Some Noteworthy Aspects of the Hesston, Kansas, Tornado Family of 13 March 1990

Abstract

This paper considers a tornadic storm that struck south-central and eastern Kansas on 13 March 1 990. Most of the devastation was associated with the first tornado from the storm as it passed through Hession, Kansas. From the synoptic-scale and mesoscale view- points, the event was part of an outbreak of tornadoes on a day when the tornado threat was synoptically evident, Satellite imagery, combined with conventional data, suggest that the Hesston storm was affected by a preexisting, mesoscale outflow boundary laid down by morning storms. Radar and satellite data give clear indication of the supercellular character of the storm, despite limited radar data coverage. Because of the considerable photographic coverage, several interesting features of the storm were recorded and are analyzed here. These include the following: 1)the movement and dissipation of a cloud band associated with an apparent rear-flank downdraft; 2) a transition from a rather large funnel through an apparent dissipation to the format on of an arrow funnel, during which the damage on the ground was continuous;and 3)a period interaction between the first and second tornadoes.