CSW BREAKING: 2-Alarm Fire Added to KC-MO Fire Workload

At least 10 companies of the soon-to-be-reduced Kansas City MO Fire department are battling a 2-alarm fire in a west-Old Northeast apartment building...


The fire is at 3417 East 9th Street in the 2-story brick building shown in the GOOGLE street view image.

The initial alarm sounded at 3:39 pm with the 2nd-alarm sounded at 3:42 pm..

"Heavy (black) smoke" was reported by one responding fire company a half-mile away- and the first scene report was "smoke and fire showing-" beginning several FD response upgrades.

At 4:27 pm- the fire is reported "under control."

Two "minor" injuries were reported- both residents with only one of them taken to a hospital by EMS.

The Red Cross has been requested by the on-scene commanding chief- but not heard was the number of people displaced in this fire.



Earlier- 7 fire companies fought a fire in a 1-story concrete block" building at 9th Street and Wyoming in the West Bottoms.

That fire was reported around 2:05 pm Friday afternoon and went to a "1st-alarm" at 2:14 pm..

The fire- reportedly "wooden pallets in a warehouse-" was brought under control about 20 minutes later and no word on any injuries yet.

Wild-West Kansas City Continues: Homicides 36 and 37

Two more Kansas Citians have died at the hands of thugs...

A 78-year-old man died in what is now reported to be an arson fire in his home in the 4100 block of Wayne around 5 am Wednesday morning.


Mr. George Graham was murdered and his home set on fire and police don't have any leads...



Then this Thursday morning around 1:30 am- a shooting in the 400 block of North Wheeling left another man dead inside a home in that block of Old Northeast Kansas City MO..

KC-MO Police don't have any leads in that murder either.



The two killings leave KC-MO with 37 known homicides so far in 2012- way above the murder rate at this time of the year for the past 3 years. 

CSW Weather: "Slight" Chance of Severe Storms Later Today in Metro Kansas City

A cold front is slowly making it's way southward from the northern Central Sates today- and is forecast to develop thunderstorms along it's advancing edge today- and some of those storms could become severe- according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center (NWS-SPC) .

Severe storms- with large hail and possible damaging wind gusts- are possible later this Thursday afternoon and evening in a swath from southeastern Iowa south-southwestward through northern- western and southwestern Missouri- northeast through south-central Kansas- into Oklahoma and into western north Texas.

All of Metro Kansas City and the MetroRegion except for extreme northwestern Missouri are inside this forecast area.


The risk for tornadoes is low- but as with any severe thunderstorm- there's always a slight chance.


If current shower and thunderstorm activity just to the north of Metro K.C. keeps cloud cover over us- the severe risk lessens.

However if sunshine allows us to warm to a forecast temperature of near 80 degrees- the heat will provide for the instability necessary for storms to develop and become severe- mainly after 3 pm today.


As always- CSW will be onit!

American Bandstand's Dick Clark Dies at Age 82

To paraphrase one of the good man's famous taglines... 

 "Forever, Dick Clark, so long...."

D.C. Senate Republicrats Nix Raising Taxes on Wealthy

Although the current tax rates for America's wealthy is one of the lowest in modern history- U.S. Senate Republicrats killed a proposal to raise those tax rates- according to the ASSOCIATED PRESS story via MyWay news.


If you are not wealthy and you do not vote in political elections- you MIGHT want to reconsider that stance this year and make your voice heard to the GOP (Greedy Old People).

Kansas County Official Criticizes Storm Chasers

Saturday's storms brought not only the well-forecasted severe weather (GREAT job SPC!)- but apparently hordes of storm chasers- and the director of a central Kansas county's emergency management agency was none too happy.


"It was like a funeral procession, bumper to bumper. It was horrible," Dickinson County EM Director Chancy Smith told The SALINA JOURNAL in a story published Monday- April 16- 2012. 

Mr. Smith was referring to his estimate of "350 vehicles" on Dickenson county roads during Saturday and early Sunday's severe thunderstorm and tornado outbreak that killed six people and injured dozens across four Central States and produced more than 120 tornado reports.  


Smith told of an example: While a large tornado was barreling through the county- Smith said storm chasers and others would not yield to emergency vehicles' lights and sirens when county crews were responding to structures damaged by the twister.


"...They wouldn't get over," Smith said of the multitude of vehicles following the tornado. "Some were driving 60 or 70 mph, looking for videos or photos, and they didn't even notice us."


"These morons (the chasers) were driving over power lines. I was worried that we would have to do rescues," Director Smith told SJ's reporter Tim Unruh.


Smith said law enforcement was busy with the unfolding disaster and said "we don't have time to deal with them" when the issue of ticketing law-breaking and uncooperative motorists arose.

CSW BREAKING: Teenager Shot in Olathe KS

A teen-aged male was shot on the street in central Olathe late Sunday night...

According to MEDACT-EMS 1151- "a 17-year-old male had two gunshot wounds" to his abdomen after "somebody" shot at him at Loula and Walnut Street about 10:45 pm.


The victims injuries were at least serious- and Olathe Police didn't have any suspect information available as of this post.

Tornado Strikes Woodward OK Early Sunday Morning - Fatalities Reported

What storm spotters described as "a large tornado" tore through the west and north parts of Woodward Oklahoma about 12:20 am Sunday morning.



Woodward is about 125 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.


According to The OKLAHOMAN online- there are reports of structures damaged and injuries- though the extent of either is unknown as of this post.

However- the WOODWARD NEWS is reporting "four fatalities-" and they report there are children among the dead.


The children reportedly died in "the Hideaway Mobile Home Park" in northwestern Woodward.


Shortly before 4 am Sunday morning- the WOODWARD NEWS was reporting a possible "fifth fatality" from this tornado- an injured person who died in the Woodward hospital.

Also The WOODWARD NEWS reports at least "30 injuries" with at least a third of those in critical condition.


Late Sunday- another person died in a hospital of their injuries- bringing the tornado's death toll to 6 as of Monday morning- April 16..


Woodward city officials say the storm damaged a radio communications link to activate the warning sirens during the storm and the sirens did not sound in most areas of the city.

CSW WEATHER: New Tornado Watch Covers Eastern Kansas- Northwestern Missouri

BUT ... Tornado Watch No. 175 DOES NOT include Metro Kansas City.

The new tornado watch DOES include such MetroRegion Kansas City cities such as Emporia- Topeka- Manhattan and Wichita in Kansas- St. Joseph and Maryville in Missouri until 6 am this Sunday morning.



Current weather radar indicates it will be now toward dawn before any of the existing storm activity approaches Metro Kansas City.

Tornado Damages Much of Thurman Iowa

Around 5:35 pm Saturday evening- a tornado tore through the small town of Thurman Iowa- damaging or destroying "about 75% of the town" of around 250 people- but causing "no injuries-" according to The OMAHA WORLD online.

Thurman is about 35 miles south-southeast of Omaha.


Around 7 pm- a tornado reportedly damaged the hospital and other structures in Creston IA..


The OMAHA WORLD reported a hospital spokesperson said there were no injuries at the damaged hospital- but injuries were reported elsewhere in Creston.

Another long-track tornado later moved from northern Oklahoma into southern Kansas and struck parts of south and southeastern Wichita- as reported here at CSW.