K.C. MetroRegion WEATHER: NWS-SPC- Severe Thunderstorm Watch No. 687 - MO- NE- IA

This watch is valid until 5am- and includes the Kansas City MetroRegion counties of Holt- Nodaway and Atchison in Missouri.

Thus far- all shower & thunderstorm remains north of U.S. 36 in the KS and MO MetroRegion- well north of Metro KC-MO..

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Thunderstorms Increasing In South-Central Nebraska

An area of thunderstorms continues to grow and intensify to the northwest of the Kansas City MetroRegion- and should begin to affect the far northern portions by midnight.

Other storms should fire up along a cool front heading toward Metro K.C.- and should affect us by dawn Saturday.

No severe weather watches are currently in effect for any part of the MetroRegion- but that situation could change.

CSW will be on it overnight.

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Thunderstorms In The Metro

The showers and storms are mainly over the Kansas side of the Metro- from Leavenworth down into eastern Johnson County KS..

One storm is about to enter south-central KC-MO..

The heaviest storms will produce deadly lightning and torrential rainfalls as the primary hazard or severe threat.

Showers and storms should continue to move through and/or develop over the Metro counties over the next 3-5 hours.

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K.C. MetroRegion WEATHER: NWS-SPC: "Slight Risk" Of Severe Storms Today North

According to the NWS' Storm Prediction Center in Norman-OK- today's forecasted area for possible severe thunderstorms includes the northern portion of the Kansas City MetroRegion.

This forecast is valid until 7am- and changes throughout the day.

Please check the latest weather information later today and overnight tonight for possible developments.

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K.C. MetroRegion WEATHER: Strong Storms In The Kaw Valley

This radar image from the NWS-Topeka (TWX) Doppler indicates some thunderstorms with very heavy rainfall near Lawrence-KS- northern Douglas and southern Jefferson counties in Kansas (KS).

Movement indicates toward Leavenworth County KS if the storms hold together- as additional development is possible over Metro and most of the Kansas City MetroRegion during the next 3-4 hours.

No severe weather is expected but some storms may briefly become so.

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Already Broken News: Another South K.C. MO. Shooting

The call came in around 12:30pm this Thursday afternoon- a reportedly "18-year-old male" had been "shot in the head" in the 9100 block of James A. Reed Road.

A "black male" suspect was "last seen southbound on J.A. Reed on foot" from the scene of the shooting.

I never did hear the condition or medical transport of the shooting victim and police say they're still investigating.

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Associated Press "Faked" By Tornado Video

This is the hot topic on a storm chaser's mailing list I subscribe to- how the AP reportedly purchased and ran video of a supposive tornado near Valentine-NE recently.

Only the footage that was submitted turned out to be of ANOTHER tornado shot by ANOTHER chaser near Rock-KS 4 years ago.

Hell- here the AP story snipped from a storm chaser's email...

"NEW YORK (AP) - The Associated Press and video services operated by CBS and NBC have pulled video allegedly taken of a tornado in Nebraska last weekend after questions were raised about its authenticity.

A tornado chaser has claimed that the video was a doctored version of pictures he had taken of a twister that touched down four years ago in Rock,Kan.

The AP paid another storm chaser, Andy Fabel, $295 for footage of a
tornado that briefly touched down Saturday afternoon near Valentine, Neb.

The video was sent Sunday to nearly 2,000 Web sites that subscribe to the AP's Online Video Network, and more than 60 large digital customers that buy AP's online content individually.

Yet on Tuesday, a person who asked that his name not be used contacted the AP and said the supposed Nebraska footage was really video he had taken four years ago. The image was "flipped" to make it seem the tornado was pointed in another direction, and the action sped up. The Nebraska images add power lines and subtracts trees that were in the Kansas pictures.

Upon seeing the video evidence, the AP eliminated Fabel's video from the Online Video Network late Tuesday and contacted its other customers to urge them not to use it, said Kevin Roach, the AP's acting head of domestic broadcast news operations.

"We never want to mislead people," Roach said. "Based on evidence provided to us, we believe that the video was not authentic."

Fabel did not immediately return an e-mail and message left on his cell phone by the AP. Officials with NBC News Channel and CBS News Path said they had talked to Fabel and he had insisted his pictures were authentic.

Both the NBC and CBS services provide video to the network's affiliates. Both had purchased Fabel's video and sent it out, then took it off their servers on Tuesday after suspicions were raised about its authenticity, representatives said.

"There was enough evidence for us to make it suspect," said Sharon ?Houston, an executive producer with NBC News Channel.

The AP has purchased tornado video from Fabel three times before, Roach said."

In depth discussion found HERE.

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Drive-Time Terror In Swope Park

This hasn't/didn't get QUITE the news media-play I thought it would get...

Quite a few people use Oldham Road through Swope Park for their weekday commute.

Oldham is one of the few through routes (especially when 87th & 95th Streets are messed-up) into southeastern KC-MO and with it's hilly- wooded topography the drive reminds one of the Ozarks.

Tuesday- that ordinarily pleasant drive turned into one of terror for those unfortunate to be nearing the intersection of Hillcrest Road around 5pm.

A man reportedly crashed his car into a tree- then- he got out and started walking away with a loaded rifle.

The man started randomly firing at vehicles that had stopped behind his wrecked car. Their occupants ducked- no one one was hit.

Also in the small traffic jam and several vehicles behind was a female KC-MO police officer. She immediately sounded an assist-the-officer call and gets out of her unmarked car to confront the shooter.

Other officers arrive fast and in the ensuing minutes- the male shooter is brought down by bullets from 5 police officers.

The man dies en route to Research Med Center.

As I stated in a previous post- this is a sign that economic hard times and other factors may increasingly push those on the edge over same....

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Meredith Hoenes Hooks Up With Channel 4

In case you wondered where that formerly KSHB-NBC41 employee went- THIS is from a "fan" site.

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New CSW Feature: Live NWS-SPC-NHC Weather Info Feeds

This new feature is on the far right column of this blog- live RSS feeds of NWS watches and warnings for the Central States of Kansas- Missouri- Nebraska- Iowa- Oklahoma & Arkansas.

In addition- hourly weather observations are now listed for MetroRegion locations as well as Metro Kansas City river & stream level information.

This feature will replace the individual posts for warnings for all MetroRegion locations.

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K.C. MetroRegion Weather: NWS-SPC - "Slight Risk" Of Severe Storms Today - Tonight

The entire Kansas City MetroRegion- including Metro K.C.- is in a forecasted "slight risk" area for severe thunderstorms through 7am Wednesday morning.

The primary severe threats will be strong damaging winds and perhaps some large hail.

Heavy rain will also be a concern. The risk of tornadoes is low.

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South Kansas City Awaits New Soccer Stadium

Here in South Kansas City-MO- we're awaiting construction on the new Wizards soccer stadium & associated development.

One would think a neutron bomb went off driving on Chuck Eddy (Hillcrest) Road between 87th Street and Bannister.

It looks crappier every day.

As reported in this KC STAR article- the City Council approved the area plan in mid-December 2007. The plan called for the 18500-seat soccer stadium to be up and running in 2009.

As of this post in early July 2008- not one shovel of dirt has yet to be turned or wall knocked down on the eyesore Bannister Mall.

I wonder how they're going to tear it all down- site prepare- and put up a new stadium in 18 months?

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First Atlantic Hurricane- Bertha- Forecast To Stay In Ocean Waters

That's the current thinking from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) on the first 'cane of the 2008 season.

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NBC-Universal Buying The Weather (Commercial) Channel For Billions

The Associated Press and other "news" outlets report that The Weather (Commercial) Channel in Atlanta is about to be bought by another media conglomerate.

NBC-Universal has agreed to pay a reported "$3.5-billion" for the cable channel that USED to provide timely national weather information.

The Weather (Commercial) Channel has been under criticism for years now as commercials and non-weather features have seriously undermined the channel's content.

There have also been credibility issues on their reporting- brought to light in early June 1996.

The evening before- a large supercell thunderstorm developed and sat over Leavenworth County for quite awhile- dropping several small tornadoes that produced only scattered light damage.

I videotaped the storm for Channel 4 News from the Lewis & Clark Point on the NW Downtown Loop as the storm sank slowly south into Johnson County after sunset.

JoCo- including Shawnee-KS- got little more than small hail- heavy rain and below severe-criteria wind gusts.

The next morning when they went live again at 4am Central Time- The Weather (Commercial) Channel reported that a "last night a tornado struck Shawnee-KS- causing considerable damage."

Nearly 2 hours later- without explanation- correction or apology- The W(C)C quit reporting the "tornado in Shawnee" during their hour/half-hour weather-news teasers.

(I can only assume they finally received & read the email I sent them that morning- they never did acknowledge or thank me.)

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U.S. Automakers Victims Of Their Own Ignorance

THIS Associated Press story about how Generous Motors is scrambling to pick up the pieces of their shattered American market.

I saw this coming more than 35 years ago after putting asleep one of their small-car disasters.

In late 1972- I bought a Chevy Vega. By late 1974- the decrepit aluminum block engine on the piece of crap locked up.

People I knew that owned Ford's like-built car- the Pinto- expressed similar dissatifaction.

So there we stood by the mid-1970's- American car manufacturers built crappy small cars.

Worse- every time the Feds wanted to raise gasoline mileage standards- American car makers would fight the new standards tooth & nail. Same thing for new safety standards.

It didn't take a masters degree in rocket science to discover that American car makers didn't really care about the American consumer.

So the American consumer who wanted a QUALITY small car bought foreign.

Now- with petro at the $4 mark and rising- the American car makers JUST realized the error of their ways.

About 25 years too damn late I'd say.

Americans' love affair with their vehicles has come to a crossroads.

So too has arrived there the very existence of the American auto maker.

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Does The Kansas City (MO) School District REALLY Care About The Children

Way back in April- those Independence-MO residents of one of the country's most decrepit school systems voted their way out of the KC(MO)SD (KCSD).

Disregard the fact that these same residents have ALREADY paid for the school buildings to be transferred from the KCSD to the Independence School District (IPD)- the KCSD wants more money.

So to that end game- the KCSD continues to hem-haw around and not give the ISD title or even access to the buildings in question- this with the 2008-09 school year just a month or so away from beginning.

My ONE question to the so-called leaders of the KCSD: Do you care about the children?

They are answering that question today and the days to come- until they allow the ISD into the buildings that voters removed from one of America's piss-poor excuses for an education entity- the KCSD.

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