The Nation - News from May 22, 1989

Thunderstorms flinging hail and high winds battered parts of the central plains, while isolated heavy rains soaked parts of the Gulf Coast. Storms swept across Kansas, dumping baseball-size hail and producing wind gusts of more than 60 m.p.h. Hail also was reported in northeastern Oklahoma. Nearly 1 1/2 inches of rain drenched Goessel, Kan., in just 10 minutes, and two inches of rain fell near Kearney, Mo., in 45 minutes. Rain fell in parts of the Gulf Coast region from Louisiana to northwestern Florida. Meanwhile, thousands of southeast Texans evacuated from their homes last week because of flooding rains were still waiting to return to their residences.