Snow hits western Kansas; more is on the way

Residents of far western Kansas awoke to a few inches of snow on the ground Saturday – and forecasters say still more is expected to blanket that area by dawn on Sunday.

A foot or more of snow is possible along the Colorado state line by Monday morning, said Marc Russell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Dodge City.

A winter storm warning is in effect for more than a dozen counties across western Kansas until 7 p.m. Sunday, with widespread snowfall totals of 6 to 12 inches possible.

Because temperatures will warm enough on Saturday to turn the precipitation into rain during the day, however, Russell said accumulation on the ground will be less than the total snowfall.

Snowfall totals of 2 to 4 inches west of Garden City were common Saturday morning, Russell said.

Garden City police urged residents to stay home on Saturday if at all possible.

“The storm has caused an extensive amount of tree limbs to fall and take out power lines and become traffic hazards on the streets,” a statement on the department’s Facebook page said. “Be best to stay home unless you have to get out, and if you do drive do not to drive over any downed lines.”

Snow fell for a while in Dodge City but then the moisture transitioned to rain by late morning.

The bulk of the snowfall will occur during the overnight hours into Sunday, Russell said.

Garden City, Dighton, Ulysses and Hugoton could see as much as 11 inches of snow, while areas west of Dodge City could see 3 to 5 inches of snow.

Areas as far east as Hays and Larned could see 2 inches of snow, forecasters say.

Strong winds on Sunday could make travel difficult in parts of western Kansas, Russell said, as steady winds reaching 40 miles an hour at times and gusts reaching 55 miles an hour could reduce visibility due to blowing snow.

This story was originally published April 29, 2017 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Snow hits western Kansas; more is on the way."