Severe wind gusts occurred with a line of thunderstorms across portions of south central Nebraska and north central Kansas on the evening of July 2nd. Fairly typical summertime weather pattern occurred on this day in which scattered thunderstorms developed over the High Plains during the late afternoon, posing a tornado and large hail threat, then organized into a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) as they shifted eastward through the evening into an increasing moist, and unstable environment. As is often the case with QLCS events in this part of the country during this time of year, severe wind gusts were the primary threat. Thunderstorm mergers over extreme southwest Nebraska and northwest Kansas promoted the development of a significant pool of cold air which caused a segment of thunderstorms, within the broader line of thunderstorms, to quickly accelerate eastward into western portions of the County Warning Area (CWA) between 7-8pm CDT. By the time this activity arrived it already had a history of producing widespread 60-70mph wind gusts, and even isolated 70-80+mph wind gusts in the vicinity of Hill City, Kansas. The bowing line of thunderstorms continued to produce a swath of severe winds as it moved through the southern half (or so) of the CWA through the late evening hours. For north central Kansas, severe wind reports were most concentrated across areas south of Highway 36 and west of Highway 281. The strongest reported gust was 70mph in Plainville, Kansas. Damage to trees and power lines were the main impacts of the severe wind. The strongest thunderstorm cores, on the leading edge of the QLCS, exited the area to the southeast by around midnight. Trailing stratiform rain lingered for a couple more hours.
As mentioned above, the meteorological conditions were quite typical for this area for early July. A warm and moist air mass and steep mid level lapse rates supported very strong instability (MLCAPE 4000-5000 J/kg) across a large portion of the Central Plains. A broad upper level ridge axis was in place from the southern Plains into the Upper Mississippi River Valley, resulting in weak southwesterly flow aloft. Because of the upper ridging, deep layer wind shear was weak at less than 30 knots, with much of the shear owing to veering of wind direction in the low to mid levels. This indicates that primarily mesoscale features such as an MCV and a strong cold pool were the main factors that supported severe wind in this event, and not synoptic scale features. Downdraft CAPE values in excess of 1500 J/kg were indicative of the strong potential for cool pool development.

Thunderstorm Wind in ROOKS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:59:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:59:00 (CST-6)
Location: WOODSTON
Magnitude: 56.00 EG
Property damage: 2.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Law Enforcement

A tree was blown down on 30 Road between E and F Roads.

Thunderstorm Wind in PHILLIPS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:15:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:15:00 (CST-6)
Location: LOGAN
Magnitude: 58.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in ROOKS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:24:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:24:00 (CST-6)
Location: PALCO
Magnitude: 50.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in ROOKS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:41:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:41:00 (CST-6)
Location: STOCKTON
Magnitude: 51.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in PHILLIPS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:51:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:51:00 (CST-6)
Location: PHILLIPSBURG ARPT
Magnitude: 55.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: AWOS

Thunderstorm Wind in ROOKS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:54:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:54:00 (CST-6)
Location: PLAINVILLE
Magnitude: 61.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Storm Chaser

Thunderstorm Wind in PHILLIPS, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 19:56:00 to 02-JUL-20 19:56:00 (CST-6)
Location: KIRWIN
Magnitude: 59.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in OSBORNE, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 20:04:00 to 02-JUL-20 20:04:00 (CST-6)
Location: ALTON
Magnitude: 53.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in SMITH, KANSAS
From 02-JUL-20 20:09:00 to 02-JUL-20 20:09:00 (CST-6)
Location: HARLAN
Magnitude: 55.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet