Funnel cloud reported near Baldwin City; tornado warning briefly issued

This funnel cloud was seen from near Wells Overlook, south of Lawrence, late Friday afternoon. A tornado warning was briefly issued, but authorities said this and another funnel dissipated before touching down.

A pair of funnel clouds were reported Friday afternoon near Baldwin City, moving east. Early reports suggested the clouds both apparently dissipated without touching down – but the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning, and Douglas County Emergency Management officials later said that at least one had touched down. The warning was lifted at 5:16 p.m.

Raymond and Myrna Ikenberry were making a spaghetti dinner Friday evening when they noticed the sky outside their kitchen window getting murky. When they heard the emergency sirens from Baldwin, they went outside to get a better look.

“We saw a funnel cloud that was bouncing around the clouds, but it never hit the ground,” said Myrna, who lives in the 1200 block of North 900 Road, three miles south of Lawrence. “We could see it perfectly from our porch. The funnel kept getting skinnier and skinnier until it disappeared up in the clouds.

The reports came as heavy rain passed through Douglas County, north of Baldwin City. 6News meteorologist Jennifer Schack said the storm moved slowly through the area.