Tornado Spotted in Smithville

Two tornado warnings were issued today by the National Weather Service for parts of Clay and Platte counties.

Tornado Spotted in Smithville - Photo by Caleb Elliot

NWS said it detected a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado over Smithville just after 1 pm with radar-indicated rotation. Shortly after the warning was issued, spotters reported a tornado on the ground in the vicinity of Smithville.

Caleb Elliot was in the area of KK Highway, just north of Smithville when he captured pictures of the tornado which reportedly touched down briefly but caused no known damage at this point.

A second tornado was indicated on radar in the area of Excelsior Springs but was never observed by spotters and did not touch down.

All of the warnings in the area were cancelled by 2:30 pm.

KPGZ News - Jim Dickerson contributed to this report