A tornado watch is in effect until midnight for Mid-Missouri as the possibility of severe weather continues this evening.
The watch area stretches from southwest Missouri to the northeast corner of the state. The National Weather Service (NWS) issues a tornado watch whenever weather conditions are ripe for the possible formation of tornadoes.
Trained weather spotters reported seeing funnel clouds, wall clouds (which often accompany the formation of tornadoes) and hail in parts of Mid-Missouri late Thursday afternoon.
A funnel was seen in the air, but not touching the ground, south of Marion in northwest Cole County around 5:18 p.m. Another report of a funnel cloud was filed north of Lake Mykee in Callaway County around 5:39 p.m. (See additional area spotter reports below.)
Elsewhere, at least four homes have been damaged in northwest Missouri as the violent weather swept across the state Thursday.
A trained spotter reported a tornado on the ground for six miles in the Trenton area of northwest Missouri's Grundy County. Emergency management said a house near Tindall lost its roof, and a road and bridge barn in the town was heavily damaged.
In nearby Daviess County, emergency management said high winds damaged two homes in Jameson and a mobile home in Winston.
Additional:
Video: Homes damaged by possible tornado in Trenton, Mo.
Video: Helicopter footage of tornado damage in Grundy County
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Below is a list of storm reports compiled by the NWS around Mid-Missouri Thursday. These are arranged in reverse chronological order, with the newest on top and the oldest at the bottom.
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0755 PM HAIL HICKORY HILL 38.40N 92.36W
03/27/2014 E0.25 INCH COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
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0746 PM HAIL HICKORY HILL 38.40N 92.36W
03/27/2014 E0.88 INCH COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
DIME TO NICKEL SIZED HAIL.
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0721 PM HAIL 5 NW ASHLAND 38.83N 92.32W
03/27/2014 E0.25 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
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0715 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.70 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
DIME SIZED HAIL COVERING THE GROUND TO A DEPTH OF AROUND ONE-HALF INCH.
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0710 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.50 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
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0708 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.25 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
ON NORTH SIDE OF COLUMBIA
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0707 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 M1.00 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
HAIL HAS GOTTEN BIGGER...NOW QUARTER SIZE IN DOWNTOWN COLUMBIA.
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0706 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.25 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
DOWNTOWN COLUMBIA.
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0653 PM HAIL 1 N COLUMBIA 38.97N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.50 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
APPROIXIMATELY 5 MILES NORTH OF INTERSTATE 70...ABOUT 1 MILE NORTH OF COLUMBIA CITY LIMITS.
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0622 PM HAIL 2 NE HICKORY HILL 38.42N 92.33W
03/27/2014 E0.75 INCH COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
HAIL RANGED IN SIZE FROM PEAS TO PENNIES.
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0612 PM WALL CLOUD 2 SW BRAZITO 38.43N 92.31W
03/27/2014 COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
SPOTTER LOOKING SOUTHWEST TOWARD ELDON.
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0539 PM WALL CLOUD COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
0539 PM HAIL COLUMBIA 38.95N 92.33W
03/27/2014 M0.75 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
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0539 PM FUNNEL CLOUD LAKE MYKEE 38.68N 92.10W
03/27/2014 CALLAWAY MO TRAINED SPOTTER
LOOKING TO THE NORTH AND SEES A FUNNEL CLOUD IN DISTANCE.
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0529 PM WALL CLOUD 2 S ASHLAND 38.74N 92.26W
03/27/2014 BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
SPOTTER LOOKING NORTH.
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0518 PM FUNNEL CLOUD 5 S MARION 38.62N 92.37W
03/27/2014 COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
FUNNEL HALFWAY DOWN TO GROUND AND THEN QUICKLY DISSIPATED. SPOTTER LOOKING NORTH.
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0514 PM HAIL 3 NW HALLSVILLE 39.15N 92.26W
03/27/2014 E0.50 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
HAIL COVERING GROUND.
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0509 PM WALL CLOUD 5 E CALIFORNIA 38.63N 92.47W
03/27/2014 MONITEAU MO TRAINED SPOTTER
SPOTTER LOOKING NORTHWEST.
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0506 PM HAIL HARRISBURG 39.14N 92.46W
03/27/2014 E1.00 INCH BOONE MO TRAINED SPOTTER