PAOLA — The National Weather Service says a tornado near the eastern Kansas town of Paola was a small one, but it was still enough to cause damage.
The Kansas City Star reports that the twister with winds estimated at 80 mph to 85 mph was reported at 4:10 a.m. Monday just south of Paola. Jason Leighton of the National Weather Service says it was an EF-0, 15 yards wide, and lasted three minutes.
The tornado damaged the roof of Trinity Lutheran Church and toppled headstones in a nearby cemetery. It also bent a flag pole. No injuries were reported.
The twister was the first one of the year reported in the weather service’s Kansas City region. Paola is a town of 5,600 residents 45 miles southwest of Kansas City, Missouri.
