Live blog: Wichita under tornado watch until 11 p.m. as severe weather threat moves closer

The Wichita area is under a tornado watch until 11 p.m. Monday.

The National Weather Service warns that extreme weather could strike rapidly in parts of south-central Kansas, central Oklahoma and north-central Texas. The weather service is warning that the storms could be a “particularly dangerous situation” — with the potential for powerful “long-track” tornadoes, softball-sized hail and wind speeds as high as 80 miles an hour.

“Explosive Thunderstorm development is expected within this Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Tornado Watch across parts of TX, OK, and KS this afternoon,” the National Weather Service posted on X. “PDS tornado watches are only issued when multiple strong or violent tornadoes are expected to occur.”

A tornado watch means weather conditions favor thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes. A tornado warning — which usually triggers tornado sirens and phone alerts — means a tornado is expected. If the watch upgrades to a warning, seek shelter immediately.

Tornado warnings were issued in counties in north-central Oklahoma Monday evening until 6:30 p.m., including Enid, Helena and Lahoma. That storm system is expected to move north and east into Kansas Monday evening.

‘Dangerous day’: Wichita in area with greatest threat of tornadoes, severe storms

Here are Wichita-area schools, businesses with closings due to possible severe weather