Powerful storms tear through Southwest Missouri and Southeast Kansas overnight

KRPS | By Fred Fletcher-Fierro

Published July 31, 2023 at 9:38 AM CDT

According to the National Weather Service office in Springfield, MO the storm produced straight line winds between 60 and 70 miles per hour with gusts as high as 75 miles per hour. It came out of the north and covered a wide area from Fort Scott/Nevada all the way down to Joplin, eventually pushing through Branson knocking out power for 1,000’s of residents overnight.

Overnight storms tore through much of the Four States, leaving behind numerous downed tree limbs and power lines. KRPS’s Fred Fletcher-Fierro spoke with Eric Wise of the the National Weather Service in Springfield, Missouri.

The office’s coverage area includes all of southwest Missouri and much of southeast Kansas, including Pittsburg, KS

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Fred Fletcher-Fierro

Since 2017 Fred Fletcher-Fierro has driven up Highway 171 through thunderstorms, downpours, snow, and ice storms to host KRPS’s Morning Edition. He’s also a daily reporter for the station, covering city government, elections, public safety, arts, entertainment, culture, sports and more. Fred has also spearheaded and overseen a sea change in programming for KRPS from a legacy classical station to one that airs a balance of classical, news, jazz, and cultural programming that better reflects the diverse audience of the Four States. For over two months in the fall of 2022 he worked remotely with NPR staff to relaunch krps.org to an NPR style news and information website.

In the fall of 2023 Fred was promoted to Interim General Manager and was appointed GM in Feburary of 2024.

See stories by Fred Fletcher-Fierro