Extreme Heat Lingers; Severe Thunderstorms for Portions of the Plains and Southeast; Heavy Rainfall Threats

Gusty winds and heavy rainfall may impact the Big Island of Hawaii as a nearby tropical system passes west of the islands. From the Southwest U.S., Rockies and across the Gulf Coast, heavy rainfall could lead to isolated flash flooding. Severe thunderstorms are expected for areas of the Plains, Gulf Coast and Southeast through Tuesday. Extreme heat lingers for the southern Plains and Southwest. Read More >

Overview

Thunderstorms developed during the afternoon of May 18, 2026 and quickly became severe across north central Kansas. Initial supercells produced hail up to half-dollar size and five tornadoes: two rated EF-1 and three rated EF-Unknown. Supercells congealed into a line as they moved southeast across northeast Kansas, producing wind gusts of 60-85 MPH. In addition, two EF-1 tornadoes spun up along the leading edge of the line of storms, making for a total of seven tornadoes on this day.

Supercell near Morganville, KS (Photo by Daniel Reese)

Tornado
Photos & Video
Radar
Storm Reports
Environment

Tornadoes:

Tornado - Miltonvale, KS
CLOUD COUNTY

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	3:27-3:28 PM
EF Rating	EF-Unknown
Est. Peak Winds	Unknown
Path Length	1.16 miles
Max Width	30 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: Rope tornado occurred over open fields, confirmed by video.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Palmer, KS
WASHINGTON COUNTY

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	4:03-4:07 PM
EF Rating	EF-Unknown
Est. Peak Winds	Unknown
Path Length	2.73 miles
Max Width	50 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: Condensed tornado occurred over a field, confirmed by video.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Northern Nemaha County, KS and Southern Richardson County, NE

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	4:46-4:59 PM
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	7.3 miles
Max Width	200 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: An old barn lost 30-40 percent of the roof and wall, small barn completely destroyed with debris carried about 1/4 of a mile to the east-northeast. Significant roof damage to a metal outbuilding along with additional tree damage was found farther northeast in Nebraska.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Blue Rapids, KS
MARSHALL COUNTY

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	5:27-6:02 PM
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	15.16 miles
Max Width	100 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: Tornado snapped large tree limbs and a few tree trunks. Grain bins were also destroyed.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Wakefield, KS
CLAY COUNTY

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	5:33-5:35 PM
EF Rating	EF-Unknown
Est. Peak Winds	Unknown
Path Length	1.5 miles
Max Width	50 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: Condensed tornado resulted in no known damage, confirmed by video.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Holton, KS
JACKSON COUNTY

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	7:16-7:26 PM
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	8.19 miles
Max Width	75 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: The tornado formed along the leading edge of a line of storms. An outbuilding and barn were destroyed by the tornado. Several large branches were broken along the path. Windows were blown out of a south facing porch.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

Tornado - Eastern Morris & Northern Lyon County

Date	05/18/2026
Time (Local)	7:44-7:59 PM
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	100 MPH
Path Length	15.05 miles
Max Width	50 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: The tornado formed along the leading edge of a line of storms. Several power poles and large tree limbs were damaged. A two-story home had uplift on roof material.

Track Map

Downloadable KMZ File

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

Supercell Near Morganville, KS

(Photo by Daniel Reese)

Blue Rapids, KS Tornado

(Courtesy of Landon Moeller)

Tornadic Storm Near Bushong, KS

(Courtesy of Thomas Hinterdorfer)

Wakefield, KS Tornado

(Courtesy of Daniel Reese)

Radar Images


Radar image of tornado near Miltonvale at 4:23 PM CDT.	Radar image of tornado near Palmer at 4:03 PM CDT.	Radar image of tornado near Wakefield at 5:29 PM CDT.


Radar image of tornado near Blue Rapids at 4:03 PM CDT.	Radar image of tornado near Holton at 7:21 PM CDT.	Radar image of tornado near Bushong at 7:51 PM CDT.

Storm Reports

Environment

Storm Prediction Center Day 1 1630z Outlook


Categorical Outlook	Tornado Outlook	Hail Outlook	Wind Outlook

Synoptic Environment


500 mb Heights and Wind Speed from 7 AM - 1 PM	Mean Sea Level Pressure and Radar from 7 AM - 1 PM	7 PM Topeka Sounding

Near-storm Environment at 1 PM (18z)


Surface-Based CAPE	Effective Shear	Effective Storm-Relative Helicity

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Extreme Heat Lingers; Severe Thunderstorms for Portions of the Plains and Southeast; Heavy Rainfall Threats

May 18, 2026 Tornadoes