Serious tornado threat for much of Kansas and Oklahoma Saturday

If you live in central and eastern Kansas or Oklahoma and have somehow missed the alerts, there's a very high risk of strong, long-tracked tornadoes striking Saturday.

Here's the Storm Prediction Center map outlining the danger:

Supercell thunderstorms figure to be isolated, but any tornadoes that develop are expected to be especially dangerous --- not just because of their intensity but because they'll be moving at 50 miles an hour or more. If you live in the areas shaded red, make tornado safety precautions now and be prepared to take shelter on short notice.

As fast as these tornadoes will be moving, there won't be much time to react. Weather officials haven't issued warnings this serious this much in advance since the deadly Deep South outbreak of April 27, 2011.

Weather researchers I know say this atmospheric set-up is very similar to April 26, 1991, when a significant outbreak produced numerous tornadoes in Oklahoma and Kansas. One of the tornadoes was an F5 that struck Haysville, south Wichita, McConnell Air Force Base and Andover. 17 people died.

What was likely an even stronger tornado touched down in Cowley County and killed one person.

Keep an eye on conditions Saturday and be prepared to take shelter.