Kansas City weather turns dangerous Friday as a First Alert Weather Alert Day brings the risk of strong to severe thunderstorms across the area. A Friday morning data update shifted the timeline, with storms now able to fire up ahead of a cold front as early as 1 p.m. in the Kansas City metro area.
The first round could be followed by a second line of thunderstorms between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. as the front moves through. The system should start leaving the metro as early as 7 p.m. and move east of the coverage area between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m.
The biggest threat remains strong straight-line winds, with models showing gusts over 70 miles per hour. The storms also could produce strong hail cores with large hail on the ground, and conditions may support a tornado or two. KMBC 9's Futurescan shows the storms beginning to bow as they pass over Kansas City, a setup that can accelerate outflow winds to more than 70 miles per hour as they move through Henry and Johnson counties in Missouri.
The Storm Prediction Center has placed the area under a broad severe risk for tonight, and Kansas City is included in the zone for the strongest winds. That matters because the system could be over the area during the peak evening commute, when even a short burst of damaging wind can slow traffic and create sudden hazards on the road.
A few light showers could linger into the overnight hours, but nothing severe is expected after the main line passes. Saturday is expected to stay breezy with a high of 58 degrees, followed by a drop to 38 degrees Sunday morning and a rebound to 69 degrees Sunday afternoon. The next chance for showers and storms is not expected until next Thursday and Friday.
For today, the answer is simple: Friday's kansas city weather setup is most dangerous from early afternoon through the evening commute, with damaging wind the main concern and severe storms clearing by late night.