Between 7:00-11:30 p.m. CDT on this Thursday evening, scattered thunderstorms rumbled through much of the western half of South Central Nebraska (mainly affecting counties along and west of the Highway 281 corridor.) Although the majority of this activity was fairly weak (producing no more than gusty winds up to 40-50 MPH and perhaps small hail), there were a pair of confirmed instances of intense microburst winds that caused localized damage. Interestingly, both of these episodes occurred within the same 30-minute span between 10-11 p.m. CDT, but were separated by nearly 80 miles...one in northern Gosper County and the other in central Howard County. Starting with the Gosper County event, this one was a bit sneaky as radar data depicted what appeared to be a fairly benign cluster of weakening convection. However, a localized downburst unfolded between Elwood and Johnson Lake, destroying a metal outbuilding around the same time a nearby mesonet clocked an unofficial gust of 70 MPH. A short time later, a similar microburst event occurred in central Howard County, but this time featuring a more telling radar signature as a small storm briefly intensified before abruptly collapsing. In the process, a small rural area between St. Paul and Farwell suffered damage to trees (a few uprooted), grain bins and an irrigation pivot (nickel size hail also occurred in the area). Around the same time, radar data suggested that another storm over Greeley County might have breached severe levels, but no verifying reports materialized. Elsewhere in the local area, the Ord airport registered a near-severe gust of 54 MPH.
The first scattered storms of the evening within South Central Nebraska infiltrated several western counties (mainly Dawson/Gosper/Furnas/Phelps) between 7-9 p.m. CDT, an eastward expansion of activity that had earlier initiated over southwest Nebraska/northwest Kansas. Between 9-11 p.m. CDT convection expanded both eastward and northeastward toward the Highway 281 corridor. However, once the last robust storm of the evening departed the local area out of Greeley County by 11:30 p.m. CDT, the remainder of the night featured no more than spotty, weak activity. This was a weakly-forced event in the mid-upper levels, as South Central Nebraska resided under modest west-southwest flow aloft, along the southeastern periphery of a broad trough centered over the Northern Rockies. However, the evening mesoscale environment was nonetheless supportive of severe storms, featuring 1000-3000 J/kg mixed-layer CAPE and 30-35 knots of effective deep-layer wind shear.

Thunderstorm Wind in HOWARD, NEBRASKA
From 26-AUG-21 21:37:00 to 26-AUG-21 21:39:00 (CST-6)
Location: FARWELL
Magnitude: 65.00 EG
Property damage: 200.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: NWS Employee

An isolated microburst with estimated gusts of 75 MPH caused localized damage. Crops were damaged, a few large trees were uprooted and tree limbs downed, grain bins were damaged and an irrigation pivot was overturned.

Hail in HOWARD, NEBRASKA
From 26-AUG-21 21:44:00 to 26-AUG-21 21:44:00 (CST-6)
Location: ELBA
Magnitude: 0.88 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Social Media

Nickel size hail was reported three miles south of Elba on Highway 11.

Thunderstorm Wind in GOSPER, NEBRASKA
From 26-AUG-21 21:15:00 to 26-AUG-21 21:16:00 (CST-6)
Location: ELWOOD
Magnitude: 61.00 MG
Property damage: 25.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

A wind gust of 70 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located three miles south-southeast of Johnson Lake. In this same area, a metal outbuilding was destroyed two miles north of Elwood.