Photos and videos of catastrophic damage are emerging on social media, showing utter destruction in Elkhorn, Nebraska, a suburb of Ohama, in the wake of a massive tornado that tore through.
A destroyed home is seen northwest of Omaha, Neb., after a storm tore through the area on Friday, April 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Margery A. Beck)
The Red Cross has set up an emergency shelter for Elkhorn-area residents, according to the Omaha Police Department. Douglas County authorities report a reunification center is being established at Elkhorn Middle School for parents whose students were held during the earlier warnings, according to 6 News WOWT.
At a media briefing at 6:30 p.m. CDT, Omaha police and fire officials reported helping people from houses that were "flattened" by the tornado, but no injuries or fatalities have been reported.
Debris is seen from a destroyed home northwest of Omaha, Nebraska, after a storm tore through the area on Friday, April 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Margery A. Beck)
The Omaha Police Department tweeted it has established a command center and emergency personnel are checking damaged houses searching for residents who need help. Additional officers are being brought in to assist with 911 calls citywide. Officials are asking everyone to avoid the Elkhorn area “as emergency personnel are assisting those in the path of the tornado.”
As of 6 p.m. CDT, poweroutage.us is reporting more than 10,000 customers are without power in Nebraska.
Drivers on Interstate 80 got an incredibly scary view of a powerful tornado on the afternoon of April 26. Officials urged residents in eastern Nebraska to seek shelter “immediately” as massive tornadoes moved through the Lincoln and Omaha metro areas
Drivers on Interstate 80 got an incredibly scary view of a powerful tornado on the afternoon of April 26.
You can track the severe weather on AccuWeather’s weather radar. AccuWeather meteorologist Brian Lada has been monitoring the radar throughout the afternoon and said a tornado northwest of Omaha was a “menace on radar” with a debris ball that appeared to be over a mile wide.
Radar showing a supercell thunderstorm with tornado debris ball moving northwest of Omaha, Nebraska on April 26, 2024.
A debris ball, technically known as a tornadic debris signature (TDS), is an area of high reflectivity on weather radar caused by a tornado lofting debris into the air.
Storm chaser Aaron Jayjack captured this video near Lincoln, Nebraska, on April 26 as a violent tornado tore across a highway, leaving at least one tractor trailer on its side.
Storm chaser Aaron Jayjack was uniquely positioned to record this stunning footage of a massive wedge tornado crossing Interstate 80 in Nebraska Friday afternoon. “VIOLENT tornado just crossed the Interstate 80 Lincoln, NE,” he tweeted.
You can see the powerful twister flinging debris across the interstate as motorists attempt to navigate the treacherous roadway. At one point during the video, Jayjack shouts, “Oh, somebody got hit!”
At least one tractor-trailer was tossed on its side by the intense wind. No word yet on injuries. The Nebraska Department of Transportation caught a different view of the massive twister.
A tornado near Interstate 80 in Lincoln, Nebraska, on April 26, 2024. (Nebraska Department of Transportation)
Wedge tornadoes are the most destructive and catastrophic tornadoes and can grow to be over a mile in diameter.
“Wow!!! What a tornado just north of Ravenna, Nebraska, this Friday at 12:32 p.m. CDT,” storm chaser Brandon Montgomery tweeted after recording this footage. “Incredible experience!”
Storm chaser Brandon Montgomery followed a tall rope tornado as it tore across a field in Ravenna, Nebraska, on April 26.
Ravenna is about 175 miles west of Omaha, which is one of the major metro areas that are very close to or within the high-risk area into Friday night along with Kansas City, Missouri; and Des Moines, Iowa.
Rope tornadoes, named after their long, thin appearance, are the smallest type of tornado and can be short-lived, lasting just a few minutes but can be just the start of the evolution of a twister. Don’t be fooled by their size! Even a thin rope tornado can cause damage, although the path of destruction tends to be narrow compared to other kinds of whirlwinds.
One of the first tornadoes of the day touched down in central Nebraska, and AccuWeather Storm Chaser and Meteorologist Tony Laubach was on the scene. Laubach came within a few hundred yards of a large tornado near Elba, Nebraska, as it crossed the road in front of him. Watch the heart-pounding video below:
Meteorologist Tony Laubach got up close with a tornado as it crossed a highway in Elba, Nebraska, on April 26.
There is a high risk of tornadoes, powerful winds and large hail in part of the central United States today, according to AccuWeather meteorologists, and intense storms are in short order. A new tornado watch has been issued for eastern Nebraska and western Iowa in the area where the strongest storms of the day are expected. A tornado has already been reported from a storm about 150 miles west of Omaha, Nebraska, according to storm chasers in the area.
A tornado watch is also in effect for northeastern Texas and part of southeastern Oklahoma where locally severe storms have been rumbling since late Friday morning. People who are under a tornado watch should remain vigilant and seek shelter if a tornado warning is issued.
Stormchaser Ben McHone captured this ominous footage of multiple supercells moving across northwest Kansas producing heavy rain, hail and the formation of a ‘needle tornado’ on Thursday afternoon.
Multiple supercells moved across northwest Kansas producing heavy rain, hail and formation of a needle tornado on April 25.
A needle tornado is another name for a rope tornado which is the smallest type of tornado and named for its long, thin appearance.
On the thunderstorm spectrum, supercells are the least common type of thunderstorm. What makes a supercell unique from all other thunderstorm types is that it contains a deep and persistent rotating updraft called a mesocyclone.
Supercells have a high propensity to produce severe weather, including damaging winds, very large hail, and even violet tornadoes.
“There could be more than a dozen tornadoes spawned from Friday afternoon to Friday night alone,” AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said. “Into Friday night, the areas most likely to be strewn with intense, discrete thunderstorms -- the type that often produces strong tornadoes -- extends from northeastern Kansas and northwestern Missouri to southeastern Nebraska and southern and central Iowa.”
Major metro areas that are very close to or within the high-risk area into Friday night include Kansas City, Missouri; Omaha, Nebraska; and Des Moines, Iowa. The AccuWeather Local StormMax™ straight-line wind gust is 80 mph into Friday night and is stronger than that of the minimum threshold for a hurricane (74 mph).
People in the severe weather threat zones each day and night are encouraged to pay attention to the weather, take alerts and warnings seriously and have a plan of action in place in case violent conditions become imminent. A method to receive audible alerts when sleeping is strongly advised
As severe weather erupted over the Plains on Thursday afternoon, NOAA’s GOES-EAST weather satellite was keeping a close eye on the evolving situation. The satellite was focused on eastern Colorado, western Kansas, and southern Nebraska, where the strongest storms of the day rumbled to life. There were around 70 reports of large hail from storms in this area, including chunks of ice as large as tennis balls.
The miles can add up fast for folks who drive across the country to capture footage of tornadoes and severe thunderstorms, and one storm chaser is closing in on a monumental benchmark. “I am making my way to half a million storm-chasing miles,” AccuWeather Meteorologist and Storm Chaser Tony Laubach said. So far this year, Laubach has logged 5,448 miles, and he will add to that in the coming days as he hunts down dangerous storms across the central United States. Laubach said that hitting the 500,000-mile mark has been a long-standing goal for his storm-chasing career and he might finally reach the benchmark later this year.
Heavy rain and hail hit Little Rock, Arkansas, as this shelf cloud passed through the area.
An incredible timelapse of a shelf cloud with blue hues was recorded in Little Rock, Arkansas Thursday afternoon. Flooding was also reported from the storms.
Shelf clouds often form at the leading edge of strong winds flowing down and outward from a storm. It is not uncommon for thunderstorms to contain blue or green tinted clouds, but there is no direct correlation to the severity of the storm.
AccuWeather meteorologist and storm chaser Tony Laubach is wrapping up a day of tracking severe weather across Kansas and is headed east to get set up for tomorrow. AccuWeather Prime’s Melissa Constanzer caught up with Laubach as he traveled through Quinter, Kansas.
“It has been more of a hail day today,” Laubach said. “Most of the hail we saw was anywhere between nickel and quarter-sized. We had hail reports in Kansas as big as two-and-a-half inches, that would be tennis ball-sized hail.”
In the video below, Laubach explains why there was more hail than tornadoes:
Severe thunderstorms produced prolific hail across parts of the Plains on April 25, but cold air undercut the threat for tornadoes.
Storm spotters reported hail as large as 2.5 inches in diameter (about the size of a tennis ball) near Russell Springs, Kansas, earlier Thursday evening, with 2-inch-diameter hail near Syracuse and Colby, Kansas. Wind gusts also spiked to 70 mph at a weather station near Sharon Springs, Kansas.
Hail as large as 4.5 inches in diameter fell in the Carolinas last weekend. A hailstone that fell in Vivian, South Dakota, on July 23, 2010, holds the United States' record for largest hail size with a diameter of 8 inches and heaviest weight at 1.94 pounds.
Thursday is just the start of an extended severe weather event across the central United States. AccuWeather meteorologists say there is a high threat of severe thunderstorms on Friday and Friday night, the second-highest level on AccuWeather’s severe weather index.
Approximately 38 million people could face thunderstorms, the strongest of which may spin up tornadoes and unleash large hail and damaging winds.
Additional rounds of severe weather are in the forecast through the weekend, with some areas at risk of being hit multiple times.
A landspout tornado touches down in Akron, Colorado as another funnel cloud spins above it.
A landspout tornado touched down today near Akron, Colorado, while another funnel cloud spun nearby. The landspout was on the ground for only five minutes. Landspouts start as a column of spinning air near the ground and aren't always connected to a severe thunderstorm, whereas tornadoes are spawned in a rotating thunderstorm and move down to the ground.
Severe thunderstorms are rumbling over the Plains with two tornado watches in effect from eastern Colorado and southern Nebraska to the Texas Panhandle. One thunderstorm in northwestern Kansas has already produced a tornado, according to a storm chaser in the area. Thunderstorms may become more widespread into Thursday night over the region, with additional watches possible. Three preliminary tornadoes have been reported across the entire region as of 5:10 p.m. CDT.
Tornado watches in the central United States as of 5 p.m. CDT on April 25, 2024. (AccuWeather)
A tornado watch means that weather conditions are prime for severe thunderstorms to develop and spin up twisters. Meanwhile, a tornado warning means that a tornado is imminent or is happening and that people in the path of the storm should seek shelter.
A clear sky over Colby, Kansas, an area where tornado-producing thunderstorms are possible later Thursday afternoon. (AccuWeather/Tony Laubach)
Storm chasers are in position ahead of an outburst of thunderstorms expected to erupt over part of the Plains later Thursday afternoon. AccuWeather Meteorologist and Storm Chaser Tony Laubach is in Colby, Kansas, located in the northwest part of the state, and is sitting under a sunny sky with a few patches of clouds. A much different scene is foreseen to unfold over the region in a few hours, including the potential for tornadoes.
AccuWeather Severe Weather Expert Guy Pearson joined Chief Meteorologist Bernie Rayno to talk about the forthcoming severe weather outbreak over the United States, explaining why the threat of damaging thunderstorms will unfold over several days. Watch the interview below:
The Plains and Midwest regions of the United States face a weekend of dangerous severe weather including the risk of tornadoes starting on Friday.
Tornadoes come in all shapes and sizes, but meteorologists can classify each one based on distinct features. The smallest type of twister is a rope tornado, named after its long, thin appearance. It is one of the most common types of tornadoes and can be short-lived, but some evolve into larger, more powerful twisters.
A large tornado spinning near Morton, Texas, on May 23, 2022. (Marcus Diaz via Storyful)
Wedge tornadoes are the largest type of tornadoes and can be over a mile wide. Some of the most intense tornadoes in history were wedge tornadoes, including the EF5 that leveled Joplin, Missouri, in 2011. Click here to see more types of twisters that occur over the United States.
The first round of a multiday severe weather event is about to unfold over the central United States with each day through the weekend bringing the risk of damaging winds, hail and tornadoes. On Thursday, the severe weather threat will extend from northern Texas to eastern Wyoming, with thunderstorms expected to erupt late Thursday afternoon. The strongest storms are likely from the Texas Panhandle through western Kansas.
An even higher risk of severe weather is in the offing at the end of the week as the next round of thunderstorms unfolds. “I think the worst days for severe weather, specifically tornadoes, is going to be [Friday] and then on Saturday,” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said. Click here for a full breakdown of the impending severe weather outbreak.
Knowing when severe weather is approaching can be life-saving information, especially during a severe weather outbreak, like what is unfolding over the South Wednesday. One of the easiest ways to receive severe weather alerts, such as tornado warnings, is by having the free AccuWeather App on your smartphone. Unlock advanced, hyperlocal severe weather alerts when you subscribe to Premium+ on the AccuWeather app, which also provides an ad-free experience. AccuWeather Alerts™ are prompted by our expert meteorologists who monitor and analyze dangerous weather risks 24/7 to keep you and your family safer. These custom alerts can provide critical time to seek shelter before damaging weather moves into the area. Watching the AccuWeather Network and monitoring AccuWeather’s website are two other ways to stay updated with the latest weather information.
