In the misty backwaters of Indian legend, a fierce prairie tornado struck the Potawatomi tribe encamped along the Kansas River. The dead were buried on and around the 250-foot hill that is now called Burnett's Mound, on the southwestern edge of Topeka, and the Great Spirit was enjoined to protect the place forever from the twister's deadly cone.* Topeka's immunity to catastrophic tornadoes had itself become a legend until 7:13 one evening last week, when most citizens were at dinner. By the time they would have been clearing the table, 15 were dead and 300 injured, and a good...
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