A tornado hits Kansas City just after England arrives at the World Cup base

The tornado hit Kansas City just hours after the England team landed at their base for the World Cup in the city. Thomas Tuchel's team arrived in the Midwest on Saturday afternoon after a day and a half in Florida, where they held community training at their Swope Soccer Village base at 5 p.m. local time (11 p.m. ET). When the team started training, the sun was still shining brightly and the temperature was 30 degrees Celsius. However, a tornado warning was issued for parts of the city as storms were forecast for the evening.  Fears of extreme weather came true when the National Weather Service issued a warning: "SEVERE STORM WARNING with the requirement to take shelter in a safe building away from windows. Flying debris could be fatal to those who do not find shelter." England's players were given direct instructions to go to shelter as sirens rang across the city. Due to the upcoming warning, the Kansas City Fan Festival closed early for safety reasons. Organizers said in a statement: "Due to expected extreme weather conditions, the Fifa Fan Festival will close at 5pm and will not reopen today. The safety of audiences, staff, volunteers and artists remains our priority." England's pre-tournament camp in Florida was riddled with weather problems, including the delay of their final friendly match against Costa Rica by an hour due to a storm, but none of these incidents were as serious as a tornado. All 26 England players trained in the scorching heat before the weather deteriorated after checking into the Inn at Meadowbrook on the city's south side. Several hundred people welcomed them at the hotel, and 700 spectators watched the training session. England's arrival came after their base was robbed of training equipment, including shoes and official tournament balls, which were stolen on Friday. Tuchel's team opens its World Cup campaign against Croatia on Wednesday, followed by further Group L matches against Ghana and Panama. --- ## Related Articles 1. [Klose hopes ‘genius’ Messi breaks his World Cup scoring record](https://pitchpulsemedia.com/en/news/klose-hopes-genius-messi-breaks-his-world-cup-scoring-record) 2. [May buhay ba labas ng World Cup? Limang kuwento ngayong Linggo](https://azkalsgoal.com/fil/news/may-buhay-ba-labas-ng-world-cup-limang-kuwento-ngayong-linggo)