WICHITA, Can. (KWCH) – Update: In a briefing by Andover emergency services, the city’s fire chief, Chad Russell, said there were 966 buildings on the tornado road from where it started in Sedgwick County to Andover and beyond Butler County. Chief Russell confirmed that some neighborhood homes had been destroyed, but there was still no total number of damaged or destroyed structures. Earlier Friday night, the United Way of the Plains reported 50 to 100 damaged structures in Sedgwick County alone.
What started as a funnel eventually touched like a small tornado rope near Andover on Friday night, gaining momentum and growing into a large cone that caused extensive damage in the Wichita suburb.
The confirmed damages include the destruction of homes, significant damage to the Andover YMCA and the Capital Federal Amphitheater in Andover Central Park, as well as the least minor damage to Andover City Hall and Andover Central High School. The United Way of the Plains reported 50 to 100 structures damaged by a tornado on Friday night in Sedgwick County. The total amount, including Butler County, is likely to be much higher. United Way said the YMCA in Andover had suffered a direct hit.
A firefighter on the spot near East 31st Street South and South 137th Street East confirmed a serious but non-life-threatening injury in the neighborhood.
The tornado caused extensive damage to the Andover YMCA. (Alice Morris (left photo))
Greater Wichita’s YMCA issued a statement late Friday night thanking that no one at the Andover facility was injured in the tornado. As expected, the YMCA said the Andover branch would be closed until further notice.
“We are grateful that all the staff and members who took refuge in the branch during the storm were not injured,” the YMCA said.
The tornado that struck Andover came with a powerful storm that continued to move northeast. The tornado was also confirmed near Rosalia, about 16 miles east of El Dorado.
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