A pesky storm front had folks in Salina and parts of north-central Kansas on edge Sunday night, dealing with heavy rain, hail, tornado threats and lightning strikes.

Saline County Sheriff's deputies were reporting flooding -- from up to 3 inches of rain -- lapping over county roads.

Water was crossing Magnolia Road east of Kipp before 7 p.m., said Gunner Wiles, manager of operations at Salina Municipal Airport. He lives five miles north of Gypsum, where minor flooding was reported Sunday afternoon, according to Deputy Jim Hughes of the sheriff's office.

More than an inch of rain was measured at the airport.

Lightning strikes, particularly to electric transformers, sent firefighters to areas of Salina and Saline County.

Westar crews responded to several reports of power outages in Salina and Abilene areas, said regional director Tom Sydow.

"We've had less than 20 customers out at a time. We've restored a bunch," Sydow said at 7 p.m.

The National Weather Service in Topeka monitored a number of extreme weather happenings Sunday. A flash flood warning was issued Sunday night for southern Dickinson and western Morris counties.

A tornado warning was issued Sunday afternoon when rotation was indicated on radar in northeastern Dickinson County, and 60 mph wind gusts were reported in Abilene, said Bill Gargan, meteorologist for the weather service. No tornadoes were confirmed.

Hail the size of golf balls hammered Minneapolis, and an area four miles west of town received 1 1/4 inches of rain between 1 and 2 p.m., Gargan said. There was another report of 1 1/2 inches of rain collecting in gauges between 3 and 4 p.m. Sunday, two miles south of Washington, he said.

More storms were developing in central Kansas moving to the northeast, Gargan said, with the biggest threat for severe weather from the Council Grove area to Topeka.

He predicted rain and isolated thunderstorms in north-central Kansas throughout Sunday night.

n Reporter Tim Unruh can be reached at 822-1419 or by e-mail at tunruh@salina.com.

Join the Discussion:

Salina.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here. Read our full online terms of service policy.

Post a comment
Your best chance of getting your comment posted:

• No profanity
• Be civil
• Everyone is innocent until proven guilty.

Comment:

Poster:

Enter text seen above:

Read our full use policy.