Holiday weather will clear up

By The Hays Daily News

For a few days this week, August and September swapped weather.

Early in the week, thoughts of sweaters were on residents' minds, as the low temperature dipped into the 50s. By week's end, summer had returned, with the mercury jumping back to the upper 80s.

And, this being Kansas, the week ended with a string of thunderstorms moving across the central and western portions of the state, with Hays residents waking this morning to a misty fog shrouding the city.

Despite the uncertainty, National Weather Service forecaster Mike Umscheid is predicting a pleasant holiday weekend as the weather settles somewhat.

Highs Saturday and Sunday should be in the low- to mid-80s, with a south breeze returning. That wind is expected to pick up to 10 to 20 mph over the weekend, especially Sunday afternoon to Monday.

"The next appreciable chance of rain is not even on the scope until Wednesday of next week," Umscheid said.

A string of storms moved through the state Thursday evening, dropping golf-ball size hail near Garden City and Stafford. Reports of smaller hail -- quarter- to ping-pong ball-size -- were coming into the NWS office in Dodge City this morning from Trego County.

Hays received a smattering of quarter-size and smaller hail, accompanied by rain.

Umscheid said early estimateas ranged anywhere from a tenth- to half-inch of rain locally.

"Most of Ellis County was fairly dry," Umscheid said, noting a thin swath of the storm passed directly over Hays with little effect. "Last night's severe activity was a lot of small, individual storm cells."

Umscheid said western Kansas is entering what forecasters call the "second season," the transition from summer to fall where storm activity is more likely to be generated.

The season lasts from about mid-September to mid-October and is traditionally not as active as the spring-to-summer transition.

"It was a relatively benign weather season for Kansas, at least in terms of tornados," Umscheid said, noting that the damage this year was caused by large hail ranging from Garden City to Goodland.