EF0 tornado in Smith County, Kansas

A tornado moved across rural areas of northern Smith County north of Athol. This tornado damaged some trees near its starting point and turned over a small mobile building along its way north. The tornado passed near a local limestone quarry. The path was based on a combination of damage indicators in the field and radar Correlation Coefficient signatures.

A closed upper low/trough was over the Central Plains which brought an increase in atmospheric lift. Moisture and instability increased across the area during the afternoon of the previous day. Wind shear and helicity increased after sunset. As the low moved northeast over Kansas and Nebraska, a cold front with gusty northwest winds moved into the area during the day on April 16th. These conditions were conducive to the development of severe weather. Strong to severe storms in the form of a QLCS moved northeastward across north central Kansas during the early morning hours of April 16th. The storms produced wind gusts up to 64 mph which resulted in wind damage, an EF-0 tornado (in Smith County), and a non-thunderstorm wind gust of 68 mph. The severe reports began just before 1 AM and ended just after 3 AM CDT.