Severe Weather and Flooding Threats for the Central U.S.; Dangerous Heat in the Southern and Western U.S.

Severe weather and flooding threats will continue for portions of the central U.S. over the next couple of days, with multiple rounds of thunderstorms expected. Dangerous heat will persist across the southern and western U.S. through mid-week. Hot and dry conditions will fuel fire weather concerns for the Intermountain West, where dry thunderstorms may spark additional wildfires. Read More >

Overview:

On the evening of Friday, May 17, 2019, a long-tracked supercell thunderstorm tracked from southwest-to-northeast through western portions of Dawson County Nebraska, producing three confirmed tornadoes (two rated EF-1 and one EF-0), and also large hail up to at least 2" in diameter. See tabs below for specific tornado details. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries within Dawson County, although two of the tornadoes narrowly missed striking the communities of Farnam and Cozad. This was the first confirmed EF-1 (or stronger) tornado within the NWS Hastings coverage area since Aug. 6, 2018, when an EF-1 touched down in rural York County, north of Bradshaw.

Within Dawson County itself, the tornadic portion of the storm entered the far southwest portion of the county out of Frontier County around 7:15 p.m. CDT, reached the Cozad area shortly before 8 p.m., and exited the far north central part of the county into Custer County (south of Oconto) around 8:30 p.m.

PLEASE NOTE: This story only focuses on Dawson County, as it was the only county affected by confirmed tornadoes within the NWS Hastings coverage area. However, several other tornadoes occurred with this storm in counties served by other NWS offices.

- See this story from NWS Goodland for tornado details in Hitchcock/Red Willow counties
- See this story from NWS North Platte for details on tornadoes that occurred within Frontier and Custer counties.

Taking a step back and looking at the ENTIRE life cycle of this supercell storm, it actually lasted roughly seven hours and tracked nearly 250 miles, first developing near Goodland, KS around 4 p.m. CDT, and finally weakening/merging with a separate line of storms over Garfield/Wheeler counties in north central Nebraska around 11 p.m. Fortunately, it only produced tornadoes along a fairly small portion of this total path.

NWS Hastings radar loop from 2:30 PM May 17th through
4:00 AM May 18th. The NWS Hastings coverage area is outlined
in orange and labled "GID". The red lines are interstates.

Tornado
Photos
Storm Reports

Tornadoes:

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Tornado #1 - Farnam
Dawson County

Date	May 17, 2019
Time (Local)	7:15 - 7:33 PM CDT
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	4.48 miles
Max Width	440 yards
Injuries / Deaths	0 / 0
Summary: This tornado uprooted some trees, caused minor damage to some homes & completely destroyed at least one storage building. The tornado crossed Highway 47 northeast of town & then dissipated. The path become indiscernible as the storm approached rougher terrain & the road network was not viable for further surveying.

Track Map

Tornado #2 - Cozad
Dawson County

Date	May 17, 2019
Time (Local)	7:54 - 8:10 PM CDT
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	10.17 miles
Max Width	600 yards
Injuries / Deaths	0 / 0
Summary: This tornado, which was rain-wrapped at times, was witnessed by many as it formed on the east side of Cozad, where some tree damage & power poles were broken as it it formed. There was a 10 mile path as it weaved to the northeast across a rural landscape. One half of a large machine shed was destroyed & several irrigation pivots were upset. Grain bins were lost & tree damage was sporadic along the path. The path became indiscernible as it moved into the hills north of town and the road network because sparse.

Track Map

Tornado #3 - Eddyville
Dawson County

Date	May 17, 2019
Time (Local)	8:15 - 8:17 PM CDT
EF Rating	EF-0
Est. Peak Winds	85 MPH
Path Length	1.58 miles
Max Width	150 yards
Injuries / Deaths	0 / 0
Summary: This tornado was reported by a storm chaser to be rain-wrapped as it crossed Highway 21. The tornado path, wind speed & other information were estimated from eyewitness report & radar data. There are few damage indicators in the area.

Track Map

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

Photos

Header


Damage northeast of Cozad. Photos from NWS Survey.


Tree & outbuilding damage near Farnam. Photos from NWS Survey.


Outbuilding damage near Farnam. Photos from NWS Survey.


Southwest of Cozad. Photo by Dustin Wilcox.	Damage at Cozad Cemetary. Photo by Mike Moritz.	South of Willow Island. Photo by San Dienst.	Near Farnam. Photo by Braydon Morisseau.


Tornado near Cozad. Photo by Dustin Wilcox.


Hail in Cozad. Photo by Brent Graves.	Hail just west of Farnam. Photo by Michael Charnick.	Hail in Osborne, KS. Photo by Brian Wilson.

Storm Reports

Listed below are the significant non-tornado reports from the area:

69 MPH Wind Gust - 7 E Tipton, KS (mesonet)
2" Hail (lime size) - Farnam
1.75" Hail (golf ball size) - Willow Island area
1" Hail (quarter size) - Cozad area, Lexington, Overton, Elm Creek & Osborne, KS

Map of Local Storm Reports
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Severe Weather and Flooding Threats for the Central U.S.; Dangerous Heat in the Southern and Western U.S.

May 17, 2019: 3 Tornadoes Strike Western Dawson County (two rated EF-1, one EF-0)