Heavy rainfall has been commonplace across the KVOE listening area as storms crossed the area early Saturday.
Thunderstorms have brought 0.85 inches of rain to the KVOE studios and 1.01 inches to the Emporia Municipal Airport. Other totals:
*South and Sylvan: 1.3 inches
*Allen: 0.75 inches
*Neosho Rapids: 1.35 inches
*Reading: 1.5 inches
*Saffordville: 0.40 inches
There was also a non-thunderstorm wind gust of 61 mph, above the severe thunderstorm criteria of 58 mph, just south of Emporia.
The storms have affected hundreds of Evergy customers in Emporia. Close to 500 customers along and two to three blocks north and south of West Sixth between West and Prairie lost power around 5:15 am. An estimated restoral time is now pending. Another 70-plus Evergy customers near Melvern lost power around 5:45 am. Those outages were restored shortly after 8 am.
The hard rainfall forced the postponement of the Reading Tornado Trot from Saturday to July 11. Organizer Jann Briggs says the rainfall would not bode well for the gravel roads in the area. Volunteers are at Reading City Park until 10 am for people interested in picking up their T-shirts, and Briggs says cyclists can ride at their leisure Saturday but the official fundraiser for Handlebars of Hope will now be in two weeks.
There is a chance of more shower and storm activity Saturday afternoon. There is currently a marginal risk of severe weather, mainly hail and wind, and the overall storm risk hinges on how the atmosphere recharges after the early-morning storms.
Stay updated on KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media. If you have rain totals, call KVOE at 342-1400, email kvoe@kvoe.com or message the Bluestem Farm and Ranch text line at 620-342-5863.
