April 27, 2014 Bourbon and Linn County Tornado

Overview

An early round of thunderstorms moved through western and Central Missouri during the morning hours on April 27. These early storms produced pockets of wind damage and large hail. This early round of thunderstorms also produced a brief embedded tornado near Odessa, Missouri. After a few hours passed the atmosphere destablized in advance of a second round of thunderstorms that formed in eastern Kansas later in the afternoon. One of these storms intensified into a supercell as it encountered an outflow boundary moving westward from the morning convection. The storm produced a tornado near Fort Scott, Kansas. This tornado traveled northward toward Pleasanton, causing damage to several structures and widespread destruction to trees. An old church that was built in the 1880s was destroyed by the tornado. The EF-2 tornado eventually dissipated near Pleasanton, 26 minutes after it originally formed.

The storm produced a tornado as it approached Fort Scott, Kansas. This tornado matured as it crossed the county line near Prescott, and became its strongest just south of Pleasanton. It eventually dissipated near Pleasanton.

Tornado

Bourbon and Linn County Tornado
BOURBON AND LINN COUNTIES

Date	April 27, 2014
Time (Local)	5:40 PM - 6:06 PM CDT
EF Rating	EF-2
Est. Peak Winds	111-135 mph
Path Length	17.0
Max Width	400
Injuries/Deaths	0
Summary: An EF-1 tornado began at the intersection of Highway 69 and Soldier Road, near Hammond, Kansas. Minor damage was noted near Hammond, with the most significant damage consisting of toppled over grain bins and several derailed empty train cars. Through the remainder of the Bourbon County path, several destroyed outbuildings were noted as well as significant tree damage. The tornado path continued into Linn County, Kansas. The most significant damage occurred as the tornado strengthened just north of the Linn and Bourbon County line. In rural Linn County, between Pleasanton, Kansas and Prescott, Kansas an outdoor garage storing heavy equipment was completely destroyed and nearly removed from its foundation. At this same location an empty semi trailer was tossed over 200 yards into a grove of trees and several other smaller vehicles were tossed about the property. Near Pleasanton, Kansas a church that was built in the 1880's was completely destroyed. The path of the tornado ended just east or southeast of Pleasanton in an open field.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File


A large heavy-machinery garage was destroyed and blown away as the tornado approached Pleasanton, Kansas.	A large heavy-machinery garage was destroyed and blown away as the tornado approached Pleasanton, Kansas.	Other than some outbuilding damage the tornado produced pockets of significant tree damage across Bourbon and Linn Counties.	Various outbuildings were damaged or destroyed by the tornado as it approached Pleasanton, Kansas.

The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:

EF0 Weak 65-85 mph	EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph	EF2 Significant 111-135 mph	EF3 Severe 136-165 mph	EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph	EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph

Media use of NWS Web News Stories is encouraged!
Please acknowledge the NWS as the source of any news information accessed from this site.