Friday morning storms in Kansas City cause power outages, flash flooding, more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Quick-moving storms caused a number of issues throughout Kansas City during rush hour on Friday morning, downing trees and leaving thousands without power across the metro.

At 10:30 a.m., KCP&L reported 432 outages affecting more than 20,000 customers. Westar had more than 230 outages with nearly 11,000 customers impacted.

• KCP&L Outage Map
• Westar Outage Map

In addition to power outages, the short bursts of heavy rain downed trees and led to flash flooding in some areas.

The storms even caused a sinkhole to form in Merriam. Police said westbound 67th Street was closed from southbound Interstate 35 to Carter Street due to the sinkhole and a water main break.

Near 31st Street and Southwest Boulevard in Kansas City, Kansas, a viewer reported what appeared to be a massive water main break.

41 Action News reporter Rae Daniel saw high, standing water near the QuikTrip in that area. Some motorists were choosing to drive into the high water despite warnings from bystanders.

The city of Overland Park, Kansas, also tweeted about a water main break near 95th Street and Lowell Avenue, asking drivers to steer clear of the area. Officials later closed the intersection.

41 Action News also received reports of downed tree limbs in Shawnee and Overland Park.

A large tree fell in Kansas City, Missouri, on Wornall Road near 61st Terrace.

The storms also produced hail of varying sizes across Kansas City. In the Waldo neighborhood, viewers reported pea-sized hail, while on the Kansas side, the hail was the size of a quarter or larger.

The National Weather Service continued to extend severe thunderstorm warnings for the area, and a flash flood warning was issued for the metro just before 8 a.m. That warning was scheduled to remain in effect until 2 p.m. Friday.

41 Action News meteorologists said the line of storms should end between noon and 1 p.m. There was a small chance for another storm to develop late Friday.