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A heat wave in May? It will certainly feel like summer across Kansas this Mother's Day, as afternoon high temperatures soar into the 90s. The warmest temperatures will top out in the middle and upper 90s across southwest Kansas. A high fire danger is expected this afternoon and evening, for western Kansas and critical fire weather warnings have been issued. If you're curious, record highs for today and tomorrow are in the middle and upper 90s across southcentral Kansas, so we will get close (Wichita Mid-Continent Airport record high for today 97 set in 1989).
A strong storm system is expected to move across the region late Sunday, bringing rain to lower elevations and lots of snow to the mountains through Tuesday.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning from midnight Sunday to 6 p.m Tuesday.
From 1 to 2 feet of snow may fall in the Absaroka-Beartooth Mountains, Bighorn Mountains and Crazy Mountains.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning from midnight Sunday to 6 p.m Tuesday.
From 1 to 2 feet of snow may fall in the Absaroka-Beartooth Mountains, Bighorn Mountains and Crazy Mountains.
The Mississippi River is a disaster on the move. It's expected to crest in Memphis by Wednesday at or near record highs.
Memphis is getting ready. As the waters of the Mississippi River continue to rise, the city is bracing for a flood the likes of which most have never known.
Memphis is getting ready. As the waters of the Mississippi River continue to rise, the city is bracing for a flood the likes of which most have never known.
© KITV
When the heavy rain came down on the windward side -- problems popped up. Kamehameha Highway near Waikane became waterlogged under several inches of runoff.
When the driver of an SUV came across it, he said he slid out of control and slammed into a guardrail before flipping over.
The Meteorological Department on Sunday issued an announcement warning people living in risk areas of eight provinces in the East and the South to brace for heavy rain and possible flash flood from May 8 to 11.
© APCleanup begins in a Vilonia neighbourhood after a tornado struck the area, destroying most of the town, killing four who lived there
On April 25, a nasty tornado touched down, leveling subdivisions, wrapping metal around trees like crepe paper and killing five people. In Black Oak Ranch Estates, more than 100 homes were destroyed.
Less than a week later, on May 1, the town was hit with flash flooding from the nearby Little Palarm Creek caused by heavy rains from a cold front that stalled over the state.
© Associated PressTwo healthy pilot whales are loaded onto a boat in Cudjoe Key to be released at sea.
There was a moment of joy for the tireless marine mammal rescuers working to save a pod of stranded pilot wales Saturday evening in the Keys: two of the seven surviving whales were deemed healthy and released in deep waters nine miles offshore.
Cheers erupted on the barge carrying the whales when the two adult males met in open water, touched each other, and then swam away together.
The whales, each over 12 feet long and more than 1,000 pounds, were first fitted with trackers that should last between 2-3 months.
The pair were part of a pod of 20 pilot whales who inexplicably beached themselves Thursday near Cudjoe Key, about 20 miles east of Key West.
Thirteen of them have died, and the surviving seven have been cared for in a makeshift waist-deep pen, where volunteers continue to cover the whales' exposed bodies in zinc and sheets to protect their sensitive skin from the sun.
Workers at the Grand Gulf Nuclear Plant in Port Gibson, Miss., last Thursday released a large amount of radioactive tritium directly into the Mississippi River, according to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and experts are currently trying to sort out the situation. An investigation is currently underway to determine why the tritium was even present in standing water found in an abandoned unit of the plant, as well as how much of this dangerous nuclear byproduct ended up getting dumped into the river. Many also want to know why workers released the toxic tritium before conducting proper tests.
The Mississippi Natchez Democrat reports that crews first discovered the radioactive water in the plant's Unit 2 turbine building after heavy rains began hitting the area last week. Unit 2 was a partially-constructed, abandoned structure that should not have contained any radioactive materials, let alone tritium, which is commonly used to manufacture nuclear weapons and test atomic bombs.
According to reports, alarms began to go off as workers were releasing the radioactive storm water into the river, which engaged the stop flow on the release pump. Neither NRC nor plant officials know how much tritium was released into the river during this release.
As the Mississippi River continued to rise to record levels in response to over 2 feet of rain in recent weeks, officials began to evacuate portions of Memphis Friday.
More evacuation orders will likely be given as historical flood levels spread southward along the Mississippi River. At Memphis, a crest of around 48 feet is forecast by National Weather Service hydrologists Wednesday of next week.
Rising waters along the White River in Arkansas forced the closure of part eastbound and westbound lands of Interstate 40 in the Natural State. The route is a major thoroughfare for trucking. It is possible that as waters continue to rise on the Mississippi and connecting rivers farther downstream additional highways may close. Additional neighborhoods of cities and towns will be inundated through nearly the end of May in some areas as the crest moves very slowly downstream. Additional evacuations of unprotected or levee compromised areas are likely.
Rising waters along the White River in Arkansas forced the closure of part eastbound and westbound lands of Interstate 40 in the Natural State. The route is a major thoroughfare for trucking. It is possible that as waters continue to rise on the Mississippi and connecting rivers farther downstream additional highways may close. Additional neighborhoods of cities and towns will be inundated through nearly the end of May in some areas as the crest moves very slowly downstream. Additional evacuations of unprotected or levee compromised areas are likely.
© AP Photo / Bullit MarquezMotorists negotiate a flooded portion of a highway at suburban Makati city, east of Manila, in the Philippines Sunday May 8, 2011 following a heavy downpour spawned by tropical storm Aere. The storm, with winds of 53 miles (85 kilometers) per hour and gusts of 62 mph (100 kph), has lashed the northeastern Philippines on Sunday, killing at least three people and forcing more than 100,000 villagers to flee from farming towns threatened by landslides about a month before the end of the summer vacation season.
The storm slammed into Catanduanes province with winds of 53 miles (85 kilometres) per hour and gusts of 62 mph (100 kph). It triggered landslides and floods, disrupted transportation and knocked out power in some towns.
More than 4,700 commuters were stranded in several seaports after ferries suspended trips and roads were closed due to floods and the danger of landslides, officials said. Several domestic flights were cancelled.
A landslide buried a house in Camarines Sur province's Balatan township at dawn, killing three people, including a baby, regional disaster-response director Bernardo Alejandro said.
