Powerful tornado carves path of destruction through suburb of Wichita

A powerful tornado struck Andover, Kansas, on Friday evening, leaving a trail of destruction, knocking out power for thousands, but reportedly causing only a handful of injuries. Dramatic footage of the twister was captured by Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer from multiple angles.

In one video shot from the ground, the tornado can be seen rotating and gathering force as it lofted debris into the air in all directions, tearing through the small suburb that's located just about 15 miles east of Wichita. Timmer said the tornado strengthen so rapidly that it went "from 10 [mph] to 300 mph in seconds."

The tornado could be seen from miles away. AccuWeather Lead Storm Warning Meteorologists Ali Davis captured the twister from her front porch in Wichita.

Officials said in a press conference on Saturday morning that zero fatalities had been reported from the severe outbreak in Andover, with four injuries, all considered minor. One was injured while evacuating, one was injured by debris, and two were hurt when responding to the scene to help.

"We are still really concerned about those areas in the fire district that we have not...searched yet. That's our primary objective and that's where the crews are right now," said Andover County Fire Chief Chad Russell in Saturday morning's press conference.

Due to the tornado's long track, Russell said that the search and rescue mission for victims began in Sedgwick County and extended into Butler County following the entire path of the storm.

According to the Andover Police Department, roads leading into the city were shut down before midnight CDT as emergency crews worked to move debris, assess the damage and restore power lines. However, many were clear by Saturday morning. Russell noted that Highway 54 remained closed due to power lines still down on the roadway.

Additionally, Russell confirmed that 966 buildings were within the tornado's path, but the exact number of them that were damaged is still being investigated. One of the buildings that sustained significant damage was the Dr. Jim Farha YMCA center in Andover. Some buildings were also ripped entirely off their foundations.

Another press conference was scheduled to be held on Saturday at noon, central time, with new information expected on the extent of the damage and recovery efforts.

Dominator Drone footage of destructive #tornado in Andover KS pic.twitter.com/6iPYOUYnMw

— Reed Timmer (@ReedTimmerAccu) April 30, 2022

The tornado that hit Andover was part of a larger system of severe weather that moved through the nation's midsection late Friday.

"The storms from the afternoon through the overnight from Kansas and Nebraska to Oklahoma and Missouri, were powered by an area of low pressure which took shape in central Kansas, earlier on Friday," explained AccuWeather Meteorologist Joseph Bauer.

According to numerous reports in Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri, late Friday, multiple homes and businesses sustained damage as severe thunderstorms erupted.

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The storms produced hazards ranging from grapefruit-sized hail to damaging winds and tornadoes. Footage showed hail covering the roadway in Norfolk, Nebraska, as motorists sat helplessly in their cars listening to the hail pelt the exterior. The preliminary reports included 14 tornado reports, around 130 wind reports and over 85 hail reports across six states as of early Saturday morning.

A slew of storm reports, including four preliminary tornado reports, were sent to the local National Weather Service (NWS) office around 7 p.m., central time, on Friday.

Shortly after 11 p.m. CDT Friday, over 23,000 residents across Kansas were without power, according to poweroutage.us. A local news agency reported that over 11,000 of the 23,000 reports were from Butler County alone. Fortunately, by 6 a.m. CDT on Saturday, the number of outages across the state gradually declined to under 3,000 as crews diligently worked to restore power.

AccuWeather Storm Warning Meteorologist Timothy Richards captured footage of the tornado from a distance in Wichita, Kansas, on Friday afternoon, just west of where it had touched down.

Damage surveys are being conducted Saturday morning by the NWS Wichita office to assess the damage sustained by the storms and determine the strength of the tornadoes that impacted the region.

The severe weather event falls eerily close to the 31st anniversary of the devastating Great Plains tornado outbreak.

According to the NWS outbreak summary, on April 26, 1991, Andover, Kansas, was impacted by a deadly F5 tornado that tracked 46 miles and swept multiple homes from their foundations. During this historic event in 1991, there were at least 13 fatalities reported at the Golden Spur Mobile Home Park in Andover, where some of the most substantial damage occurred to homes.

Based on climatology, the Wichita area is not commonly the zone where the strongest storms typically set up this time of year.

"We commonly see these drylines set up farther west in Kansas and Oklahoma during the spring; however, on Friday, the dryline had set up on Wichita's doorstep. This led to some strong storms there in the evening," stated Bauer.

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