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By Anna Skinner
Associate News Editor
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A Democrat lawmaker from Kansas is demanding answers from the Trump administration over what she says were troubling delays in tornado warnings ahead of a recent severe weather outbreak that struck parts of the state, raising broader concerns over staffing and operational changes at the National Weather Service (NWS), as more intense storms are expected this weekend.
The scrutiny centers on delays in tornado alerts issued before multiple twisters struck northeastern Kansas earlier this month. The NWS Storm Prediction Center did not identify a tornado threat in the region until late in the day, and a tornado watch was issued about 30 minutes before the first storm touched down, NBC News reported. Concern has arisen that recent operational changes at the NWS, including adjustments to weather balloon launch schedules, are a possible factor in reduced lead time, though the agency has said those changes have not compromised forecasts.
On Friday, U.S. Representative Sharice Davids, whose district includes communities hit by tornadoes earlier this month, expressed concern that weather balloon launches again did not occur as scheduled.
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"This is outrageous. Even @POTUS’ former @NOAA Chief Scientist is sounding the alarm," she wrote in the post. "Tornado warnings were delayed last week in Kansas, and THIS MORNING, the administration did it again. Kansans deserve answers because their safety is on the line."
Included within the post was a map showing where weather balloon launches occurred at 12 Coordinated Universal Time.
Her comments followed a string of tornadoes that developed rapidly in northeastern Kansas on April 13, damaging homes and businesses and injuring at least three people. While no fatalities were reported, residents and meteorologists alike questioned why the threat was not flagged earlier in the day. Again, Davids brought up concerns about forecasts on Friday, with her post about weather balloons.
However, an NWS spokesperson told Newsweek that the NWS offices in Topeka, Kansas, and Omaha, Nebraska, which fell within the area of concern on the map Davids shared, did launch their balloons on Friday. The map in Davids' post showed the launches that occurred during the time slot before the Topeka and Omaha offices launched their balloons later in the day.
"NWS policy allows for balloon launches twice daily at any of four times of day," the spokesperson said, specifying that the launch times occur in Zulu time. Both Topeka and Omaha launched their balloons at noon Central time.
The Kansas City office, which also falls within the map's area of concern, is not an Upper Air launch site.
Davids echoed those concerns in a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and senior weather officials, citing reports that some NWS offices did not conduct traditional early morning weather balloon launches on the day of the storms. Such launches have long been considered a key tool for assessing instability and wind conditions that can fuel severe weather.
"The fact that Kansans avoided catastrophic loss in this instance does not excuse these breakdowns—it underscores how close we came, and what could happen if these failures continue,” Davids wrote in the letter. “These irresponsible decisions at the NWS have direct, real-world consequences for the safety of communities across Kansas and the country. Kansans should not have to wonder whether the systems designed to protect them are fully operational when severe weather strikes.”
The NWS has pushed back on the criticism, saying its local offices remain staffed and equipped to carry out their mission. Officials have emphasized that forecasting severe weather can be especially difficult on days when storm development is uncertain and conditions change quickly.
What Happens Next
Davids' comments come as the NWS Storm Prediction Center warns that a severe weather outbreak is possible in parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas this weekend, including dangerous tornadoes. Their messaging was issued days in advance of the threat, and center continues to provide updates as the threat gets closer. Independent meteorologists have also raised concerns about the potential storm setup this weekend, which could fuel the twisters.
On Friday, the center issued an enhanced risk alert for the area.
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