Wichita - A tornado ripped through parts of Kansas destroyed, damaged hundreds of homes and buildings, injured several people and left more than 15,000 people without power, officials said Saturday.
Three University of Oklahoma meteorology students traveling back from storm chasing in Kansas were also killed in a crash Friday evening, according to officials.
The twister touched down in Sedgewick County before moving to Andover in Butler County, the city’s fire chief Chad Russell said during a news conference. More than 950 buildings were in the pathway of the tornado, he said. In the daylight Saturday, emergency crews found a more widespread path of destruction than was earlier estimated.
A total of 15 tornadoes, 14 of which were across Kansas or Nebraska, were reported Friday, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Storm Prediction Center. The other tornado was in Florida, the center said.
There were no reported fatalities or critical injuries from the tornado, rated an EF-3 based on a preliminary damage survey from the National Weather Service in Wichita, despite the widespread destruction. Officials said only a few injuries had been reported. In Sedgwick County, three people were injured, including one woman who sustained serious injuries.
Field crews from the National Weather Service worked Saturday to determine the extent and strength of the twister, said meteorologist Kevin Darmofal at the Wichita office.
Gov. Laura Kelly declared a State of Disaster Emergency for the hardest-hit areas. The declaration makes state resources available to help local jurisdictions with response and recovery efforts in areas impacted statewide.
Evergy said about 15,000 customers lost power during the tornado and that work continued to restore electricity. Any broken gas and water lines were shut off and by noon there were no known active leaks.
In addition to the tornadoes, large hail was reported in several towns across the Plains. Hail the size of softballs was spotted near Holbrook, Nebraska, and Enterprise, Kansas, according to the National Weather Service and storm spotters.
-AP/CNN