TL;DR
Six tornadoes were reported across Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming on Saturday, May 16, 2026, as severe thunderstorms swept the Central Plains and Midwest. The tornadoes were accompanied by 163 hail reports and 209 wind reports spanning ten states. No EF ratings have been issued yet, and no injuries or fatalities have been reported.
What happened Saturday afternoon and evening
Severe thunderstorms erupted across the Central Plains and Upper Midwest on Saturday, producing a multi-hazard severe weather event that stretched from the Rockies to the Ohio Valley. The Storm Prediction Center received 6 tornado reports, 163 hail reports, and 209 wind reports between Saturday morning and early Sunday.
The tornado reports came from four states: Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming. All six tornadoes remain unrated as of Sunday morning, and National Weather Service offices will conduct damage surveys in the coming days to assign EF-scale ratings where warranted.
Tornado reports by state
Wyoming
Two landspout tornadoes touched down in southeast Wyoming near Yoder around 2244 UTC (4:44 PM MDT) on Saturday. The National Weather Service office in Cheyenne noted that both were photographed, with one landspout occurring about 8 miles southwest of Yoder and a second, weaker landspout appearing roughly 7 miles southwest of town. Both times and locations were estimated from radar data.
Landspouts are a type of tornado that forms along the leading edge of a developing thunderstorm, typically in environments with weak vertical wind shear. They tend to be weaker and shorter-lived than supercell tornadoes.
Iowa
Two tornadoes were reported near Gravity, Iowa, in Taylor County around 2251 and 2254 UTC (5:51 PM and 5:54 PM CDT). The National Weather Service office in Des Moines received the first report via Spotter Network from approximately 1 mile southwest of Gravity, followed three minutes later by a second report from 1 mile southeast of town.
It is not yet clear whether these represent two separate tornadoes or a single tornado tracked by multiple observers from different vantage points. NWS damage survey teams will determine the exact track and rating.
Kansas
A brief tornado touched down near Edson in Sherman County, Kansas, at 2341 UTC (6:41 PM CDT). According to the National Weather Service in Goodland, an NWS employee observed a ground circulation while a storm chaser simultaneously reported a funnel cloud from a different angle. The tornado occurred just east of Edson and was short-lived.
Nebraska
The final tornado of the day was reported at 0217 UTC (9:17 PM CDT on Saturday, or 2:17 AM UTC on Sunday) approximately 6 miles east-northeast of Beatrice, Nebraska. The National Weather Service in Omaha noted that a narrow tornado was reported on the ground, but had lifted by the time the report was issued.
Hail and wind: the dominant threats
While tornadoes captured attention, hail and damaging winds were far more widespread. A total of 163 hail reports were logged across the Central Plains, Midwest, and Ohio Valley, with the largest stones reaching 2.75 inches in diameter (roughly the size of a baseball) near Trenton, Missouri, at 2142 UTC. The hail damaged windshields and vehicles across multiple counties in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois.
Wind damage was even more extensive, with 209 reports spanning ten states: Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wyoming. Measured wind gusts reached 71 mph near Laredo, Missouri, and 68 mph north of Stratton, Colorado. Damage included snapped power poles, downed trees, roof damage, and widespread power outages.
One of the most significant wind damage reports came from 3 miles west-southwest of Fairbury, Nebraska, where a house lost its roof at 1652 UTC. In South Jacksonville, Illinois, power poles were snapped and traffic lights were downed along West Morton Avenue. Numerous other communities reported trees blocking roadways and downed power lines.
The setup: supercells and bowing clusters
Saturday's severe weather unfolded in a classic late-spring pattern across the Central Plains. A surface low over western Kansas moved northeastward toward the Kansas-Nebraska border during the afternoon and evening, trailing a dryline across the southern Plains and a warm front across Nebraska and Iowa.
Strong southwesterly mid-level flow, steep lapse rates, and moderate instability supported the development of supercell thunderstorms during the afternoon. Initial storms formed over eastern Colorado in an upslope flow regime, producing large hail as they moved eastward.
By late afternoon, additional robust convection developed along and near a cold front across north-central Nebraska. These storms posed a threat for large hail and tornadoes initially, then transitioned into bowing clusters capable of producing widespread damaging winds as they moved eastward through the evening.
The Storm Prediction Center's Day 1 outlook, issued Sunday morning, highlighted an Enhanced Risk across parts of the Central Plains and mid-Missouri Valley for Sunday, with the potential for very large hail and strong tornadoes during the afternoon before an expected transition to a greater damaging wind threat during the evening hours.
What's next
Severe weather is expected to continue across portions of the Central and Southern Plains on Sunday, May 17. The Storm Prediction Center has issued an Enhanced Risk for parts of the region, with a Moderate Risk in the Day 2 outlook for Monday covering portions of Oklahoma, Kansas, and surrounding states.
Residents across the Plains and Midwest should remain weather-aware through the coming days. If you live in an area under a severe thunderstorm or tornado watch, have multiple ways to receive warnings and know where to shelter.
Nighttime tornadoes are particularly dangerous because they are difficult to see and often strike while people are asleep. Third-party weather apps are silenced by Do Not Disturb, though Wireless Emergency Alerts for tornado warnings still break through on most phones. Outdoor warning sirens may not be audible indoors, especially in interior rooms or basements where you should shelter during a tornado warning.
VORTEX is a free web app at vortexintel.app that monitors severe weather nationwide. Pro ($4.99/month) places phone calls to your phone when a tornado or flash flood warning is issued for a location you care about — calls can ring through Do Not Disturb once you enable Emergency Bypass for the number, unlike most third-party app notifications.