."

Several farms were also damaged outside the community of Conway. The National Weather Service will be investigating Monday to see if it was a tornado that did that damage.

By Chris Durden (GREAT BEND, Kan.)

Many people in central and eastern Kansas spent Saturday evening in their tornado shelters.

The Assistant City Administrator in Great Bend says a tornado touched down around seven o'clock in city limits. The storm left damage for about two-blocks.

Two people suffered minor injuries, mostly from flying debris. Damage included downed trees, power lines and broken glass.

The McPherson County Sheriff's Department said an unconfirmed tornado hit the east side of town late Saturday. The department says no injuries were reported. Several outbuildings and power lines were damaged, as well as some structures in downtown McPherson.

A tornado also touched down near Durham in Marion County. Several farmsteads were damaged and livestock scattered.