© Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette via APTwo semi trucks, one southbound and one northbound, were part of the truck carnage on I-25 Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021, in Colorado Springs, Colo. These trucks were north of Briargate Pkwy. Over a dozen semi trucks were blown over by high winds in the Pikes Peak region on I-25.
At least 55 reports of hurricane-force thunderstorm wind gusts over 75 mph were tracked across the Great Plains and Midwest, according to the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center, setting a one-day national record. Around 300 severe wind reports came in across the regions throughout the day, with alerts impacting at least 80 million people.
A tornado in southeastern Minnesota was the first ever reported in the state in the month of December, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data. Nearly 20 tornado reports were documented Wednesday across Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska.
© Bryon Houlgrave, The Des Moines Register via APA tornado approaches Interstate 80 near Atlantic, Iowa, as a semi truck rolls eastward on Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021. A band of strong storms swept across much of the plains states on Wednesday, producing powerful wind gusts and tornadoes.
The Midwest is experiencing unprecedented weather with extreme heat and tornado force winds. CNN meteorologist Tom Sater said "this is not December weather."
© Travis Heying, The Witchita Eagle, via APThe Hodgeman County Undersheriff confirmed these grain bins were blown away from a nearby farm into cornfield across Hwy 283 on Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021, in Jetmore, Kans.
The storm is forecast to taper off, with many of the severe thunderstorm watches and warnings expiring overnight.
© Jerilee Bennett, The Gazette via APHigh winds toppled a semi-truck on I-25 in the southbound lane on Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021, in Colorado Springs, Colo. There were over a dozen semi-trucks that were toppled on I-25 in the Pikes Peak region. A National Weather Service site in Lamar, Colo., reported a 107 mph gust.
Air traffic controllers briefly evacuated at Kansas City International Airport due "to wind and the fact that it is a glass box 256 feet up in the air," according to spokesperson Joe McBride. Planes resumed departures about one hour after controllers were forced to head to safety, the airport announced.
Parts of Interstate 70 in western Kansas were shut down due to blowing dust, reduced visibility, and crashes, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation.
© Christian Murdock, The Gazette via APMembers of the Colorado Springs Utilities Catamount crew remove a fallen tree that crushed a car driving westbound on Unitah Street in Colorado Springs, Colo., as wind gusts reached more than 100 mph in the Pikes Peak Region Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021. The driver and passenger were transported to a local hospital.
With winds whipped up at an exceeding rate, fires became a danger to residents in parts of the southern Plains and Southwest.
The combination of 35 to 55 mph winds, with gusts of 75 mph, as well as low relative humidity and temperatures in the 70s and 80s were a catalyst for unseasonably dangerous circumstances. Certain areas are also facing an ongoing drought.
"Dangerous, life-threatening fire weather conditions are likely with fast moving and uncontrollable fire spread due to extreme wind and dry conditions," the Storm Prediction said Wednesday morning. It noted that this was the first time in the history of the SPC that it was forecasting an "extremely critical" fire threat in December in the southern and central Plains.
An evacuation order was placed for the town of Guymon, Oklahoma, due to one of nine wildfires in western and northwestern Oklahoma, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.
Several hundred people were told "to evacuate or be prepared to evacuate" in the city of Iowa Park, Texas, in Wichita County in the northern part of the state. Two fires in the county are ongoing.
"The fire has changed direction a couple of times," Wichita County Sheriff's Office Deputy Melvin Joyner said, adding "we're working as hard as we can to keep residents safe."
A 2,500-acre blaze is burning west of Amarillo, the Texas A&M Forest Service reported, and the agency is responding to the fires in Wichita County.
Six homes and two other structures were reported damaged in the Texas Panhandle city of Pampa, according to a city announcement. No injuries were reported.
Via CNN
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