Wilson County sees storm damage, flooding

WILSON COUNTY, Ks. (KOAM) - Wilson County is one area to see damage following this weekend's storms.

The county saw a tornado touch down near Fredonia on Friday, and continued to see damage on Saturday.

"I was out on this side of it watching it, and turned around just ahead of it as it was coming. I would say it was within about half a mile of the community here," says Terry Lyons, Wilson County Emergency Manager.

Community members of Fredonia say they are grateful after the tornadic activity narrowly missed the main part of town.

But Wilson county still saw damage from the storms, including damaged roofs and torn up trees.

“Where it rolled over a horse trailer, took a couple of grain bins, hitting a house, took part of the roof of the house, and a barn wall out,” says Lyons, describing just some of the damage the county saw.

The Emergency Manager says the area also needs to be aware of flooding concerns. He says local reservoirs are expected to be up by around 10 feet.

“We've got floodwaters in the area. Roads are pretty rough. The gravel roads. you know, they've been washed across. Some of them are pretty narrow," says Lyons. "I was just notified by dispatch this morning that a local railroad had notified them that their track had been washed out."

Wilson County officials say they believe the water levels in the area to be receding, but urge the community to still be cautious.

Lyons says while the storms could have proved to be much worse for the area, it did showcase the need to have a safety plan.

"When you think that a storm may be forming and stuff, be prepared to go somewhere so that if it does develop into a tornado, you're you're ready."

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